Substack is a newsletter-first platform that lets creators keep 90% of subscription revenue and build direct audience relationships, while Medium is a reading platform with a curated feed that pays writers from a subscription pool (creators receive 50% of revenue). Substack prioritizes creator independence; Medium prioritizes content discovery.
Substack vs Medium — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Email newsletter platform enabling creators to monetize subscribers directly with 90% revenue share.
Content platform with algorithmic feed discovery and membership revenue-sharing model for writers.
Creator Revenue Share. Primary Format. Audience Discovery Model. Monthly Active Users. Pricing Flexibility. Paywall Model. Setup Complexity
Choose Substack if you want maximum revenue retention, direct subscriber control, and are willing to drive your own audience growth through email. Choose Medium if you prefer built-in discovery, algorithmic reach to millions of readers, and don't mind a lower revenue share in exchange for passive traffic.
Substack: 90%+ | Medium: 50% (pool-based)
Substack: Low (requires existing audience) | Medium: High (algorithmic reach)
Substack: Immediate (day 1) | Medium: 30-90 (eligibility required)
Substack: Newsletters, Notes, Video, Audio (4+) | Medium: Articles, audio, multimedia (3)
Substack: 10-15M (growing) | Medium: 100M+
Substack: Low (own subscribers) | Medium: High (platform-dependent)
Substack: Expanding (Notes, Video, Visual) | Medium: Declining (Category counts down 20-38%)
Substack: Limited customization options | Medium: N/A
Substack: Established Notes network with high discoverability | Medium: N/A
Substack: Basic subscription and open rate analytics | Medium: N/A
Substack: Limited third-party integration options | Medium: N/A
Substack: $0 (10% revenue share) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Basic (limited control) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Limited templates and styling | Medium: N/A
Substack: Strong directory and algorithm-driven recommendations | Medium: N/A
Substack: Primarily paid subscriptions | Medium: N/A
Substack: $0 (revenue-share only) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Basic (simple sequences) | Medium: N/A
Substack: No - subscriptions only | Medium: N/A
Substack: 30 minutes - 1 hour | Medium: N/A
Substack: Email, help center, limited support | Medium: N/A
Platform Commission on Paid Subscriptions
Substack: 10% (all payment methods) | Medium: N/A
Substack: $100 (10% of paid subscriptions) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Included in platform fee | Medium: N/A
Substack: ~95% (optimized infrastructure) | Medium: N/A
Substack: No—requires third-party integration | Medium: N/A
Substack: ~500,000+ writers | Medium: N/A
Substack: ~50+ million monthly | Medium: N/A
Substack: 1+ million (estimated 2024) | Medium: N/A
Substack: 2 (free + paid subscriptions) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Creator owns full email list and subscriber data | Medium: N/A
Substack: Moderate (Notes feature, recommendations) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Low—straightforward publish-and-monetize flow | Medium: N/A
Substack: 3-5 basic templates | Medium: N/A
Substack: 5 (list-based only) | Medium: N/A
Substack: 0 (built-in subscriptions only) | Medium: N/A
Substack: 12 (Professional plan) | Medium: N/A
Substack: 500K publications | Medium: N/A
Substack: 10% on paid subscriptions | Medium: N/A
Substack: Native email infrastructure | Medium: N/A
Substack: Directory + recommendations (30-40% of growth) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Text newsletters, podcasts (limited) | Medium: N/A
Substack: $0 (free plan available) | Medium: N/A
Substack: 10% flat platform fee | Medium: N/A
Substack: 5-10 minutes (sign up and publish) | Medium: N/A
Substack: 15-20 template variations | Medium: N/A
Substack: Newsletters, posts, audio, Notes (social) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Yes, algorithmic recommendations to 100M+ users | Medium: N/A
Substack: Limited API with basic integrations only | Medium: N/A
Substack: Unlimited (free forever plan) | Medium: N/A
Substack: Written content and newsletters only | Medium: N/A
Substack: 10% subscription revenue only | Medium: N/A
Substack: Subscriptions, tips, cross-promotion ads, sponsorships | Medium: N/A
Substack: Comment sections, reader replies, minimal community tools | Medium: N/A
Substack: Active—directory recommendations and subscriber suggestions | Medium: N/A
Substack: $10 minimum payout (or held until threshold) | Medium: N/A
Substack: ~3 million | Medium: 100+ million
Substack: $0 (micro-payments) | Medium: $100
Substack: $5-$50+ (creator-controlled) | Medium: $5 fixed
Substack: ~30 (requires subscriber) | Medium: 1-7 (engagement-based)
Substack: $500-$5,000 (with audience) | Medium: $50-$500 (median)
Substack: Full portability—export email list and content | Medium: Limited—content stays on Medium
Substack: N/A | Medium: 0% (platform owned)
Substack: N/A | Medium: None; platform follows only
Substack: N/A | Medium: Limited/not available
Substack: N/A | Medium: $5,000+ (top writers)
