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Beehiiv free plan 2026 — what you get and where it stops

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title: "Beehiiv free plan 2026 — what you get and where it stops" description: "Everything the beehiiv free plan includes, where the limits are, and how it compares to Mailchimp, ConvertKit, and Substack." date: 2026-10-11 lang: en slug: beehiiv-free-plan-2026 tags: [ai-tools, beehiiv, newsletter, email-marketing, free-tools] affiliate: beehiiv

Beehiiv is one of the few newsletter platforms that offers a free plan you can actually use. It's not a 14-day trial or a crippled version with watermarks on every email.

But there's a wall. And knowing where it is determines whether you start here or somewhere else.

What the free plan includes

  • Up to 2,500 subscribers — unlimited sends
  • Custom domain — your newsletter comes from your domain, not `newsletter.beehiiv.com`
  • Built-in website — archive page with all published issues
  • Referral program — readers recommend and earn rewards
  • Monetization from day 1 — Beehiiv Ad Network (paid ads by impression), paid subscriptions, and Boosts (get paid to promote other newsletters)
  • Signup forms and landing pages
  • Basic analytics — opens, clicks, growth

All of this at zero cost. No credit card to start.

Where the wall is

The wall is clear: 2,500 subscribers. After that, you pay.

| Plan | Price | Subscribers | |---|---|---| | Launch (free) | $0/month | up to 2,500 | | Scale | $49/month | up to 50,000 | | Max | $99/month | up to 100,000 | | Enterprise | custom | 100,000+ |

Honesty note: these prices are what beehiiv publishes as of this article's date. The platform has changed pricing before and will again. Check beehiiv.com/pricing before planning your budget.

What the free plan does NOT include

  • A/B testing on subject lines — paid plans only
  • Advanced automations (sequences with conditional logic) — Scale and above
  • Custom HTML emails — Scale and above
  • Removal of "Powered by beehiiv" in the footer — Scale and above
  • Priority support — Max and above

For someone starting out, these limits usually don't matter. Most creators don't need A/B testing until they have at least 1,000 subscribers — before that, the sample size isn't large enough to measure a difference.

How it compares

| Platform | Free up to | Starts at | Revenue cut | |---|---|---|---| | beehiiv | 2,500 subs | $49/month | 0% on free plan | | Mailchimp | 500 subs | $13/month | 0% | | Kit (ex-ConvertKit) | 1,000 subs | $29/month | 0% | | Substack | unlimited | $0 | 10% forever | | Ghost | 0 (self-hosted) | $9/month (managed) | 0% |

Beehiiv wins on the free ceiling (2,500 vs 500-1,000) and the zero revenue cut. Substack charges no monthly fee but takes 10% of all paid subscription revenue — forever. If your newsletter earns $1,000/month, Substack keeps $100 every month; beehiiv keeps $0 on free and $49 flat on Scale.

The only platform that competes on "completely free" is self-hosted Ghost — but that requires a server, maintenance, and technical knowledge.

Who it's for and who it's not

Start on beehiiv if:

  • You want to launch a newsletter without paying anything
  • You plan to monetize through ads, paid subs, or boosts
  • You want a built-in referral system
  • You have fewer than 2,500 contacts

Don't start on beehiiv if:

  • You already have 2,500+ subscribers (you'll pay from day 1)
  • You need complex automations from the start (sequences with branches)
  • You want full HTML control on every email
  • You prefer an open-source platform you fully control (Ghost)

The catch

Beehiiv's free plan is generous today. The platform has grown aggressively over the past 2 years and their business model relies on converting free users to paid when the list grows. Nothing guarantees the free plan limits won't change.

The only real insurance: your subscribers are yours. Beehiiv lets you export your full list at any time, on any plan. If terms change, you take your list with you. That's more than many platforms offer.

How to start — 5 minutes

  1. Create an account at beehiiv.com — no credit card required
  2. Choose your newsletter name and domain
  3. Write your first issue — the editor is simple, Notion-like
  4. Set up your signup form on your site or social media
  5. Publish and start building your list

Risk: zero. Cost: zero. And if you don't like it, export your subscribers and switch platforms in 10 minutes.

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