beehiiv Pricing: What You'll Really Pay at 1,000 to 25,000 Subscribers (Monthly vs Yearly)

"Is beehiiv free, and what will it cost when my list grows?" You've seen $49 on the pricing page, maybe a "free forever" plan, and you want the number that lands on your card.

Here's the short version. Free covers up to 2,500 subscribers. The $49 (Lite) and $95 (Pro) headline prices are yearly-billing prices at 1,000 subscribers. On monthly billing they're $59 and $109. Past 2,500 subscribers, you move to a paid plan.

Below: every plan on both billing cycles, a year's cost with the math, and what each plan adds.

Quick verdict

1. 1

   beehiiv Free plan: cheapest sensible start

   $0 up to 2,500 subscribers

   Unlimited sends are listed on every plan; no automations or paid subscriptions.

   Start beehiiv freeRead our notes
2. 2

   beehiiv Lite: cheapest plan that unlocks earning

   $59/mo monthly, $49/mo yearly at 1,000

   Adds paid subscriptions (0% take), 10 automations and 2 team seats.

   Start beehiiv freeRead our notes
3. 3

   Kit Cheaper with automations

   Free up to 10,000 subscribers; Creator $39/mo at 1,000

   Creator adds unlimited sequences and visual automations.

   Try Kit freeRead our notes

Prices checked Nov 2026. Plans change, so please confirm on each vendor's site.

On this page

1. beehiiv pricing at a glance
2. Why $49 and $95 are yearly prices
3. Cost by list size, with a year's math
4. The jump from Free at 2,500 to the 5,000 tier
5. What each plan adds
6. Extra costs to budget for
7. The free plan: what you get and what you don't
8. Monthly vs yearly: which billing should you pick?
9. Cheaper alternatives
10. Check your own number
11. FAQ
12. The bottom line

beehiiv pricing at a glance

beehiiv prices by subscriber count. There are three plans in play for most creators: Free, Lite and Pro. (An Enterprise tier also exists; its price isn't published in the data we checked, so it's not covered here.)

The pricing page opens with the "Yearly billing" toggle on. That's why the first numbers you see are the lower ones.

The full tier-by-tier prices are below. Prices are what we saw at our last check. Please confirm on beehiiv's pricing page before you buy.

Every price we checked

Lite, monthly billing:

Lite is capped at 100,000 subscribers.

Yearly billing and Pro, per month:

We didn't capture yearly Lite prices above 25,000 or Pro prices above 25,000, so we leave them out rather than guess. If you're past 25,000, check beehiiv's slider directly.

Why $49 and $95 are yearly prices

beehiiv's pricing page shows "Lite $49/mo, Pro $95/mo" because the yearly toggle is selected when it loads. "Billed yearly" means you pay for 12 months up front. The monthly figure is just that yearly total divided by 12.

If you want to pay month to month, the same plans are:

• Lite at 1,000 subscribers: $59 a month, not $49
• Pro at 1,000 subscribers: $109 a month, not $95

That's $10 and $14 more a month. It matters when you compare beehiiv with a tool that lists its monthly rate, like Kit's $39 Creator plan at 1,000. Compare monthly to monthly, or yearly to yearly.

Cost by list size, with a year's math

Here's what each plan costs at five list sizes. "Per year" multiplies the monthly figure by 12, so you can see the real total.

beehiiv's pricing page shows Free as "Unavailable" above 2,500 subscribers.

A year on monthly vs yearly billing

beehiiv says yearly billing "saves up to 20%". At the sizes above, the savings run from $120 to $600 a year.

The jump from Free at 2,500 to the 5,000 tier

This is the number to plan for. Free stops at 2,500 subscribers, and in the price data we checked, the next Lite tier above 2,500 is 5,000 subscribers.

• Monthly billing: $0 to $109 a month, which is $1,308 over a year
• Yearly billing: $0 to $95 a month, which is $1,140 over a year, paid up front

You also lose the option to stay free on beehiiv, since Free isn't offered above 2,500. We'd suggest budgeting for this a few months before you hit the cap. If you're at 2,000 subscribers and growing by 300 a month, you'll cross 2,500 in under two months.