Substack: N/A | Medium: Free (or $5-12/month premium)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 15-20 official templates
Substack: N/A | Medium: Limited to native features
Substack: N/A | Medium: 50% (Medium takes 50%)
Substack: N/A | Medium: Very difficult (2/10)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 0 hours (fully managed)
Substack: N/A | Medium: $5-12 (Pro required)
Substack: N/A | Medium: Medium retains rights (creators license)
Substack: N/A | Medium: No (requires paid membership)
Substack: N/A | Medium: General interest + business + tech
Substack: N/A | Medium: $168/year (Premium membership)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 3/10 (template-based)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 2-5 minutes (sign up and publish)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 50+ (official partnerships)
Substack: N/A | Medium: Shared (Medium retains platform rights)
Average Writer Earnings (Partner Program)
Substack: N/A | Medium: $50-500 (Medium Partner Program)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 5/10 (limited meta controls)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 15-20 built-in templates
Substack: N/A | Medium: Limited native features
Substack: N/A | Medium: $0 free, $120 premium optional
Substack: N/A | Medium: 4/10 (limited meta control)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 3/10 (difficult export)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 5 minutes (sign up and publish)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 180M monthly active users
Substack: N/A | Medium: Basic digest, no automation workflows
Substack: N/A | Medium: $1,000 (Medium Partner average)
Substack: N/A | Medium: Algorithmic feed with 180M+ potential readers
Substack: N/A | Medium: 15-20% (industry standard)
Substack: N/A | Medium: Limited (restricted deletion/export)
Substack: N/A | Medium: 100+ followers required
Substack: N/A | Medium: Yes, throughout platform
Substack: N/A | Medium: Basic (views, reads, engagement)
Substack: N/A | Medium: Yes, free tier available
Substack: N/A | Medium: Yes (Member-only stories)
How to choose between Substack and Medium
Substack vs Medium — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Substack vs Medium. Contains 131 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Substack vs Medium — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Substack vs Medium.
How does Substack make money and how much does it take from writers?
Substack takes 10% of gross subscription revenue from paid newsletters. For free newsletters, Substack is free to use. Writers keep 90% minus payment processing fees (approximately 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction).
Can you make money on Medium without a big following?
Yes. The Medium Partner Program pays based on reading time from Medium members, not follower count. New writers can earn from organic discovery through Medium's curation and internal search. However, typical earnings for most articles are modest unless pieces go viral or get curated prominently.
Medium articles can rank well in Google due to Medium's domain authority. Substack posts are primarily delivered via email, and while they have public URLs, they typically have weaker SEO footprint than equivalent Medium posts unless the writer actively builds their own domain.
Can you migrate from Medium to Substack?
Yes. You can export your Medium posts and republish them on Substack. Many writers have made this transition as they built a following on Medium and then converted those readers to Substack subscribers. Medium allows email list export for writers who collected subscriber emails.
What percentage do top Substack writers earn?
Top Substack newsletters can earn millions annually. A newsletter with 10,000 paid subscribers at $10/month generates approximately $1.08 million/year after Substack's 10% fee. However, most Substack writers have far fewer paid subscribers — median paid subscriber counts are in the hundreds.
How to Choose Between Substack and Medium
Creator Revenue Share: Substack has 90% of subscription revenue, while Medium has 50% of subscription pool.
Primary Format: Substack has Email newsletter (push to inbox), while Medium has Web articles on curated feed.
Audience Discovery Model: Substack has Creator builds own list; algorithmic recommendations limited, while Medium has Algorithmic feed; content discovery built-in.
Monthly Active Users: Substack has ~3 million (2024), while Medium has ~100+ million (2024).
Pricing Flexibility: Substack has Creator sets own subscription price ($5-$50+/month), while Medium has Fixed $5/month for readers; creators earn from pool.
Paywall Model: Substack has Simple paywall; readers can subscribe directly, while Medium has Member-only content; requires Medium membership.
Setup Complexity: Substack has 30 minutes; minimal steps required, while Medium has 15 minutes; same day publication possible.
Substack is a newsletter-first platform that lets creators keep 90% of subscription revenue and build direct audience relationships, while Medium is a reading platform with a curated feed that pays writers from a subscription pool (creators receive 50% of revenue). Substack prioritizes creator indep