Newsletters are an excellent way for anyone to build an audience and monetize it. The problem is that the average person doesn’t have the knowledge of HTML and design to get things off the ground and general email platforms such as Mailchimp can be overkill for the job. This is where Beehiiv comes in.
This newsletter platform allows anyone to easily create and monetize email content, regardless of their level of experience. But the ease of use and simplicity have some tradeoffs, and to top it off, Beehiiv is not cheap.
This is why we’re showing you the best Beehiiv alternatives you can look at instead.
What is Beehiiv and who is it for?
Beehiiv is a newsletter platform built by a few of the early Morning Brew employees. If you’ve ever seen Morning Brew’s sleek, advertising-backed daily emails, you’ll get the idea: Beehiiv was created to give writers, startups, and media brands the same kind of tools to grow and monetize their own newsletters.
Unlike traditional email marketing platforms that focus mostly on sending campaigns, Beehiiv leans heavily into the “newsletter as a business” model.
That means it’s about helping creators build an audience, analyze growth, and generate revenue. Features like referral programs, audience polls, and built-in ad placements make it appealing for people who want to turn a newsletter into a growth engine and a way to make revenue.
So who’s it for? Beehiiv tends to attract:
- Independent writers and bloggers who want more than what Substack or ConvertKit’s free tiers offer, especially if monetization is a big goal.
- Media startups building publication-style newsletters with sponsors and referral loops baked in.
- Companies and SaaS brands looking for a modern alternative to clunky email software, especially if their strategy includes community-building and audience engagement and not just transactional email.
In short, Beehiiv is best for anyone who sees their newsletter as a product in itself.
Key features
Beehiiv is an all in one solution for anyone who wants to turn newsletters into a platform for more than communication with an audience. These are some of its most valuable features:
- Newsletter editor – A clean, distraction-free drag and drop builder that makes it easy to draft and format content without extra clutter.
- Audience segmentation – Lets you send targeted content to different reader groups based on behavior or interests.
- Referral program – Built-in system that rewards readers for bringing in new subscribers, helping newsletters grow organically.
- Monetization tools – Options to run paid subscriptions or accept ads through Beehiiv’s ad network.
- Analytics dashboard – Gives insights into open rates, click rates, and subscriber growth so you can see what’s working.
- Audience polls and surveys – Simple tools to ask readers questions and gather feedback directly inside emails.
- Boosts (cross-promotion) – Allows you to partner with other newsletters to recommend each other and share subscribers.
- Custom domains – Lets you publish newsletters from your own branded domain instead of a generic Beehiiv link.
- Automations – Basic workflows like welcome emails and drip campaigns to nurture subscribers over time.
- API and integrations – Connects Beehiiv with other tools in your stack, either directly or through Zapier.
With the easy drag and drop functionality and marketing automation features, Beehiiv makes for an excellent choice for complete beginners and those who used a newsletter platform before.
How much does Beehiiv cost?
Beehiiv pricing structure is fairly simple. You pay based on the number of subscribers. There’s a discount for purchasing for a year up front.
There are four available plans.
The Launch plan is ideal if you’re just getting started with a newsletter. This free plan supports up to 2,500 subscribers, which should be more than enough to grow a sizable audience.
You get the basic features such as:
- Your own custom website and newsletters
- Campaign analytics to see the performance of your content
- Unlimited email sends
- Optimized deliverability and API access
However, this plan is lacking some of the more advanced features which will require you to upgrade.
The Scale plan comes in at $49 per month for 1,000 subscribers (and three seats on your team) and it has all the essential features that make Beehiiv a popular online publishing platform. These include, among others:
- Ad and Boosts networks for monetizing your content
- Paid subscribers (and no cut from Beehiiv from them)
- Email automations
- Surveys and polls to get insights from your audience
- Webhooks
- Real, responsive customer support with a human being
If you need even more than that, the Max plan is $109 per month for 1,000 subscribers. The biggest change in this plan is the number of publications, as you can do 10 of them under one account.
Having said that, 1,000 subscribers may not be enough, and you’ll quickly be forced to upgrade.
Other great features include podcasts and Beehiiv AI, as well as the ability to get a sponsorship storefront and completely remove the Beehiiv branding.
The Enterprise plan has custom pricing, so you’ll have to get in touch for a unique quote for your needs. You’ll need more than 100,000 subscribers, and this plan opens the door to some really neat features, such as:
- Concierge onboarding with a dedicated customer success manager
- Your own IP addresses and a Send API
- Deliverability reports and dynamic content
- VIP support
Why look for better alternatives to Beehiiv?
