Substack
Paid newsletters, podcasts and video for film writers, critics and creators
Substack is a publishing platform where writers send newsletters, sell paid subscriptions and host podcasts and video. In 2026 it added a built-in Recording Studio, a reader-side AI-detection scan, creator matching, audience-segmented posts and TV apps. Publishing is free; Substack takes 10% of paid subscription revenue plus Stripe processing fees.
- 1 creator using
- Freemium pricing
- Easy learning curve
What Substack can do
- Infinite canvas No
- AI agent No
- Node / flow builder No
- Public API No
- MCP server Not confirmed
4 of 26 capabilities confirmed
| Capability | Supported | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Text to image | No | |
| Image editing | No | |
| Text to video | No | |
| Image to video | No | |
| Video to video | No | |
| Native audio in video | No | |
| Lip-sync | No | |
| Voice / TTS | No | |
| Music & SFX | No | |
| Upscaling | No | |
| Character consistency | No | |
| Camera control | No | |
| Custom training | No | |
| Third-party models | No |
| Capability | Supported | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Infinite canvas | No | |
| Node / flow builder | No | |
| AI agent | No | |
| Chat assistant | No | |
| Team collaboration | Partial | Recording Studio supports up to two guests and co-hosts; subscriber-only comments and chats. No team workspace verified |
| Capability | Supported | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Public API | No | No public content or posting API found; community tools use private endpoints or session cookies |
| MCP server | Not confirmed | A third-party blog reports the CEO said MCP is 'coming soon' (July 2026); not verified |
| Mobile app | Yes | iOS and Android apps; TV apps for Apple TV and Google TV (beta) |
| Desktop / local | No | |
| Open source | No |
| Capability | Supported | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Yes | Free publishing; the 10% fee applies only to paid subscriptions |
| Commercial use | Yes | Creators state they own their content, mailing list and subscriber payments |
Yes Partial No Not confirmed by the vendor
What makes Substack different
- 01
Built-in paid subscriptions and email delivery: no separate newsletter tool, payment setup or landing page needed
- 02
Free to publish, with no monthly software fee; Substack's cut is 10% of paid revenue plus Stripe fees, so cost scales with income
- 03
Writing, podcast, video, live and Notes in one account, instead of separate tools for each format
- 04
Audience-specific blocks and segments let one post serve free, paid and founding readers, which Ghost and Kit handle only through separate sends or tags
- 05
Stated ownership of the mailing list and subscriber payments, with the option to leave with the list
About Substack
Substack started as an email newsletter tool and is now a multi-format creator platform. A publisher can send free and paid posts by email, host podcasts, post video, go live, and run community chat and Notes. Paid subscriptions, including founding-member tiers, are built in and paid through Stripe. Substack says creators own their content, mailing list and subscriber payments.
What changed in 2026: a Recording Studio (March) lets creators pre-record solo videos or conversations with up to two guests on the web, with custom watermarks, screen share and auto-generated clips and thumbnails. TV apps for Apple TV and Google TV went into beta in January with a For You row of video posts. In July, Substack added an AI-detection scan built with Pangram that readers can run on posts and Notes over 100 words, plus an optional creator disclosure statement. In late August it added creator match, audience segments, audience-specific content blocks that change by free, paid or founding status, subscriber-only comment controls and a Typefully scheduling integration.
It is built for writers who want a paying readership without running their own stack: film critics, festival reporters, production-diary writers and doc filmmakers with a podcast. It fits a film workflow as the audience and monetisation layer, where the work lives in an NLE or a shot list and the newsletter, paid tier and episode drops live on Substack. It is not an automation or marketing-funnel tool.
What's new in Substack
-
Creator match, audience segments and audience-specific blocks
Publishers can find collaborators by audience size and interest, send posts to reader segments, and show free, paid or founding readers different sections of the same post. Announced 25 August 2026.
Source: on.substack.com ↗ -
AI-detection scan for readers, plus creator disclosure
A Pangram-built scan estimates how much of a post, Note or comment is AI-written; it works on text over 100 words, runs only when requested, and launched 22 July 2026 on web and iOS.
Source: netinfluencer.com ↗ -
Built-in Recording Studio for video
Creators can pre-record and publish solo videos or conversations with up to two guests, with custom watermarks and auto-generated clips and thumbnails. Launched 12 March 2026.
