Beehiiv or Substack – Expert Analysis!

So, you’ve been toying with the concept of transforming your email list into an income stream, yet you’re bewildered by all the options available. Noise familiar? You’re not the only one. If you’ve been making use of a fundamental e-mail service and scraping your head regarding sponsorships, ads, and paid registrations, it may be time to check out beehiiv. In this guide, I’ll walk you with every little thing you need to understand about utilizing beehiiv to turn your e-newsletter into money– all from my own experience. Ready? Let’s dive in Beehiiv or Substack

Why You Could be Stuck with Your Current Email Platform

You have actually probably attempted the usual suspects: Mailchimp, ConvertKit (now Kit), Substack, or something comparable. And if you resemble most small-scale content creators, right here’s what likely took place:

Minimal Monetization Choices

You have a handful of loyal customers– possibly 500 to 1,000 people– but absolutely no simple way to make money. Sponsorships feel like an international language, and you’re not keen on cold-emailing brand names each month.

DIY Automation Headaches

You intend to leak campaign brand-new clients, send out a welcome collection, and section individuals for targeted emails … yet setting up those automations seems like you need a computer technology level.

Platform Fees Draw

Every single time you think about paid subscriptions, the platform takes a big chunk, and the settlement configuration is extra complex than it’s worth.

Growth Delays

Development hacks appear to work for every person else– yet not for you. You want there was an easy means to locate brand-new clients without manually chasing them down.

I remained in your shoes at the beginning of 2024. I would certainly been using Kit (previously ConvertKit), however it seemed like a dead end for monetization. Do not get me wrong– Kit is excellent for building funnels and setting up basic automations. However when it concerned making a couple of hundred bucks a month from a small checklist, there wasn’t an evident “on” switch.

Go into beehiiv.

My Switch to beehiiv: A Fact Inspect

In January 2024, I finally shot and relocated my newsletter from Kit to beehiiv. Here’s the honest truth: I really did not have time to pursue sponsors, bargain rates, or develop challenging paid funnels. I run a search engine optimization composing service full time, so my e-newsletter was constantly going to be a side project. I needed something that virtually ran itself.

The “Market Me” Moment

What offered me on beehiiv was simple:

Built-In Monetization: Right from the beginning, beehiiv shouts, “Hey, you can make money below!” It wasn’t an afterthought or a third-party add-on.
Low-Effort Sponsorships: As opposed to me scouring LinkedIn for sponsors, beehiiv brings offers directly to my control panel. All I need to do is click “accept,” drop in the ad copy, and struck send out.
Passive Earnings Boosts: By promoting other newsletters in my regular e-mail, I earn $1–$ 3 per referred subscriber. No hefty lifting, no difficult analytics– just constant, incremental revenue.

Looter alert: It settled. In my first full year on beehiiv (2024 ), I pulled in $940 from advertisement sponsorships and boosts alone– on a list that never covered 1,000 clients. I really did not produce a paid program. I really did not launch a product and I just let beehiiv do its point.

My Partner Program Windfall

As if that wasn’t sufficient, I additionally joined the beehiiv Partner Program– essentially an affiliate program. By blogging about beehiiv on my blog site and sharing my experience with chums, I swiped $5,108 in referral commissions via completion of 2024. Yep, you review that right: over five grand, simply by talking about the platform.

So if you’re asking yourself whether beehiiv deserves it for tiny makers or newbies, take my word: It’s a game-changer. Yet, naturally, it isn’t remarkable. Let’s break down the good, the poor, and the great things you require to know.

