Newsletter Ledgerbeehiiv vs Buttondown: which costs less at your size
Neither takes a cut of paid subscriptions, so the plan price decides. beehiiv's Free plan is far bigger (2,500 subscribers against 100), so a small free newsletter costs $0 on beehiiv. Above 2,500 subscribers, and for any paid newsletter up to 20,000, Buttondown costs less in our data. Buttondown's self-serve prices in our data stop at 20,000 subscribers. Prices checked .
Quick answer
- Free newsletter up to 2,500: beehiiv is $0; Buttondown charges from 101 subscribers.
- Free newsletter above 2,500: Buttondown costs less than beehiiv's paid plan.
- Paid newsletter up to 20,000: Buttondown (plan plus $9 add-on) costs less than beehiiv Lite at every size we checked; near 20,000 the gap is small.
Monthly cost side by side
| Subscribers | beehiiv, free newsletter | Buttondown, free newsletter | beehiiv, paid newsletter | Buttondown, paid newsletter | Cheaper (paid) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | $0.00 Free | $9.00 Standard | $62.30 Lite | $31.30 Standard | Buttondown |
| 1,000 | $0.00 Free | $9.00 Standard | $75.60 Lite | $44.60 Standard | Buttondown |
| 2,500 | $0.00 Free | $29.00 Standard | $135.50 Lite | $104.50 Standard | Buttondown |
| 5,000 | $95.00 Lite | $29.00 Standard | $228.00 Lite | $171.00 Standard | Buttondown |
| 10,000 | $119.00 Lite | $79.00 Standard | $385.00 Lite | $354.00 Standard | Buttondown |
| 20,000 | $169.00 Lite | $139.00 Standard | $701.00 Lite | $680.00 Standard | Buttondown |
Per month, US dollars, plans billed yearly where the platform offers it, otherwise month-to-month. "Free newsletter" is the plan price only. "Paid newsletter" assumes 5% of the list pays $8/month and includes the plan, the platform's fee and Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30 per charge. "Same" means within $1. * = includes a figure not yet confirmed on the vendor's own page. Try your own numbers in the cost calculator.
Disclosure: links to platforms go through /go/ redirects. Some are affiliate links (currently beehiiv, Systeme.io and Buttondown): if you sign up and pay, we may earn a commission at no cost to you. That never changes the numbers or the order of results. Full disclosure.
Visit beehiiv (opens in a new tab) · Visit Buttondown (opens in a new tab)
What each charges, from their own pages
beehiiv
- Free plan up to 2,500 subscribers, without paid subscriptions.
- Lite is the cheapest plan that sells subscriptions, priced by list size.
- Takes 0% of paid subscription revenue; you pay only Stripe.
- Lite includes the referral program and the ad network, up to 10 live automations and one paid tier.
Official pricing source (checked 2026-10-19)
Buttondown
- Free for the first 100 subscribers, then priced by list size: $9/month to 1,000, $29 to 5,000, $79 to 10,000 and $139 to 20,000.
- Paid subscriptions are a +$9/month add-on, and Buttondown says "You keep all of the money you make after credit card fees."
- No yearly price found, so our figures are month-to-month.
Official pricing source (checked 2026-10-19)
Who each suits, on cost
beehiiv
Free newsletters under 2,500, lists above 20,000, and publishers who want the referral program and ad network on the entry paid plan.
Buttondown
Small and mid-size paid newsletters that want the lowest flat price, and writers who prefer a minimal, text-first tool.
Questions
Is Buttondown cheaper than beehiiv?
For a paid newsletter, yes at every size from 500 to 20,000 subscribers in our data. For a free newsletter, beehiiv is cheaper up to 2,500 subscribers because its Free plan costs $0 there; above that Buttondown costs less.
Do beehiiv or Buttondown take a percentage of paid subscriptions?
No. Both state 0% on subscription revenue; you pay the plan (and on Buttondown a $9/month paid-subscriptions add-on) plus Stripe's card fees.
We have not used either product as a publisher; this page compares published prices and plan limits only. See the methodology.