Free calculator
Paid newsletter revenue calculator
See what a paid newsletter brings in each month and year, with a mix of monthly and annual plans, the fees your platform takes and how long a paying reader stays.
Fees checked Nov 2026Rates linked to sourcesSee all benchmark rates
Your estimate
An estimate from the inputs you set, not a promise of income. Inputs marked Example input are not from a published source.
How the calculator works
Fees from beehiiv pricingSubstack helpKit pricingGhost (Ghost(Pro)) pricing and Stripe pricing (2.9% plus 30c per US card payment), checked Nov 2026. Plan prices are not included.
Why churn belongs in the maths
A paid newsletter is a subscription business. Revenue this month is only half the story, the other half is how long each reader keeps paying. If 7.76% of paying readers leave each month, the average one stays about 13 months. That is the figure beehiiv reported for sports newsletters in its 2026 paid newsletter report, as covered by Press Gazette.
Lifetime value tells you what a new paying reader is worth, which is the most you could sensibly spend to win one. If a reader is worth $120 over their lifetime, spending $5 to bring in a free subscriber who has a 3% chance of paying is a loss, while spending $1 might pay off.
Monthly or yearly plans
beehiiv found the median paid newsletter charges $10 a month or $100 a year, a ten to one ratio. Yearly plans bring cash forward and cut the number of card payments, which lowers the fixed 30 cents per charge. The calculator keeps one churn rate for both plans to stay simple, so treat the result as a planning range.
Price by niche, not by list size. beehiiv's report shows investing newsletters at a median $27 a month and travel at $7. A small list in a high value niche can price well above the median.
Reading the result
The monthly figure is what you would collect in a typical month once your mix of monthly and yearly readers settles. The yearly figure is twelve of those months. Neither includes the plan fee for your platform, which you can check in our platform guides. Update the inputs with your own numbers after the first few months.
Benchmarks used on this page
| Channel | What it measures | Value | Audience size | Audience type | Source and date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newsletter | Free to paid conversion | 0.62% median, about 6 paying per 1,000 | All sizes | general | beehiiv, State of Paid Newsletters 2026 22 Jun 2026 |
| Newsletter | Paid newsletter price | $10 a month or $100 a year (median) | All sizes | general | beehiiv, State of Paid Newsletters 2026 22 Jun 2026 |
| Newsletter | Paid price, investing niche | $27 a month median | All sizes | general | beehiiv, State of Paid Newsletters 2026 22 Jun 2026 |
| Newsletter | Paid price, travel niche | $7 a month median | All sizes | general | beehiiv, State of Paid Newsletters 2026 22 Jun 2026 |
Every figure above comes from our Creator Benchmark Rates table, with filters by audience size and type.
Tools that help
beehiiv
Free up to 2,500 subscribers; paid plans from $49/mo (annual)
Ghost (Ghost(Pro))
From $18/mo billed yearly; 0% transaction fees on paid plans
Some links are affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no cost to you, and it never changes the numbers.
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Guides to read next
beehiiv vs Substack, which newsletter platform should you use?Substack fees, what you actually paySubstack vs Ghost, rent an audience or own a publication?
Frequently asked questions
What is a good churn rate for a paid newsletter?
There is no single benchmark. beehiiv's 2026 report, as covered by Press Gazette, put monthly churn for sports newsletters at 7.76%, and some niches churn faster. Lower is better because every month a reader stays adds to their lifetime value.
Should I offer a yearly plan?
Most paid newsletters do. beehiiv found the median yearly price is ten times the monthly price, $100 against $10.
What price should a paid newsletter charge?
beehiiv's 2026 median is $10 a month. Investing newsletters charge a median $27, finance $20, business $15 and travel $7.
Which platform takes the smallest cut?
beehiiv and Ghost take 0% of paid subscriptions on their paid plans, Kit charges 3.5% plus 30 cents all in, and Substack keeps 10% before Stripe fees.
Build the audience first
One Idea, Six Channels
A plain English course for building a personal brand across your newsletter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and your own website, without posting everywhere every day.
- 34 short lessons in 8 modules
- 6 worksheets and templates
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