The Advantage of Using beehiiv

1. Monetization Made Unbelievably Simple

What I like best concerning beehiiv is how simple it is to generate income on autopilot. You don’t require a huge target market. Here’s how it works:

Ad Network Sponsorships: Once you strike just 1,000 energetic customers, brands begin lining up. You obtain 3– 6 advertisement requests monthly generally. You select the ones you like, put the duplicate, and you’re done. They ppc or see– no complex invoicing. And due to the fact that beehiiv matches you with appropriate brands, your customers are more probable to click.
Boosts Referral Revenue: Do not have sponsors yet? Not a problem. Promote other developer newsletters for $1–$ 3 per customer. It resembles Amazon’s affiliate program, but for e-mail checklists. I gained several hundred bucks this way without breaking a sweat.
Paid Subscriptions (When You’re Ready): Down the line, if you make a decision to charge for premium material, beehiiv takes a marginal cost (2.9% + $0.30 per transaction via Stripe). You can establish multiple pricing tiers, run totally free trials, and even let customers “call their price.”.
Partner Program Payments: Not in it for the brief haul? Enroll in the affiliate program. Earn 60% payment on beehiiv’s regular monthly or yearly plans when a person signs up with your code. It’s essentially extra cash for sharing something you already enjoy.

Simply put, beehiiv turns money making into a built-in feature, as opposed to a task you dread.

2. Analytics That Do Not Make Your Head Explode

If you’ve ever before looked at a dashboard thinking, “What does any of this really mean?”, you’ll appreciate beehiiv’s strategy:.

Clear Client Development Charts: See exactly how many brand-new individuals signed up with, the number of left, and why your checklist diminished (much more on that particular in a sec).
Open and Click Prices: Beehiiv breaks down performance over the last 30 days, so you can detect trends immediately. For example, I kept an eye on my open rate (floating around 64%– okay) and my click-through (around 3.5%). If either statistics dips, I modify my subject lines or calls-to-action.
Money making Dashboards: Sponsorship profits, boosts earnings, companion referral incomes– you understand. Revenue streams are nicely separated so nothing obtains lost in the shuffle.

It’s like having a sidekick who informs you, “Hey, your January e-mail eliminated it– below’s why,” or “Uh oh, your February open prices are tanking– let’s fix this.”.

3. Growing Your Listing Without Offering Your Heart

A lot of e-newsletter systems will certainly charge you for every single extra subscriber after a limit. Not so with beehiiv– for approximately 2,500 customers, it’s cost-free. You get:.

Limitless e-mail sends out.
Accessibility to the boosts network (expand your audience by promoting your e-newsletter on other beehiiv newsletters).
Fundamental analytics and forms.

If you’re a newbie or have a little target market, this is big. You can experiment with subject lines, send regularity, and various lead magnets without stressing over hitting a paywall.

4. Integrated Web Site & Personalized Pages

Think of dumping WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace completely since your newsletter platform doubles as a website builder. That’s beehiiv in a nutshell:.

Newsletter Archive Pages: All your past e-mails live on a blog-like web page that’s immediately SEO-optimized.
Custom Landing Pages: Need a lead magnet page? A thank-you page? A web page to offer an item? You can construct it right in beehiiv’s website builder.
Mobile-Friendly Templates: Every little thing looks wonderful on phones– important since a lots of people check out emails on mobile.

Sure, you will not obtain every expensive drag-and-drop that a committed website builder uses, but also for many creators, it’s sufficient.

5. Referral Program to Turbo Charge Growth

Beehiiv’s referral program is outstanding if you wish to take advantage of a community of like-minded designers. When your customer clicks “Recommend This E-newsletter” and signs up with, both you and the referring maker obtain credit. It’s a clever means to expand your listing without spamming.

The Downsides: What to Keep an eye out for

No product is excellent– and beehiiv has its missteps. Prior to you dive in, below’s what could journey you up:.

Feature Overload initially

When you visit, there are numerous alternatives– Types, Boosts, Ads, Partner Program, Analytics, Website Builder– that it can feel overwhelming. If you’ve only utilized an easy service that sends one-off emails, you might require a couple of days to get comfy.

Unimportant Advertisement Requests

Occasionally the sponsors beehiiv matches you with have nothing to do with your specific niche. A pc gaming e-newsletter might obtain used a code-review device for programmers. Make certain to decline anything that does not jive with your audience, or you’ll tank your click-throughs.