Behiiv generally has favorable reviews, and many of their customers flocked to this platform from other tools. However, there are some downsides that you should be aware of if you go beyond the free plan.
First off, Beehiiv can get expensive. The free plan is limited and paid plans can quickly get out of hand if your subscriber base grows. Beehiiv users come from all backgrounds and not all of them use newsletters as a channel to fuel revenue growth, as one reviewer notes:
“I’d love to use more of the features that are available behind the paywall. I’m a teacher who writes a weekly newsletter for my parents. I unfortunately can’t be spending $480 a year on a parent newsletter.” – Source
The second issue is the level of customization. While the user friendly email editor can get you a long way, it’s really only built for beginners. If you need to change the code in the email, you’ll find that Beehiiv is lacking the advanced creator tools that you may find in some competitors.
“Beehiiv has limited customization options is what i dislike.There is sometimes minor email deliverabilty issues. Although there is free plan , the paid plans is expensive. Also the migration of newsletter or audience data to another platform is challenging.” – Source
The best Beehiiv alternatives to try in 2025 and beyond
If you need something that does more than newsletters but is still a user friendly platform… We have good news. These are some excellent Beehiiv alternatives for all things email, from cold campaigns to building landing pages and forms.
Woodpecker
Woodpecker is a specialized cold email tool designed to help sales teams and agencies automate highly personalized one-on-one outreach. It comes complete with inbox warm-up, deliverability safeguards, and AI support, so your messages land in inboxes, not spam folders.
Key features
- Free email verification & warm-up ensures your sender reputation stays strong by validating email lists and warming domains before campaigns.
- Inbox rotation & adaptive sending mimic human-like sending patterns and protect against provider limits for better deliverability.
- AI email writing assistant & sentiment detection help you write cold emails faster and automatically identify positive replies to stop follow-ups when someone responds.
- Condition‑based campaigns & A/B testing allow follow-ups to adapt based on engagement behavior and compare up to five version variants for better performance.
- Unlimited email accounts, team members, follow-ups, even on basic plans, which means no per-seat or follow-up caps.
- Robust integrations, API, agency panel (add‑on) let you connect to CRM systems, deploy multichannel campaigns, and manage multiple clients from a single interface (agency panel costs extra).
Main downsides and considerations
- Integrations, API access, and advanced features like agency panel require a $20/month add‑on, and agency use costs $27/month per active client.
- Reviews point out a learning curve in navigation, especially for integrations, plus mixed customer service feedback, including harsh comments about support and refund complexity.
Pricing: Plans start at $20/month (includes 500 contacted prospects, warm-up, verification, unlimited accounts/team/follow-ups, AI writer, A/B testing). Adding integrations/API costs $20/month extra, and the agency panel is $27/month per client
Why it’s better than Beehiiv
Woodpecker is tailored for cold outreach, offering built-in deliverability tools like warm-up, inbox rotation, and AI-driven workflows to craft and adjust follow-ups based on engagement, which are features that Beehiiv, being newsletter-focused, doesn’t offer.
Try Woodpecker for free today.
Buttondown
Buttondown is a lightweight, privacy-first newsletter platform made for creators who value simplicity, clarity, and ethical design. It’s especially well-suited for solo writers, indie publishers, and technically inclined users who want full control without unnecessary complexity.
Key features
- Markdown and clean editor lets you write newsletters fast and distraction-free, using Markdown or a minimal visual interface.
- Automations & workflows enable welcome series, weekly digests, or tag-triggered sends without extra fuss.
- Paid subscriptions via Stripe, no platform cut gives you full control over pricing models and keeps 100 % of your revenue.
- Tags, segmentation & surveys allow smarter targeting and gather reader feedback directly.
- Privacy-first analytics: GDPR compliant, analytics are off by default, letting you respect subscriber data while still getting performance insights.
- Full-featured REST API & integrations (Zapier, RSS, webhooks) let you automate and connect Buttondown with your custom workflow.
- RSS-to-email, attachments, archives & comments give flexibility to publish blog updates, host archives (on your domain), add files, and enable reader conversation.
- Concierge migration support: Buttondown will import your existing subscriber list for free and swiftly.
- Team collaboration & multiple newsletters support helps you expand with contributors or run more than one publication under one roof.
Main downsides and considerations
- The interface is minimalist and may feel too pared-down for users used to heavy design flexibility or drag-and-drop builders.
