Substack vs Beehiiv: Newsletter Platforms Comparison (2026)

An independent side-by-side comparison of Substack and Beehiiv for newsletter platforms buyers — pricing, features, integrations, and how often each is cited by major AI engines.

AI Citation Scorecard

How often each is cited by major AI engines when buyers ask newsletter platforms questions. Last 90 days across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Copilot.

Tied overall — both at 100% cited across 10 probes.
ChatGPT
Substack
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Beehiiv
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Perplexity
Substack
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Beehiiv
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Gemini
Substack
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Beehiiv
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Claude
Substack
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Beehiiv
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Copilot
Substack
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Beehiiv
1 / 1 probes
100%
Excellent
Scale:NoneLowFairStrongExcellent

Probes run hourly; each (engine × query) combo retests every ~3 days.

Pricing

Substack
Starting price
—
Free tier
Yes
substack.com ↗
Beehiiv
Starting price
$0/month
Free tier
Yes
beehiiv.com ↗

Key Features

Substack
  • ✓Monetization options for creators
  • ✓Customizable newsletters
  • ✓Podcast hosting
  • ✓Audience growth tools
  • ✓Live video capabilities
  • ✓Analytics dashboard
  • ✓Content scheduling
  • ✓Community engagement features
Beehiiv
  • ✓Newsletters, Website, and Podcast
  • ✓Unlimited Email Sends
  • ✓Campaign Analytics
  • ✓Custom Domains
  • ✓AI Website Builder
  • ✓API Access
  • ✓Boosts Network
  • ✓Digital Products

When to choose Substack

Choose Substack if your team prioritizes its strengths over Beehiiv's. Full guidance populates as Substack's feature data is indexed.

When to choose Beehiiv

Choose Beehiiv if your team prioritizes its strengths over Substack's. Full guidance populates as Beehiiv's feature data is indexed.

AI visibility profiles

Is one of these your brand?

Get the full report by email: every newsletter platforms buyer question we ask, which engines name you, and who gets named instead.

Substack

substack.com

Beehiiv

beehiiv.com

Free check

Check any brand's AI visibility — free

We ask the buyer questions in this market across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity and Copilot, and show you who gets named.

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