Email newsletter platforms that aren't Substack

If you have an email newsletter or blog (or want to start one), you might have caught wind of some of the questionable decisions over at Substack--and that’s putting it mildly.

The Guardian recently focused on how Substack makes bank from far-right and white supremacist content. Substack leadership has since openly stated that they “don’t like Nazis, either.” …but they’re totally fine with boosting profits by giving far-right creeps a platform. 

And now, they’ve announced a partnership with OpenMarket. As if it wasn’t creepy enough that there are people betting on real-world events, connecting a prediction market with a platform that’s supposedly driven by journalism is just gross.

I won’t keep outlining Substack’s crimes, because other people have already done it better. Instead, let’s talk about better places to start your newsletter, or move it away from Substack.

What to look for in a newsletter platform

If you’re looking for the anti-Substack, there are a few baseline boxes you’ll want to check:

• Independent tech. We’ve seen it time and again: a tool that’s backed by billionaires is just more likely to engage in shady practices.
• No cuts from your profits. Substack takes a 10% cut of your paid subscription revenue, and that’s on top of banking transaction fees. There are plenty of other tools that don’t.
• Access to your audience. You should be able to collect email addresses of all of your subscribers, and export them to another tool when you choose. Substack is already undermining that with their effort to drive readers towards their app, and then enabling in-app notifications… which effectively unsubscribes your readers from your newsletter.

Outside of that, there are a lot of options, and you'll need to get cozy with your goals in order to know which tool serves you best.

What is the best newsletter platform?

I’ve said it about website builders and e-commerce platforms, and it’s true here, too: the best tool for you depends on your goals, and how easy it is for you, specifically, to use. 

Ease of use is really subjective, and I believe it’s something you ultimately have to test out yourself. As far as goals in this instance, think about what matters more to you: powerful email newsletter capabilities, a strong online blog presence for your content, or control over what you’re presenting.

Strong in email and on the web: Ghost

As a Ghost user who cares about visual design, I think it splits the difference pretty well. I was able to make the web presence and email design for The Radical Marketer look up-to-standard pretty quickly, and it’s easy to preview both web and email content at different subscriber levels.

Ghost has only more recently started rolling out features like welcome emails, but I expect they’ll grow its capabilities over time. If you don't want to wait for that to happen, Outpost already has a robust set of tools to support automation and marketing in Ghost.

Promote and monetize: Beehiiv

I had the opportunity to tool around in Beehiiv for one of my Social Shift clients, and I found the control over design there to be solid there, too. (my client did have some confusion trying to make minor changes to their email template, but, again, usability is often subjective!)

What’s most notable about Beehiiv, however, are the growth and monetization features. Most of them are only available with a paid plan, but if you have one, you can set up recommendations and referral programs, earn money with Beehiiv's built-in(!) ads network, and more.

When blogging is your priority: Wordpress

I know, I know, Wordpress feels overly complex to some folks, but when it first originated in 2003, it was a blogging platform. Admittedly, I didn't love the minor pissing contest between co-founder Matt Mullenweig and WPEngine, but as a longtime Wordpress web designer and developer, I love its flexibility and extensibility.

Still, I recognize that most people aren’t WP designers, and that it’s a tough nut to crack in terms of making it look sharp. What I think is worth mentioning, though, is that Wordpress is a free platform, and it gives you control over which features you want, and what resources are powering it. This means that, if your web host gets bought out by a tech megacorp, for example, you're free to take it elsewhere.

Reliable email marketing: MailerLite

When I bring on an email marketing client who's just getting started or looking to migrate, I usually point them towards MailerLite. It’s one of the more easily navigable email tools I’ve encountered, and their Free plan offers a solid set of email and automation tools for up to 500 subscribers.

They’ve also introduced digital product and paid subscription capabilities--the paid subscriptions are currently managed via Stripe, but they are gauging interest in selling subscriptions directly in MailerLite. While I haven't tried these yet, they're a promising addition for folks who want to get paid for their content.

The rabbit hole goes deep

There’s a world of possibilities and options with email and blog content, whether you want to make your business more findable, or create earnings with the content itself. I’ve barely scratched the surface here, so if you want to dig deeper, I highly suggest taking a look at Lex Roman’s roundup of newsletter and blogging tools, ranging from tip jars, to landing page builders, and beyond.