No Time Zone– Based Sends

If your checklist is worldwide, you can’t immediately arrange e-mails based upon each subscriber’s time zone. All sends go out at once, so you could awaken to reduced open prices if half your listing is asleep.

Custom-made Web Page Builder Isn’t Very Intuitive

Developing a landing page is feasible, yet the UI could be smoother. I invested a couple of hours (and a handy chat with assistance) obtaining a free offer opt-in page perfect. If you’re impatient or design-averse, you could locate it clunky.

Minimal Integrations

If you use Gumroad to market items, you’re out of good luck– no direct integration yet. You’ll have to make use of embed codes or a Zapier workaround.

All that stated, beehiiv’s team is frequently rolling out updates– and those cons are gradually however undoubtedly being attended to.

Who Should Consider beehiiv?

Not everyone requires a fully featured e-newsletter platform. Yet if any one of the adhering to describes you, beehiiv might be a match made in heaven:.

Absolute Beginners: You’ve never sent an email blast, you don’t wish to invest cash ahead of time, and you need a totally free, simple method to experiment. Beehiiv allows you begin completely free, send endless e-mails to approximately 2,500 customers, and expand naturally with the boosts network.
Small-List Creators: If you currently have a few hundred or a couple thousand customers but no hint exactly how to turn that into revenue, beehiiv’s ad and boost programs are custom-made for you. In my initial 10 months, I was making regarding $92/month with a ~ 1k checklist. Tolerable for coffee cash, right?
Developers Who Dislike “Salesy” Things: You don’t intend to pitch products continuously or sling digital training courses. You prefer to share value, construct trust, and let the cash can be found in on auto-pilot. Beehiiv’s ad network and boosts let you gain without crafting a four-part sales funnel.
Switchers Who Do Not Want to Reconstruct Everything: Possibly you’re on Substack, Ghost, or Mailchimp, and your email automations are a twisted mess. Beehiiv guarantees a smooth migration from those systems. And also, if you have a big list (state 10k+), you can obtain assist from beehiiv’s assistance group to move every little thing over without losing your automations.

Getting going: A Detailed Walkthrough

Join and Check Out the Control panel

When you produce an account, beehiiv drops you right into a dashboard where you see your subscriber matter, open rates, click-through prices, and any type of pending ad deals. Think about it as your mission control– everything you need is simply a click away.

Develop Your First Subscribe Form

Navigate to Audience �’ Subscribe Kinds �’ Create Brand-new Kind. You’ll need:

A headline that hooks visitors
A brief blurb discussing what your e-newsletter has to do with
A call-to-action button (e.g., “Join My E-newsletter”)
Your logo or an appropriate picture
A post-subscribe message or redirect (e.g., “Many thanks for signing up with! Inspect your inbox in a sec.”)

You can choose from various form designs: full-width, fixed-width, slim embed (simply the e-mail field), or advanced (with tracking codes). The customization choices are basic– shades for switches and history images– however it’s remarkably efficient for recording emails.

Set Up Your Website and Custom Pages

If you desire more than just a type, hop into Layout �’ Website Builder �’ Customized Pages �’ Internal Web Page. Utilize this to:

Host your e-newsletter archive (all past concerns, searchable and SEO-friendly).

Produce a landing page for a giveaway (e.g., “Download my SEO rip off sheet”).

Construct a thank-you page that goes online after somebody subscribes.

I invested a few hours tweaking my first landing page, but once I got the hang of it, I realized just how powerful it is to have whatever under one roof covering. Rather than managing Leadpages, WordPress, and Mailchimp, beehiiv does it all.

