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Newsletter Revenue Calculator

Calculate your newsletter revenue from paid subscriptions and sponsorships. Compare Substack, Beehiiv, and ConvertKit fees. Free newsletter revenue calculator.

Subscription revenue only. Switch to Advanced for sponsorships, growth projections, and churn.

Newsletter Basics

Your total email list size (free + paid)

Newsletter platform for paid subscriptions

5%
0%30%

250 paid subscribers

$

Monthly subscription price

Platform Fee Comparison

Substack takes 10% + Stripe (2.9%). Beehiiv charges 0% on their Scale plan + Stripe. ConvertKit takes 3.5% + Stripe. All platforms handle billing, so the real comparison is features vs. fees.

Revenue Estimate

Monthly Net Revenue

$2,189

After platform and processing fees

Annual Recurring Revenue

$26,264

Projected yearly

Revenue per Subscriber

$0.44

Net per total subscriber

Revenue Sources

Subscriptions
Sponsorships

Revenue Breakdown

Paid Subscribers (250)$2,375
Sponsorship Revenue$120
Total Gross$2,495
Platform Fee-$238
Payment Processing (Stripe)-$69
Net Monthly$2,189

Newsletter Revenue Tips

  • - Sponsorships often exceed subscription revenue at scale
  • - Annual plans reduce churn and improve cash flow
  • - Open rate directly impacts sponsorship value — prioritize engagement
  • - Diversify with both subscriptions and sponsorships for stability
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  src="https://calcfalcon.com/embed/creator/newsletter-revenue-calculator"
  width="100%"
  height="500"
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Frequently Asked Questions

How much money can a newsletter make?

A newsletter with 5,000 subscribers at 5% paid conversion and $10/month generates about $200-250/month after fees. At 50,000 subscribers, the same metrics yield $2,000-2,500/month in subscription revenue alone. Adding sponsorships at $30 CPM can double that. Top newsletters with 100K+ subscribers earn six figures annually.

Substack vs Beehiiv vs ConvertKit — which is cheapest?

Beehiiv (Scale plan) charges 0% platform fee — just Stripe processing (2.9%). ConvertKit charges 3.5% + Stripe. Substack takes the most at 10% + Stripe. However, Substack offers built-in discovery through recommendations. Choose based on features, not just fees.

How much do newsletter sponsorships pay?

Newsletter sponsorship rates are typically $20-50 CPM (cost per 1,000 opens). A newsletter with 10,000 subscribers and 40% open rate gets 4,000 opens per issue. At $30 CPM, that is $120 per sponsored issue. Finance and B2B newsletters command $50-100 CPM.

What is a good paid subscriber conversion rate?

For newsletters, 5-10% free-to-paid conversion is considered good. Substack averages around 5-7%. Newsletters with highly specialized, actionable content (financial advice, industry analysis) can achieve 10-15%. General interest newsletters typically convert at 2-5%.

How does newsletter churn affect revenue?

Monthly churn of 3-5% is typical for paid newsletter subscriptions. At 5% monthly churn, you lose half your paid subscribers in about 14 months if you stop growing. Annual plans reduce churn significantly because subscribers commit upfront. The calculator projects subscriber counts factoring in both growth and churn.

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How to Use the Newsletter Revenue Calculator

Enter your subscriber count, platform, paid conversion rate, and monthly price to estimate your newsletter revenue. Unlike the Substack calculator (which focuses on Substack-specific features), this calculator compares multiple platforms and adds sponsorship revenue modeling.

Quick Mode

Set your total subscribers, platform, paid subscriber percentage, and monthly price. The calculator shows net monthly revenue after platform and payment processing fees, annual recurring revenue, and revenue per subscriber. Try different platforms to see which fee structure benefits you most at your current scale.

Advanced Mode

Advanced mode adds sponsorship revenue (CPM-based), subscriber growth and churn projections, annual plan modeling, open rates, and issue frequency. Sponsorship revenue is calculated based on your open rate, CPM rate, and what percentage of your issues carry a paid sponsor. Growth projections show where your paid subscriber base will be in 6 and 12 months.

Subscriptions vs Sponsorships

Paid subscriptions provide predictable recurring revenue. Sponsorships scale with your total list size (not just paid). At smaller scales (under 10K subscribers), subscriptions usually dominate. As you grow, sponsorships become increasingly lucrative because they monetize your entire list, not just the 5% who pay. The most successful newsletters combine both revenue streams.

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