beehiiv Alternatives 2026: 5 Free Options

beehiiv today: Free (Free plan: up to 2,500 subscribers and unlimited email sends); paid from $49 per month, billed annually (Lite, up to 1,000 subscribers; $59 billed monthly) (beehiiv pricing, checked 2026-10-28).

Why people look for beehiiv alternatives

beehiiv's Free plan stops at 2,500 subscribers, one team seat and one publication. Lite starts at $49 a month billed yearly for up to 1,000 subscribers ($59 monthly) and allows 2 seats; automations, the referral program and paid subscriptions start there. Pro starts at $95 a month and is the first plan that removes beehiiv branding, adds dynamic content and the Send API. SSO and audit logs are Enterprise only. Prices rise by subscriber bucket. The October 2026 pricing change renamed the plans (Launch is Free, Scale is Lite, Max is Pro) and applies to new customers from October 1, 2026, and to existing monthly customers from their first renewal on or after November 1.

Buttondown

Compared with beehiiv: Free for your first 100 subscribers, then paid. It is a plain-text newsletter tool with no built-in ad network or referral program, so you lose beehiiv's growth features but get a simpler workflow for a small list.

Price: Free (Free for your first 100 subscribers) (Buttondown pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary.

Best for: Plain-text newsletters with a small list.

Substack

Compared with beehiiv: Free to publish, but Substack takes 10% of paid subscription revenue, which beehiiv's plans do not. You give up beehiiv's ownership of the subscriber list and its paid-plan pricing for a zero-fee start that charges on earnings.

Price: Free (Free to publish; Substack takes 10% of paid subscription revenue and writers also bear credit card fees) (Substack pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web browser. Proprietary SaaS.

Best for: Writers who want publishing with no monthly bill.

Ghost

Compared with beehiiv: Self-hosted Ghost is open source, and the hosted Pro Starter is $18 a month billed yearly. You gain a publishing platform you own, but lose beehiiv's built-in referral and ad features and must set up email delivery yourself if you self-host.

Price: Free (Self-hosted Ghost is open source (source linked from the pricing page); no self-host price shown); paid from $18 per per month, billed yearly (Ghost(Pro) Starter) (Ghost pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Web. Open source (license not named on ghost.org/pricing) (open source).

Project activity: 55.6k GitHub stars · latest release v6.73.0 (Oct 27, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026

Best for: Publishers who want a site and newsletter together.

Kit

Compared with beehiiv: Free plan covers up to 10,000 subscribers, a much larger free list than beehiiv's 2,500. Creator is $33 a month. You gain a bigger free allowance, but lose beehiiv's newsletter-first monetisation and ad network features.

Price: Free (Free plan: up to 10,000 subscribers); paid from $33 per month (Creator, based on 1,000 subscribers; $390 billed yearly) (Kit pricing, checked 2026-10-23).

Platforms and license: Web browser. Proprietary SaaS.

Best for: Creators with a growing audience on a free plan.

MailerLite

Compared with beehiiv: Free plan covers 250 subscribers and 2,500 emails a month, and the paid plan starts at $12 a month. You get a cheaper paid entry than beehiiv's $49 a month Lite plan, but a smaller free list and no built-in ad marketplace.

Price: Free (250 subscribers, 2,500 emails per month); paid from $12 per month, billed monthly (stated as starting price in the pricing FAQ) (MailerLite pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Platforms and license: Web browser. Proprietary SaaS.

Best for: Small newsletters on a tight budget.

Worth knowing: Yearly billing saves 10%.

Other popular options (paid)

Mailchimp

Compared with beehiiv: Free plan covers 250 contacts and 500 sends a month with one seat, against beehiiv's 2,500 subscribers. Automations, generative AI and branding removal sit on paid plans, and Essentials is advertised at $13 as a 12-month offer.

Price: Free (250 contacts, 500 sends per month or 250 per day, 1 seat, 1 audience) (Mailchimp pricing, checked 2026-10-22).

Which one to pick

• You want a free plan that holds a large list: Kit
• You write plain-text newsletters for a few hundred readers: Buttondown
• You want to own a publishing site and newsletter together: Ghost
• You want no monthly fee and accept a cut of paid revenue: Substack
• You want the cheapest paid entry for a small list: MailerLite