Draft Your Very First E-newsletter

Click the large “Beginning Composing” button in the top-right edge. You’ll see a clean, distraction-free editor where you can:

Compose your e-mail duplicate Beehiiv or Substack
Place images, headers, and customized HTML obstructs
Preview just how it’ll search in inboxes and on your internet site
Arrange or send out promptly

One catch: Customization is limited. Every customer sees “Hi there” instead of “Hi [First Name]” If you need hyper-personalization, you could miss out on that. But also for a lot of folks, a pleasant, conversational intro is enough.

Activate Monetization

As soon as you strike 1,000 active subscribers, beehiiv will welcome you to:.

Sign Up With the Ad Network: Immediately receive sponsorship demands that match your specific niche. Pick which ones to accept, place the ad duplicate into your newsletter, and make money per click/view.
Set Up Boosts: Relate to promote various other e-newsletters. If somebody joins via your link, you make $1–$ 3 per customer.

For paid e-newsletters, navigate to Money making �’ Paid Registrations. You’ll attach your Stripe account (beehiiv does not charge added charges past Stripe’s processing), establish your pricing plans (monthly, yearly, or “Name Your Rate”), and decide what material goes behind the paywall.

Monitor and Maximize

Check your analytics weekly. If open rates drop listed below 40%, rethink your subject lines. If a sponsorship obtains absolutely no clicks, it could be pointless to your target market– decrease comparable future ads. When a boost converts well, send more boost demands or tweak your offer.

It could feel like a great deal initially, but I guarantee you’ll get the hang of it within a few days. And the rewards– both financial and in terms of your target market’s development– are worth the first contour.

Deep Dive: beehiiv’s Money making Options

If you’re serious about transforming your newsletter into a money-making equipment, let’s break down each earnings stream carefully.

1. beehiiv Partner Program (Affiliate Incomes)

Consider this as beehiiv’s affiliate program. Below’s the lowdown:.

How It Functions: You sign up for the Partner Program, grab your distinct referral link, and share it on your blog site, Twitter, LinkedIn, wherever. When somebody clicks, signs up for a paid plan (Range or Max), you make a commission.
Commission Fees: Approximately 60% of their first-year payment. If they pay $100, you could see $60. Cha-ching.
Payout: Beehiiv pays month-to-month via PayPal. No minimum limit, no hoops to jump via.

In my case, I published a Medium post strolling individuals with my beehiiv experience (spoiler: this guide right here is part of that initiative). With a combination of blog site website traffic and word-of-mouth, I made over $5,000 in affiliate commissions by December 2024. All I did was share my real experience.

2. Boosts: Gain by Assisting Others Expand

Boosts are essentially funded promos– beehiiv’s spin on a “send for pay” version. Right here’s the scoop:.

Come To Be a Boost Sponsor: If you assume your e-newsletter can aid others grow, use in the Boosts control panel. You’ll explain why your audience is a good fit and established a price you ‘d spend for a brand-new client.
Apply to Boost Others: If you want quick clients, you can pay to boost your e-newsletter on various other makers’ lists. Yet what the majority of tiny creators love is the reverse: you put on be a boost companion for various other newsletters. When somebody subscribe through your boost, you obtain $1–$ 3
Limits:
- You can send up to 25 boost supplies each month, however beehiiv only surfaces 3 offers each time to possible partners.
- If a boost is performing well, various other creators will choose it up swiftly.

Below’s a fast example: In October 2024, I advertised a fellow SEO designer’s newsletter for $1.75 per client. Over two weeks, I produced 200 new subscribers for them– and earned concerning $350 while doing so. Win-win.

3. beehiiv Ad Network (Sponsored Ads)

This is where the large bucks can come in, even if your checklist is “tiny.” Right here’s just how it goes:

Eligibility: You require at least 1,000 energetic subscribers and a constant send schedule (at the very least one email each month, though regular is ideal).
Automation: As soon as accepted, you’ll begin getting 3– 5 sponsorship requests monthly. Beehiiv matches you with brand names based upon your audience’s rate of interests– so a marketing SaaS business could approach an SEO-focused e-newsletter, for instance.
Payment Design:
- Price Per Click (CPC): You generate income every single time a person clicks the advertisement in your email.
- Price Per Mille (CPM): You earn based on a thousand impressions.
Reduce of Use: You can accept or decrease each deal right from your control panel. Beehiiv handles all the invoicing. All you do is copy-paste the advertisement right into your e-newsletter.

