How to Start a Substack Newsletter for Email Marketing

Key highlights

• Learn how to start a Substack newsletter platform in minutes with zero technical skills required, including customizing headers and choosing the right subscription model for your audience growth strategy.
• Understand Substack’s transparent pricing structure with official fees of 10% of paid subscriptions plus Stripe’s 2.9% + 30 cents processing fee, so you can accurately calculate your potential earnings from newsletter monetization.
• Discover proven strategies to get more subscribers on Substack through effective email marketing techniques, optimized post-by-email features and leveraging the platform’s built-in discovery tools to grow your newsletter audience.
• Master the art of Substack marketing by creating compelling email headers, writing engaging content that converts readers to paid subscribers and understanding what makes Substack different from traditional email newsletter platforms.
• Explore how to make money on Substack beyond subscriptions, including sponsored content opportunities, premium newsletter tiers and building a sustainable creator economy around your email marketing expertise.

Substack burst onto the digital creation scene in 2017. Career journalists and casual bloggers alike quickly adopted this email marketing service and now creators publish thousands of newsletters every day to over 500,000 paying readers.  

There’s still some confusion over what Substack is and how to use Substack to build subscriptions, however. 

Is the platform a good fit for your niche? Substack can be a great tool to combine with a website to bring quality content to your users and build your email marketing.

What Substack Is

Substack is an email subscription creation tool that was founded in 2017 as a way to let writers connect directly with their audience. It’s grown quickly since then, but not without its share of payment and political controversy. 

The platform has a simple-to-use email creator that lets writers insert links and images and write about whatever subject they desire.

You can create free or premium newsletters starting at $5/month per subscriber. While there is no upfront cost to publishing your newsletter, Substack takes a 10% cut, while the payment processor Stripe takes another 2.9% + 30 cents. 

While Substack does offer some website creation tools, there are limited means of customization, especially for search engine optimization (SEO) and marketing outside the platform.

Is Substack free?

If you are wondering what Substack costs, the short answer is that it is free to start. You can create an account, set up a simple website and send newsletters to unlimited free subscribers without paying a cent. This makes the platform an attractive option for beginners diving into Substack email marketing who want to build an audience without upfront expenses.

Costs only apply when you turn on paid subscriptions. Instead of a monthly fee, the platform takes a percentage of your earnings. You will pay a 10% fee to Substack plus Stripe processing fees of 2.9% and 30 cents per transaction. For example, on a $5.00 monthly subscription, roughly $0.95 goes to fees, leaving you with about $4.05. This means you never pay out of pocket, but the costs rise as you earn more.

This model benefits new writers focusing on Substack marketing, as the free tier includes everything needed to launch. Since there are no Substack ads, your revenue depends entirely on your content. The free plan allows you to experiment and learn how to get more subscribers on Substack before switching to a paid model once you have a loyal following.

Who should use Substack?

Substack is the go-to platform for writers and independent creators who want to monetize their work without managing a complex website. If you are wondering what Substack is best for, the answer lies in its simplicity. It removes technical barriers, allowing you to focus entirely on publishing content and building a subscriber base. This makes it an attractive starting point for those with limited technical knowledge who want to launch quickly.

• Journalists and opinion writers starting a Substack newsletter: Professionals delivering analysis, news or commentary directly to readers using newsletter platforms.
• Fiction authors: Writers publishing serialized stories or connecting with fans through newsletters.
• Niche experts: Educators offering specialized knowledge or courses through Substack email marketing.
• Podcasters and bloggers: Creators seeking a centralized hub for audio and written content.

While the platform is excellent for beginners, it has limitations. Substack marketing tools are basic compared to dedicated email platforms. You get ease of use, but you lose control over design and deep SEO customization. If you need advanced features or total brand ownership, a self-hosted WordPress site might be a better long-term choice. Ultimately, Substack suits those prioritizing direct monetization over design flexibility.

The Substack ecosystem

Substack functions as more than just a newsletter tool; it operates as a thriving network. Unlike standalone platforms, the Substack ecosystem helps readers discover new content naturally. Features like writer recommendations allow creators to cross-promote each other. This effectively shares audiences and drives growth through network effects. This interconnected approach solves a common hurdle in substack email marketing: finding new readers without paid ads.

The platform also deepens engagement through its community features. Subscribers can participate in lively discussions via comments and chat threads. This turns passive readers into active community members. The dedicated Substack Reader app plays a crucial role here. It gives audiences a centralized hub to consume newsletters away from cluttered email inboxes. Creators can leverage these tools to tap into an existing pool of readers. This makes substack marketing easier for those starting from scratch.

Additionally, Substack invests in its creators through community resources. The Writer Program helps authors understand what Substack best practices look like. Whether leveraging “Notes” for updates or appearing in curated lists, the platform actively promotes visibility. These elements combine to help you build an audience faster than on an isolated website.

How to use Substack

Getting started with Substack email marketing is a simple process that begins with creating a free account. Next, you will set up your publication by choosing a memorable name and a unique URL. Be sure to write a concise description that tells potential subscribers exactly what value you offer.

