How much does Substack take? 2026 pricing and fees

Substack sums up its deal in one line: “Writers keep 90% of their revenue minus credit card fees.” Publishing is free at any size. The fees start when readers pay you.

That line leaves a few things out: a billing fee, the price of your own domain, and Apple’s cut when readers subscribe in Substack’s iPhone app. This guide covers every fee as it stands in October 2026, from Substack’s own help center, then works out what 100 paid subscribers leave you. Everything is in US dollars.

The short answer

For a $10 monthly subscription paid by US card on the web, you keep $8.34. That’s Substack’s own figure. The sections below show where the other $1.66 goes, and when it’s more.

Substack’s fee: 10% of every subscription

Substack keeps 10% of what readers pay you. There are no plans or tiers, so it’s the same 10% at 10 subscribers and at 10,000.

It covers every paid plan: monthly, annual and founding member. A founding member plan is an annual plan at any price you pick above your annual price, and the 10% applies to it too.

A few pricing rules come with it:

• The lowest price is $5 a month or $30 a year, for accounts in US dollars.
• There’s no yearly-only option, so a paid Substack always has a monthly plan.
• Price changes only reach new subscribers. Existing subscribers keep their old price unless you ask Substack’s support team to change it.

Stripe’s fees: cards, billing and readers abroad

Substack doesn’t process payments itself. Every paid Substack connects its own Stripe account, and Stripe charges on top of Substack’s 10%:

• Card processing: 2.9% + $0.30 for each payment by US card.
• Billing: 0.7% of each recurring payment, Stripe’s charge for running subscriptions. It doesn’t show on each payment, so look for it in your Stripe payout summary, under “Stripe fee”.
• Readers abroad: Stripe adds 1.5% for an international card. By default, Substack shows readers in many countries a price in their own currency, rounded up to cover Stripe’s 1% to 2% fee for converting it. They pay a little more, and you get about the same.

The $0.30 hits cheap plans hardest. On a $5 subscription, Stripe’s fees come to $0.48, almost 10% on their own.

Readers in Europe may also pay with local methods like SEPA Direct Debit, iDEAL or Bancontact, at Stripe’s rate for each.

Your own domain: $50

Every Substack gets a free address at yourname.substack.com. To use your own domain instead, Substack charges a one-time $50.

That doesn’t buy the domain: Substack doesn’t sell domains, so you need to own one already. And it changes your site’s address, not your emails. Substack says every email is still sent from your substack.com address, and that address can’t be changed.

Apple’s cut on iPhone

Since August 2025, readers can buy paid Substacks through Apple inside Substack’s iOS app. Substack turns it on for every publication with payments, and says it can’t be turned off while payments are connected.

Apple keeps 30% of a subscription in its first year and 15% after that. You pick how to handle it:

• Adjust prices (the default). Substack raises your price in the app to cover Apple’s fee. A $10 plan costs $14 in the app.
• Keep prices the same. Readers pay $10 in the app, and Apple’s fee comes out of your share.

Here’s Substack’s own example for a $10 monthly plan:

Substack’s 10% is worked out on your web price, even when the reader pays more in the app.

Readers who subscribe on the web never pay Apple. Inside the app, there’s one way around Apple’s fee, and only in the US: Substack’s iOS app shows US readers a link to pay on the web instead. Apple doesn’t allow that link anywhere else, so readers outside the US who upgrade in the app only see Apple’s checkout.

Three more things to know:

• You wait longer. Apple pays Substack for a month of app subscriptions at a time, up to 45 days after that month ends. Subscriptions bought in January show up around mid-March.
• Apple runs those subscriptions. You can’t pause them, and readers cancel or ask for refunds through Apple.
• They can’t come with you. Substack says Apple doesn’t transfer these billing relationships to other platforms. If you leave, readers who pay through Apple have to subscribe again.

Payouts, refunds and disputes

Web payments land in your own Stripe account, and Stripe pays them out to your bank. Standard payouts have no fee, and a new Stripe account’s first payout takes 7 to 14 days. Money from the iOS app takes the long way round, through Apple and then Substack.

• Refund through Substack, not Stripe. If you refund a reader from your Stripe dashboard, you don’t get Substack’s 10% back.
• Disputes cost $15. When a reader disputes a charge with their bank, Stripe charges $15, win or lose, plus $15 to fight it by hand, which you get back if you win. Substack says it can’t cover dispute charges.
• Boost discounts cost you. If you opt into Substack Boost, Substack offers your readers deals on your behalf. Its upsell email offers 20% off for a year by default, and a discounted subscription pays you less.

What 100 paid subscribers leave you

Here’s the math for common cases, paid on the web by US card. Substack’s help center uses a $10 monthly plan in its own example, so we do too.

One $10 monthly subscriber. Substack’s 10% is $1.00. Stripe’s card fee is $0.59 (2.9% of $10, plus $0.30) and its billing fee is $0.07. You keep $8.34, or 83%.

100 subscribers at $10 a month. That’s $1,000 a month. Substack takes $100 and Stripe takes $66. You keep $834. Over a year, that’s $1,992 in fees on $12,000, and $1,200 of it goes to Substack.

100 subscribers at the $5 minimum. Substack takes $50 and Stripe takes $48. You keep $402 of $500, about 80%.