What each plan adds

Price is only half the story. Here's what changes as you move up, based on beehiiv's pricing page.

Automations and the welcome email

A single "Welcome email" is included on every plan, Free included. A multi-step welcome sequence needs automations, which start on Lite. Lite gets "Live custom automations: 10". Pro and Enterprise are "Unlimited".

Ten sounds like plenty, but they go quickly. A welcome sequence, a freebie delivery, a re-engagement flow and a sponsor-lead flow take four. If you build one flow per lead magnet, you can reach 10.

Paid subscriptions and the fees on top

Paid subscriptions start on Lite. beehiiv's FAQ says it "takes 0% of your paid subscription and digital product revenue. You keep what you earn, minus Stripe's standard processing fee of 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction."

So there are two separate costs: your beehiiv plan (flat, by list size) and Stripe's processing fee (per sale). Here's an example with 200 paying readers at $8 a month, on Lite at the 5,000-subscriber tier, billed monthly:

• Revenue: 200 × $8 = $1,600
• Stripe: 200 × (2.9% × $8 + $0.30) = 200 × ($0.232 + $0.30) = $106.40
• beehiiv's cut: 0% of $1,600 = $0
• Lite at 5,000: $109
• You keep: $1,600 − $106.40 − $109 = $1,384.60 a month

The $0.30 fixed fee weighs most on small monthly prices. An annual reader plan pays it once instead of twelve times.

Branding, team seats and support

Removing beehiiv branding is a Pro feature. At 1,000 subscribers that means $109 a month on monthly billing ($95 yearly), against $59 ($49 yearly) for Lite. That's $50 more a month, or $600 a year, on monthly billing ($1,308 vs $708).

Team seats are 1 on Free, 2 on Lite and 10 on Pro. A solo writer with an editor or a VA usually fits Lite. A small team would need Pro.

Start beehiiv freeFree up to 2,500 subscribers

Extra costs to budget for

beehiiv's plan price isn't the whole bill if you charge readers or sell products. Two things sit outside the plan:

1. Stripe's processing fee. 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction, per beehiiv's FAQ. That's Stripe's fee, not beehiiv's.
2. A tier change when your list grows. Prices step up by subscriber count. Check where your list is heading before you commit to a yearly payment, since moving up a tier raises the monthly rate.

What we couldn't pin down in our data is add-on or usage pricing for specific features. We don't list any here, and we'd suggest scanning beehiiv's pricing page and your dashboard for anything extra before you pay.

The free plan: what you get and what you don't

beehiiv calls its free plan "Free forever", with a cap of 2,500 subscribers.

You get:

• Up to 2,500 subscribers
• One welcome email
• One team seat
• Recommendations, a website and digital products, which beehiiv lists under "All plans include"

You don't get:

• Automations (none on Free)
• Paid subscriptions (from Lite)
• Branding removal (Pro)
• Room to grow past 2,500 subscribers

For a new newsletter that needs to find its first 2,500 readers, that's a real runway. For the full feature list and what Free leaves out in practice, see our beehiiv review.

Monthly vs yearly: which billing should you pick?

Yearly billing saves real money. Lite at 5,000 subscribers saves $168 over 12 months ($1,308 vs $1,140). Pro at 10,000 saves $480 ($2,868 vs $2,388).

The trade-off is commitment. You pay up front and your list size may change. A few rules of thumb:

• Not sure beehiiv fits yet: start on monthly billing, or on Free
• Already running a stable list that sits well inside one tier: yearly billing saves money
• Growing fast: a yearly plan at a tier you'll outgrow in four months isn't a saving. Check how beehiiv handles mid-term upgrades first; we haven't verified that process.

We haven't confirmed refund or cancellation terms on yearly plans, so please read them on beehiiv's site before you pay.

Cheaper alternatives

beehiiv is built around newsletters that earn. If that's not your plan, these cost less at some sizes. All prices below are monthly billing.

At 5,000 subscribers, a year on Lite is $109 × 12 = $1,308. Kit Creator is $89 × 12 = $1,068, MailerLite Comfort is $49 × 12 = $588, and Systeme.io Startup is $17 × 12 = $204.