1. Customize your brand: Upload a high-quality logo, select your specific brand colors and draft a compelling “About” page.
2. Manage your audience: If you have an existing email list, navigate to the settings menu to import contacts.
3. Master the editor: Click “New Post” to access the interface where you can format text and insert media.
4. Publishing strategy: Decide whether to publish your post immediately or schedule it for a later time.

You should also review basic settings to manage reader comments and email notifications effectively. While this platform is easy to use, you might eventually need more control over your content. For creators wanting a separate website alongside Substack, Bluehost WordPress hosting offers greater flexibility. This solution allows you to build a fully customized digital home that grows with your audience.

How to use Substack for email marketing

Before you start a Substack newsletter, decide whether a free or paid subscription model is the best fit for your content strategy and audience goals.

Free Substack newsletters

A free newsletter is a good idea for reaching the largest possible audience. You can send it to potential customers, include links to coupon codes or other offers to boost sales and add additional calls to action (CTAs) linking back to your website.

If you chose to start as a free newsletter, you could always change to a paid plan later or use both.

Paid options on Substack

Paid subscription emails on Substack start at $5/month and go up to $75/month. You can publish as often as you wish, but subscribers will take the pricing and content you offer into account before paying.

Paid newsletters on the platform tend to come from established voices with expertise or celebrity status within their niche. Some newsletters are opinion pieces, others are journalistic and others are collections of fiction. 

Using paid newsletters is a good option for premium content that goes into more detail than other information featured for free on your blog. If your brand is highly personal, this could also work well, but it’s unlikely that people will pay $7 a month for sale information.

Substack vs traditional email marketing

Substack and traditional marketing platforms serve very different purposes. Substack prioritizes a “content-first” philosophy, making it ideal for writers building a direct relationship with readers through paid subscriptions. It offers simplicity but lacks advanced tools. Conversely, platforms like Mailchimp or ConvertKit differ by offering “marketing-first” features. These tools provide complex automation, detailed segmentation and A/B testing designed to sell products rather than subscriptions.

Feature	Substack	Traditional Platforms
Primary Goal	Paid Subscriptions	Sales & Marketing
Key Features	Simple Editor, Community	Automation, Segmentation
Pricing Model	10% of Revenue	Monthly Subscription Fee
Best For	Writers & Journalists	Businesses & Marketers

Pricing structures also vary significantly between the two models. Substack creates revenue by taking a percentage of your subscription income, meaning you only pay when you earn. Traditional platforms typically charge a monthly fee based on your subscriber count, regardless of your revenue. If you require deep analytics or eCommerce integration, traditional tools are superior. However, for straightforward editorial content, Substack shines. For creators wanting the best of both worlds, monetization and complete ownership—building a self-hosted solution on WordPress is often the better long-term choice.

Limitations of Substack for email marketing

While Substack is popular for writers, it has significant downsides for scalable substack email marketing. The platform prioritizes simplicity, which limits your substack marketing strategy and ability to grow a unique brand. You also miss out on owning your platform, leaving you dependent on their rules and data policies.

• High fee structure: Substack takes a 10% cut plus transaction fees, costing you roughly 13% of total revenue.
• Poor SEO control: What Substack provides for SEO is minimal, making it hard to rank individual newsletters.
• Limited customization: You cannot modify the design or layout to fit your specific branding needs.
• Basic analytics: You lose access to advanced data, segmentation and detailed subscriber insights.
• Lack of automation: There are no robust tools for automated marketing funnels or complex email sequences.

These restrictions can stifle growth for serious marketers. If you need lower fees and complete data ownership, moving to a self-hosted WordPress setup is the smarter choice.

WordPress alternatives to Substack

Substack takes a significant 13% + 30 cent chunk of your profit. While this may not seem like much, if you set your paid subscription at the $5 minimum, it works out to 95 cents of every subscription going to Substack and Stripe. 

Ghost is a popular open-source alternative that charges a flat monthly fee vs. a percentage. If you have at least ten subscribers, it works out to be cheaper than Substack. 

Another point to keep in mind is that Substack isn’t SEO-optimized for individual newsletters. Having a website empowers you to target subscribers better and go beyond the reach of text and images. 

With that in mind, the alternatives that are just as easy to use with WordPress include MailOptin, Newsletter Glue and MailerLite (which starts with free plans).

Diversifying your web presence is essential for visibility and connecting with users. While a Substack newsletter can be an excellent tool to use, it works best if combined with a solid social media presence and landing page for more direct communication.

Final thoughts

Substack is an excellent tool for the renaissance of email marketing, but its easy-to-use system comes with a price. 

While the ability to publish content for free is great for new writers with a small audience, you still lose significantly more money to Substack than many alternative platforms after building a subscriber base. The limited customization is also a sticking point for creators who have made their brand over multiple platforms.

Whether you’re learning how to start a Substack newsletter for a personal blog or building an email strategy for your business, your goals will differ significantly. Having a flexible newsletter platform that allows you to personalize subscriber lists, manage promotional campaigns and integrate with essential plugins will give you the foundation to build and scale your audience as your needs evolve.

Undoubtedly, an existing WordPress website can be a great place to start building your email list. 

Take an extra step to ensure your email marketing efforts pay off by using Bluehost’s WordPress hosting services. 

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