Newsletter platforms are changing the face of journalism and achieving subscriber milestones along the way. Substack, the home of more than 50,000 moneymaking publications, now has more than five million paying subscribers.
Substack Head of Writer Relations Sophia Efthimiatou announced the milestone in a blog post. Paid subscriptions only account for a fraction of the platform’s total signups. The total number of active subs — including both paid and unpaid transactions — is north of 35 million, according to the About section on Substack’s website.
Efthimiatou noted that Substack cleared five million paid subs just four months after Co-Founder Hamish McKenzie revealed that his platform had eclipsed the four million mark in the same metric. “It is a milestone that can be enjoyed in purely transactional terms: these are real people rewarding the work of writers and creators with real money, allowing them to achieve and maintain their independence,” Efthimiatou wrote. “But to consider this purely as a financial achievement would be myopic. What we want is to create a wealth of culture.”
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Substack has built that culture through several creator-friendly initiatives that have attracted big names. A $20 million Creator Accelerator Fund rewards publishers who port subscribers from other platforms to Substack, and technical upgrades like native video have opened up new creative possibilities. Notable journalists who have set up shop on Substack include CNN vet Jim Acosta and internet culture reporter Taylor Lorenz.
Several Substack rivals have also wooed reporters. The beehiiv Media Collective, for example, provides services like legal support and insurance. Other journalists, such as Tara Palmieri, have gone around the newsletter ecosystem to bring scoops directly to viewers on platforms like YouTube.
This new mode of independent journalism is bringing news reporters into contact with creators like never before. At the 2024 Democratic National Convention, for example, traditional media members and influencers jockeyed for position on the floor.
The Trump administration has made clear that it is eager to welcome creators into the media landscape. On platforms like Substack, can journalists return the favor? Growing connections between social media and news reporting are sparking political fights from Congress all the way up to the FCC. As those conflicts take place, hubs like Substack and beehiiv will important news sources.