Source: techcrunch.com ↗
Key Features
- Newsletter publishing with email delivery and web archive
- Paid subscriptions and founding-member tiers, processed through Stripe
- Podcast hosting with transcript editing and speaker labels
- Video posts and a Recording Studio for solo or two-guest recordings, with auto clips and thumbnails
- Live video and live sessions
- Audience segments, tags and audience-specific content blocks
- Creator match to find collaborators by audience size and interest
- Subscriber-only comment settings and reply rules
- TV apps for Apple TV and Google TV (beta, January 2026), with a For You row
- AI-detection scan for readers and an optional creator disclosure statement
- Typefully integration for scheduling Notes to X, Threads, LinkedIn and Bluesky
When to reach for it — and when to skip
Reach for it when…
- Free to publish, with no monthly software bill
- Paid subscriptions, email and podcast hosting need no extra tools
- Video, live and audio posts sit in the same audience as the written work
- Stated ownership of the mailing list and subscriber payments
Skip it when…
- 10% fee plus Stripe fees: third-party estimates put the combined take at 13 to 16% of gross
- Little control over layout, automation or email sequences compared with Ghost or Kit
- No public content API, so publishing cannot be scripted from a production pipeline
- Video features are new and differ by platform (web, desktop, mobile, TV)
Best For
✓ Ideal for
- Film critics and festival reporters with a paying readership
- Production-diary writers who sell behind-the-scenes posts to paid readers
- Doc filmmakers and podcast hosts pairing a written newsletter with audio and video episodes
- Announcing screenings or releases to a subscribed list
✗ Not built for
- Email automation, sales funnels or API-driven sends (use Kit or Ghost)
- Anyone who wants a fully custom website or design system
Working Tips from Filmmakers Using Substack
- 01 The Recording Studio option only appears after you have 10 free subscribers, so grow the free list before planning video drops.
- 02 Use audience-specific blocks to show a trailer, screening link or festival password only to paid readers, instead of writing separate posts.
- 03 Run the AI-detection scan on drafts before publishing if your readers are wary of machine-written copy; it only checks text over 100 words.
- 04 Keep your own copy of the subscriber list and the video masters, since the platform's export format is not verified here.
Substack pricing in 2026
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Free publication | $0 none |
|
| Paid subscriptions | 10% of paid revenue + Stripe fees per transaction |
|
Prices checked against Substack's pricing page on 9 Oct 2026. Vendors change plans often, so confirm before you buy.
Substack vs Ghost vs Kit (ConvertKit)
| Substack | Ghost | Kit (ConvertKit) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free to publish; 10% of paid subscription revenue plus Stripe processing fees | Ghost(Pro) from $18/mo billed yearly (Starter); self-host free | Free up to 10,000 subscribers; Creator from $33/mo (1,000 subs, $390/yr); Pro from $50/mo promo (1,000 subs) |
| Node / flow builder | No | Partial | Yes |
| AI agent | No | No | Partial |
| Chat assistant | No | Not confirmed | Partial |
| Team collaboration | Partial | Yes | Partial |
| Public API | No | Yes | Yes |
| MCP server | Not confirmed | No | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Desktop / local | No | Yes | No |
| Open source | No | Yes | No |
| Free tier | Yes | Partial | Yes |
| Commercial use | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Free tier | Free to publish | No free plan (Starter $18/mo) | Free up to 10,000 subscribers |
| Starting paid price | $0 + 10% of paid revenue | $18/mo Starter (no paid memberships) | $33/mo Creator (1,000 subscribers) |
| Fee on paid memberships | 10% + Stripe fees | 0% (processor fees apply) | 0.6% per Kit page; comparison table lists 3.5% + 30c (unclear) |
| Subscriber limit on entry plan | No stated cap | 1,000 members (Starter) | 1,000 subscribers (Creator) |
Each column comes from that tool's own researched page. "Not confirmed" means the vendor doesn't say.
Open the full Substack vs Ghost vs Kit (ConvertKit) comparison →Use Cases
Tags
Creators Using Substack
Sources
Facts on this page were checked against Substack's own pricing, product and changelog pages on , then cross-checked with independent coverage where vendor pages were silent. Anything we couldn't confirm is marked "Not confirmed" rather than guessed.
- Substack homepage (ownership claims) substack.com
- Substack announcement: creator match, segments, audience blocks (25 Aug 2026) on.substack.com
- AI-detection launch with Pangram (22 Jul 2026) netinfluencer.com
- TechCrunch: Recording Studio launch (12 Mar 2026) techcrunch.com
- Mediaweek: TV app launch (Jan 2026) mediaweek.com.au
- AlternativeTo: Substack feature roundup (Aug 2026) alternativeto.net
- Ruzuku: Substack pricing ruzuku.com
- Ghost pricing (comparison) ghost.org
- Kit pricing (comparison) kit.com
Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll re-check it.
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