- Pricing can get a bit complex as your list grows or if you need add-ons like automations, multiple newsletters, or whitelabeling.
- Some users mention limitations around layout control and fewer advanced customization options compared to larger platforms.
Pricing: Free for up to 100 active subscribers; paid plans start at $9/month or $90/year for larger lists, with add-ons like automations, multiple newsletters, or whitelabeling available à la carte.
Why it’s better than Beehiiv
Buttondown is a better fit if you’re after minimalist design, ethical pricing, full privacy, and independent-minded support. It lets you write, publish, and even get paid in a distraction-free, community-respecting environment, without the growth complexity or branding overhead of Beehiiv.
Substack
Substack is a newsletter and publishing platform that makes it effortless for writers to reach and monetize their audience through email, web, and app, all without technical setup. It’s ideal for independent journalists, writers, and creators looking for a low-barrier path to paid subscriptions and direct audience connection.
Key features
- Free to publish with optional paid subscriptions: writers keep content simple until they choose to monetize.
- Monetization via subscriptions: Substack takes 10% of revenue, plus Stripe fees (about 2.9 % + $0.30), all handled seamlessly.
- Multi‑format publishing and discovery tools let you post newsletters, podcasts, videos, and use Notes, recommendations, and app distribution to grow your reach.
- Built‑in community and features: comments, chats, legal support (Substack Defender), and livestreaming or video embed tools foster deeper engagement.
- Minimalist, user‑friendly setup removes technical hurdles so creators focus on content, not infrastructure.
- You retain audience ownership and can export your subscriber list if you move to a new platform.
Main downsides and considerations
- Limited design flexibility, segmentation, and automation compared to full email platforms: great for simplicity, but restraining for complex marketing.
- Customer support often relies on AI/chatbots, which can frustrate creators when they need real help.
- Revenue split: Substack’s 10 % cut plus Stripe fees can add up as subscription income grows.
- Moderation and platform controversies: Substack’s hands‑off policy on extremist content caused significant backlash and creator departures.
Pricing: Publishing is free. Optionally, Substack charges 10 % of paid subscription revenue, plus Stripe’s processing fee (2.9 % + $0.30); custom domain costs $50/year, if you choose to use one.
Why it’s better than Beehiiv
Substack excels at building directly monetized, simplicity-first publications with minimal setup required and full audience ownership, making it a great fit for writers who want to focus solely on content and subscriptions without onboarding a full email growth stack as Beehiiv requires.
Campaign Monitor
Campaign Monitor is a cloud-based email marketing platform designed to help businesses build polished campaigns and manage subscriber journeys with ease and style. It works well for teams who want brand-forward templates, solid segmentation, and reliable delivery without wrestling with a steep learning curve.
Key features
- Drag‑and‑drop email builder gives you visual control to craft sharp, responsive emails without code.
- Advanced segmentation and engagement targeting help send the right message to the right audience based on subscriber behavior.
- Automation workflows and triggers let you create subscriber journeys, autoresponders, and behavior‑driven campaigns.
- Rich analytics and A/B testing enable smarter decisions about subject lines and content with real‑time insights.
- Templates, dynamic content, and customization provide branded layouts, dynamic personalization, and flexible template editing.
- 250+ integrations and API access allow connection to CRMs, CMSs, analytics tools, and more.
Main downsides and considerations
- Plans can get expensive quickly as your contact list grows, making it less ideal for budget‑conscious or fast‑scaling creators.
- Reporting is solid but not as in‑depth as some competitors, especially for advanced marketers.
- Support may be less accessible or slower for smaller plans, and versatility might fall short compared to all‑in‑one marketing platforms.
Pricing: Lite starts at $11/month with core tools for email, segmentation, templates, and analytics, Essentials begins around $19/month with automation and dynamic content, and Premier starts at $149/month for advanced features and priority support.
Why it’s better than Beehiiv
Campaign Monitor offers deeper email design, segmentation, and automation options for teams building branded, campaign‑focused marketing (not just newsletter growth) which makes it a more flexible tool for businesses that want design precision and CRM connectivity.
MailerLite
MailerLite is a friendly, budget-aware email platform ideal for bloggers, small businesses, and solopreneurs who want straightforward email marketing, landing pages, and automation that doesn’t overwhelm their budget.
Key features
- Drag‑and‑drop email editor, plus HTML editor options and dynamic content blocks.
- Automation workflows with conditional content, resends, multiple triggers (Advanced plan).
