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See your real earnings after all fees
On $1,000 revenue on Substack, you keep approximately $874 after all fees (12.6% total). Substack charges 10% platform fee plus 2.9% + $0.30 payment processing.
Creator Platform
From $500 revenue
Creator Platform
From $1,000 revenue
Creator Platform
From $5,000 revenue
Substack combines content distribution with monetization in a single platform. Built-in email delivery, subscriber management, and payment processing eliminate the need for multiple tools.
Common Use Cases: Perfect for writers, journalists, and analysts building paid newsletter audiences. Supports free/paid tiers, referral programs, and audience analytics.
Compared to Alternatives: The 10% platform fee is industry-standard for this category. While not the cheapest option, it balances reasonable pricing with robust features and platform support. Substack is simplest, beehiiv adds growth tools, Ghost offers full control with self-hosting. more integrated than using separate email + payment tools, though less flexible than custom solutions. Focus on writing over technical setup.
Calculate your Substack earnings
Enter your revenue amount for exact results
Sorted by take-home amount (highest to lowest)
Chart shows net earnings after platform fees, payment processing, and payout costs. Based on calculation with default parameters (avg transaction: $7).
Substack charges a 10% platform fee. After payment processing (2.9% + $0.30) and payout fees, the total effective fee is about 12.6% on average.
On $1,000 gross revenue, you keep approximately $873.60 after all Substack fees. This includes $100.00 platform fee, $26.40 processing fee, and $0.00 payout fee.
It depends on your needs. Substack offers 10% platform fee which is competitive. Compare with other platforms using our calculator to see which works best for your revenue level.
Some strategies include: increasing average transaction size (reduces per-transaction impact), using direct payment links where possible, and comparing Substack with alternative platforms that may have lower fees for your specific use case.