In 2024, I ran 37 funded ads, including a few high-profile brands like HubSpot. I made $632 from advertisements alone, with my leading campaign generating $112 from 35 clicks (4.5% click-through). Bear in mind: relevance is king. Unnecessary ads storage tank click-through prices, so be careful.

4. Paid Subscriptions (” Costs Web Content”)

If you create really one-of-a-kind material– deep dive records, special tutorials, or insider evaluations– you might consider a paid rate. Right here’s the 101:

Setup: Go to Monetization �’ Paid Subscriptions, link Stripe, and choose your pricing:
- Regular monthly
- Annual (normally marked down)
- One-time settlement (for a single guide or training course)
- Call Your Price (your subscribers select what they can afford)
Revenue Split: Beehiiv does not bill you a system charge; they just pass Stripe’s handling charge (2.9% + $0.30) on you.
Instances: If you have 100 customers paying $7/month, that’s $700/month = $8,400/ year (minus Stripe costs). Not bad, appropriate? Obviously, getting to 100 paid customers suggests you require a devoted, engaged base.

Now, be practical: Paid registrations are a work. You need consistent, high-value material that makes people comfortable taking out their wallets. If you’re simply starting, the ad network and boosts might be quicker wins.

Pricing Plans: What You’ll Pay (and Get)

I recognize pricing is a big enigma when you’re thinking about changing platforms. Here’s the break down since mid-2025:.

Free Plan (as much as 2,500 customers): Great for pet projects or if you’re evaluating the waters. You still get boosts for list growth, standard analytics, and endless sends– just no ad network or paid memberships yet.
Scale ($ 39.20/ month): Perfect if you’re serious about monetizing. You get ad network accessibility, boosts, paid subscriptions, and the AI Composing Assistant to speed up your newsletter creation.
Max ($ 87.29/ month): If AI devices (image generation, grammar fixing, translation) matter to you, and you want top priority support, this is the pleasant spot. And also, you can introduce a mobile app for your clients.
Enterprise (100k+ clients): For brand names and mega-creators who require personalized movements, service-level agreements, and advanced protection. Few little makers require this.

My suggestion? Start on the Free plan. Get a feel for the dashboard, grow your list to 1,000, after that upgrade to Scale once you recognize you want ad earnings and boosts.

One-of-a-kind Features Beehiiv or Substack

You could be believing, “Okay, advertisements and boosts are awesome. But what else can beehiiv do that others can’t?” Let me highlight a couple of standout features:.

1. Audio Newsletters

Ever before thought of transforming your email right into a podcast-like experience? Beehiiv’s built-in audio e-newsletter feature instantly converts your e-mails into spoken-word audio. No additional editing and enhancing software program, no outsourcing to Fiverr– simply toggle it on, and your customers can pay attention on the go. For active target markets who drive or work out, this is a convenient way to stay linked.

2. Custom Mobile Apps for Viewers

The majority of platforms give you a “mobile-optimized site.” Beehiiv goes one action additionally: you can introduce a custom mobile app for your clients. Once they include it to their home display, your e-newsletter comes to be a one-tap experience– no inbox clutter. Imagine awakening and seeing app notifications when you drop a new concern. Talk about interaction.

3. “Call Your Cost” Memberships

Instead of requiring everyone into $5 or $7 rates, let your most faithful fans determine what to pay. It’s a trust-building move and can result in greater lifetime worth. I haven’t checked this feature directly yet, however, for developers who feel a bit uneasy about price points, it’s a sweet choice to try out.