100 annual subscribers at $100 a year. Substack takes $1,000 and Stripe takes $390. You keep $8,610 of $10,000. Annual plans pay Stripe’s $0.30 once a year instead of every month.

The same 100 monthly subscribers, with 20 joining in the iPhone app. If you keep the same price in the app, those 20 leave you $6.00 each instead of $8.34. That’s $46.80 less every month in their first year, and $16.80 less after that, when Apple’s cut drops to 15%.

On Patreon, for comparison, the same $10 member leaves a new creator $8.41. Patreon vs Substack vs your own website compares the two in full.

None of these figures include sales tax or VAT, refunds, disputes or Boost discounts.

What readers pay

Readers pay the monthly, annual or founding member price you set. Substack doesn’t add a fee on the web. Readers can pay more in three cases:

• In Substack’s iOS app, where prices go up by default to cover Apple’s fee.
• Abroad, where readers in many countries see a price in their own currency, rounded up to cover Stripe’s fee for converting it.
• Tax. From December 1, 2026, Substack adds sales tax or VAT to subscriptions where it applies. For writers in the US and Canada, it’s added at checkout, on top of your price.

Can you pay Substack less?

No. The 10% is the same for everyone. Annual plans and higher prices only shrink Stripe’s $0.30, and only US readers can skip Apple in the app.

So do the math on what you make. Substack keeps 10% of every subscription, forever. Drate takes 5%, plus $9 or $12 a month.

Stripe’s card fee applies on both. Substack’s subscriptions also pay Stripe’s 0.7% billing fee, which Drate creators don’t pay. Regular is $9 a month ($60 if you pay yearly), so it costs more than Substack until you make about $180 a month. Pro is $12 a month ($99 if you pay yearly), so it costs more than Substack until you make about $240 a month.

Your own site instead

A percentage grows with you. At $1,000 a month, Substack’s 10% is $1,200 a year, and more with every reader who pays.

Drate gives you a website made around you, on your own domain and in your look, and your own iOS and Android app on Pro. Your domain comes with every plan, Regular included. Memberships, members-only posts and video, courses and a community feed live together on one site, with Discord roles for each membership and print-on-demand merch if you want it. Members pay through your own Stripe account, and those who join on your website pay there, so Apple isn’t part of that sale. Your site is ready in minutes.

Know what changes, too. Drate is a website and app, not an email newsletter: members read your posts on your site or in your app. There’s no one-click import from Substack, so you bring your posts over yourself. And you’re the seller, so sales tax and VAT are yours to handle.

The Substack alternative puts the two side by side and shows how switching works.

Questions

How much does Substack take from writers?

Substack keeps 10% of every paid subscription. Stripe adds 2.9% + $0.30 for each US card payment and 0.7% for recurring billing. On a $10 monthly subscription paid on the web, you keep $8.34.

Does Substack charge a monthly fee?

No. Publishing is free, however many subscribers you have. Substack's 10% starts when you turn on paid subscriptions, and connecting your own domain costs a one-time $50.

How much does a custom domain cost on Substack?

A one-time $50, to connect a domain you already own. It doesn't include buying the domain, and your newsletters still come from your substack.com address.

Why does a Substack cost more in the iPhone app?

Subscriptions bought in Substack's iOS app go through Apple, which keeps 15% to 30%. By default, Substack raises the app price to cover it, so a $10 plan costs $14. If you keep prices the same, you keep $6 of that $10 in a subscriber's first year.

Can I turn off in-app purchases on Substack?

No. Substack says the iOS in-app payment option can't be disabled while payments are connected. US readers can choose to pay on the web from the app. Readers outside the US who upgrade in the app only see Apple's checkout.

Can you pay Substack less than 10%?

No. Substack keeps 10% of every subscription at every size, and no plan lowers it. At $1,000 a month, that's $100 a month, or $1,200 a year. Drate takes 5%, plus $9 a month on Regular or $12 on Pro, which adds your own app.

Sources

Checked on October 12, 2026. Prices and terms change, so check the latest before you decide.

1. Substack: Going paidsubstack.com
2. Substack: How much does Substack cost?support.substack.com
3. Substack: How do I set up a paid publication?support.substack.com
4. Substack: Can I set up another subscription plan for readers who want to pay more?support.substack.com
5. Substack: Can I change the price of my subscription after launch on Substack?support.substack.com
6. Substack: How can readers pay for a subscription on my Substack publication?support.substack.com
7. Substack: Can readers pay for subscriptions using their local currency on Substack?support.substack.com
8. Substack: How do I set up my custom domain on Substack?support.substack.com
9. Substack: Can my subscribers pay on the Substack iOS app?support.substack.com
10. Substack: Now anyone can pay for a Substack subscription in iOSon.substack.com
11. Substack: How do I set up my Stripe account on Substack to start receiving payments?support.substack.com
12. Substack: How do I cancel a subscription and issue a refund for a paid subscriber on Substack?support.substack.com
13. Substack: What happens when a subscriber disputes a paid subscription on Substack?support.substack.com
14. Substack: What is Substack Boost?support.substack.com
15. Substack: Upcoming changes to tax on Substacksupport.substack.com
16. Stripe: Pricingstripe.com
17. Stripe: Billing pricingstripe.com
18. Apple: Auto-renewable subscriptionsdeveloper.apple.com