- Landing page and website builder, plus pop‑ups, surveys, quizzes, and RSS campaign support.
- Support features include 24/7 live chat or email support on paid plans, plus guided tutorials via MailerLite Academy.
- Affordable scaling plans, free tier supports up to 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails/month; Growing Business and Advanced unlock more features.
Main downsides and consideration points
- Lower-tier plans offer limited automation complexity and fewer templates.
- Some advanced workflows, HTML customization, and pop‑ups are reserved for the Advanced or Enterprise tiers.
- Integrations, while good, are less extensive than platforms targeting larger enterprise needs.
Pricing: Free forever for up to 1,000 subscribers and 12,000 monthly emails; Growing Business starts at about $10/month with Unlimited emails, and Advanced starts around $20/month with full features.
Why it’s better than Beehiiv: MailerLite gives smaller teams or budget-conscious creators access to solid email, landing page, and automation tools at a lower cost, while Beehiiv is more focused on newsletter growth networks and monetization features at higher prices.
Kit
Kit (formerly ConvertKit) is an all-in-one email platform designed for creators who want to grow their audience, automate engagement, and monetize through newsletters and digital products. Its generous free plan, plus landing pages, automation, and monetization tools, make it a popular choice for writers, bloggers, and creators of all types.
Key features
- Newsletter (free) tier allows up to 10,000 subscribers with unlimited emails, forms, landing pages, paid newsletters, polls, and tagging.
- Visual automations and email sequences let you build subscriber journeys using drag‑and‑drop logic.
- Monetization tools include paid subscriptions, digital product sales, Tip Jar, multiple subscription tiers, and Sponsor Network.
- Kit App Store provides integrations with tools like Stripe, Shopify, WordPress, Canva, and more.
- Advanced referral and growth tools (Creator Pro) include newsletter referral systems, Facebook custom audiences, engagement scoring, deliverability insights, and priority support.
Main downsides and consideration points
- Automation on the free plan is limited to one sequence, so more complex workflows require an upgrade.
- As subscriber count grows, pricing scales steeply, making higher-tier plans expensive for larger audiences.
- Analytics and reporting are not as deep compared to platforms like Moosend or Aweber.
Pricing: The free Newsletter plan supports up to 10,000 subscribers; paid Creator tiers start at around $15/month for basic features and increase with subscriber count and advanced tools.
Why it’s better than Beehiiv: Kit gives creators a more flexible foundation to turn their newsletters into revenue streams, offering digital sales, subscription options, and referral systems in one package, while Beehiiv is more newsletter-growth focused.
Mailmodo
Mailmodo is an email marketing platform focused on creating interactive in-email experiences using AMP technology. It’s built for marketers and businesses who want to increase conversions with things like forms, polls, and product interactions that work directly inside the email instead of redirecting to a landing page.
Key features:
- AMP email widgets – Add polls, forms, carousels, and even add-to-cart buttons directly in emails.
- Drag-and-drop editor – Build campaigns visually with a live preview for accurate formatting.
- Automation & journeys – Set up drip campaigns, welcome flows, and behavior-based triggers.
- A/B testing & send-time optimization – Optimize engagement by testing subject lines and scheduling sends for when subscribers are most active.
- Detailed analytics & click maps – Track opens, clicks, submissions, and see where readers interact most inside emails.
- Integrations & API – Connect Mailmodo with CRMs, e-commerce platforms, Zapier, or trigger campaigns through its API.
- Deliverability & spam checks – Features and support to help keep emails out of spam folders.
Main downsides and considerations:
- Entry pricing is higher compared to simple newsletter tools, with costs rising as your list grows.
- Getting AMP emails approved can take extra time due to validation requirements.
- Template variety is smaller than that of some competitors.
Pricing: The Lite plan starts at $39/month for up to 2,500 contacts, 20,000 email credits, and one custom domain.
Why it’s better than Beehiiv
Mailmodo is a stronger choice if your goal is interactive and conversion-focused emails, since readers can complete actions like filling out forms or surveys without leaving their inbox. Beehiiv focuses more on newsletters as standalone products, but lacks this level of interactivity.
There are better things than Beehiiv
Beehiiv can help you make money from email newsletters, but what if you want advanced automation features, excellent deliverability, and the option to personalize your emails for every sender? In that case, you need Woodpecker.
With email verification, segmentation, and inbox warmup, you’ll know that your emails are always headed for the primary inbox. Start using cold email to get the sales results that really move the needle.