4. beehiiv AI Suite

For those on Scale and Max plans, beehiiv’s AI devices are a godsend:

AI Writing Aide: Produce newsletter drafts based on bullet points or topics. For days when you’re looking at a blank web page, this jumpstarts your creativity.
AI Text Device: Grammar, punctuation, tone checks– no demand for Grammarly. You get a tidy, polished draft that really feels human Beehiiv or Substack.
AI Picture Tool: Create custom header pictures or images without purchasing stock images. Simply type a prompt, and voila.
AI Translator: Want to send your newsletter in multiple languages? Translate your web content right into Spanish, French, German, Italian, or Portuguese instantly.

These features can cut hours off content development and help you trying out brand-new formats.

Pro Tips For Succeeding on beehiiv

Now that you know what beehiiv can do, here are some expert hacks to make the most of it:

Tidy Your Checklist for Better Efficiency

In August 2024, I cut my customer matter in half (from regarding 2,400 down to 1,200) by removing inactive emails– individuals who hadn’t opened up anything in 6 months. My open rates leapt from ~ 45% to over 60%, which implied advertisers paid even more per click. It harmed to shed clients, but a lean, engaged list deserves greater than a bloated, easy one.

Experiment with Topic Lines Like a Pro

Subject lines make or burst prices. Do A/B tests on small sections prior to sending out to your entire checklist. Brief, punchy, question-based topics (” Ready to double your web traffic?”) often outperform common ones (” April Newsletter”).

Be Pickier with Ad Offers

If an ad does not resonate with your specific niche, say no. Unnecessary ads frustrate viewers and container click metrics. In time, beehiiv’s algorithm will certainly discover what fits your audience– decrease enough off-topic offers, and they’ll stop sending them.

Usage Boosts to Evaluate New Audiences

Got a brand-new category you intend to discover? Attempt improving your newsletter in a relevant niche. The expense per client standards $1.63– however if those customers linger, it deserves it. I once boosted a search engine optimization newsletter in a digital marketing target market and obtained an unusual uptick in retention.

Utilize AI for Faster Manufacturing

On evenings when I’m worn out, I ask the AI Writing Aide to compose a rough outline: introductory, three main points, verdict. Then I flesh it out with my very own anecdotes and style tweaks. It’s not excellent, however it’s a strong foundation that saves me 30– 45 minutes per email.

Capitalize on the Mobile App

Encourage clients to install your newsletter’s mobile app. In your next email, compose a quick “Exactly how to Include Our Newsletter to Your Home Display” tutorial. More application mounts imply more visibility, and push notifications defeat inbox sound.

Offer Periodic Paid-Only Web Content

Rather than making every problem complimentary, tease a “incentive record” once a quarter behind a paywall ($ 5–$ 7). Promote it greatly to your list. Even if you only offer 20 duplicates, that’s $100–$ 140 that offsets your month-to-month beehiiv bill.

Finishing up: Is beehiiv Right for You?

If you have actually stuck to me this much, you possibly come under among these camps:

You’ve never sent a newsletter, yet you’re itching to begin– beehiiv’s free plan and intuitive devices are best for learning the ropes.
You have a small listing (< 2,500) and want to generate income from without migraines-- beehiiv's advertisement network and boosts pay you for doing practically nothing added.
You’re a mid-sized maker (1k+ subscribers) aiming to range– beehiiv’s analytics, AI devices, and referral program assist you expand quicker and make a lot more.
You despise complex e-mail systems– beehiiv strikes a balance in between effective features and straightforward design.

Sure, the feature set can feel discouraging in the beginning, and you might get a few pointless advertisement demands. Yet consider this: in under a year, I made practically $1,000 on a small checklist and over $5,000 in affiliate payments just by sharing my experience. I’ve seen sufficient to understand that if you spend a little time learning the platform, the returns can be significant.

So, what are you awaiting? Enroll in beehiiv, explore the dashboard, and let the money making engines turn. Your future self will certainly thank you when the checks roll in.