Kit: free to 10,000, then automations from Creator

Kit's free plan covers up to 10,000 subscribers, with landing pages, forms, broadcasts, and the ability to sell digital products and subscriptions. It leaves out sequences and visual automations, which start on Creator. Kit's pricing page lists a 3.5% + 30¢ fee on sales. For head-to-head detail, see beehiiv vs Kit.

Try Kit freeFree up to 10,000 subscribers

MailerLite: the low-cost email tool

MailerLite's free plan covers up to 250 subscribers and includes 3 automations. Comfort is $19 at 1,000 and $49 at 5,000 on monthly billing. MailerLite says annual billing is 10% off.

Try MailerLite freeFree up to 250 subscribers

Systeme.io: email, funnels and courses in one

Systeme.io covers 2,000 contacts for free, then Startup is $17 a month for 5,000 contacts. It bundles funnels, checkout and courses with email, and says there are "No transaction fees". It's not a newsletter platform, so it fits a different job than beehiiv.

Start Systeme.io freeFree up to 2,000 contacts

Substack: no monthly fee, 10% of paid revenue

Substack costs nothing to start and takes 10% of paid subscription revenue, with card fees on top. At 200 paying readers at $8, that's 10% × $1,600 = $160 a month to Substack, against $109 for Lite at 5,000 subscribers (monthly billing). Below about $1,090 a month in paid revenue, a 10% cut costs less than Lite at 5,000. Our beehiiv vs Substack comparison goes further.

Check your own number

Drag the slider to your list size, or where you expect to be in a year. You'll see beehiiv's cheapest fitting plan next to Kit, MailerLite, Systeme.io and GetResponse, with or without an automated welcome sequence.

Not sure which tool fits at all? Try our which-tool-fits-me quiz or see best email marketing for creators.

FAQ

Is beehiiv free?

Yes, up to 2,500 subscribers. beehiiv calls it "Free forever". It includes one welcome email and one team seat, but no automations and no paid subscriptions. Above 2,500 subscribers, beehiiv's pricing page shows Free as unavailable.

How much does beehiiv cost per month?

On monthly billing, Lite is $59 at 1,000 subscribers, $79 at 2,500, $109 at 5,000, $139 at 10,000 and $199 at 25,000. Pro is $109, $149, $199, $239 and $349 at the same sizes. Yearly billing lowers each of those monthly figures.

Why does beehiiv show $49 on its pricing page?

Because the page loads with the "Yearly billing" toggle selected. $49 is Lite at 1,000 subscribers billed yearly. Monthly billing at that size is $59.

Does beehiiv take a percentage of my paid subscriptions?

beehiiv says it takes 0% of your paid subscription and digital product revenue. Stripe still charges 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. Paid subscriptions start on Lite.

How much do I save by paying yearly?

Lite at 1,000 subscribers saves $120 a year ($708 vs $588). At 10,000 it saves $240 ($1,668 vs $1,428). Pro at 25,000 saves $600 ($4,188 vs $3,588).

What happens when I pass 2,500 subscribers?

You need a paid plan. In the price data we checked, the next Lite tier above 2,500 is 5,000 subscribers: $109 a month on monthly billing or $95 a month on yearly billing.

Is beehiiv cheaper than Kit?

Not at the sizes we checked. Kit Creator is $39 at 1,000 and $89 at 5,000 against beehiiv Lite's $59 and $109 on monthly billing, and they match at $139 at 10,000. Kit's free plan also goes up to 10,000 subscribers. See our beehiiv vs Kit comparison for what each plan includes.

The bottom line

beehiiv is free until 2,500 subscribers, then costs $109 a month on Lite at the 5,000 tier on monthly billing, or $95 on yearly billing. Budget with the monthly numbers ($59, $79, $109, $139, $199), treat $49 as a yearly-only price, and pay yearly only once you're sure the platform fits.

If your newsletter is the product and you plan to charge readers, Lite is the plan to price. If you sell courses by sequence on a smaller budget, Kit or Systeme.io may cost less. For help deciding, read our beehiiv review.

Start beehiiv freeFree up to 2,500 subscribers