beehiiv vs Kit (ConvertKit)
Kit, which most people still know as ConvertKit, gets compared to beehiiv constantly, and the comparison is slightly unfair to both. They are built for different jobs.
Kit is an email marketing platform. Its centre of gravity is automation: tags, segments, sequences and conditional logic that move a subscriber through a funnel towards buying something. beehiiv is a publishing platform. Its centre of gravity is the publication: the website, the archive, the sponsorships, the growth loops.
So the question is not which is better. It is what your newsletter is for.
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The short answer
These are different categories of tool. Kit is email marketing that a newsletter can live inside. beehiiv is a publication that happens to send email. Pick by whether the newsletter is the product or sells the product.
Side by side
| beehiiv | Kit (ConvertKit) | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Up to 2,500 subscribers | Up to 10,000 subscribers |
| Entry paid price | $43/mo (Scale) | $33/mo at 1,000 subscribers (Creator) |
| Price as you grow | Flat to 100,000 subscribers | Scales with subscriber count |
| Automation depth | Solid, improving | Best in class visual builder |
| Ad and sponsor network | Built in | Sponsor network and paid recommendations |
| Commerce fees | 0% on paid subscriptions | 3.5% + 30c per transaction |
| Website and archive | Full site builder included | Landing pages, lighter site |
| Best fit | The newsletter is the product | The newsletter sells the product |
List prices checked September 2026. Both platforms change their plans, so confirm on their own pricing pages before committing.
Kit has the more generous free plan, by a distance
Free to 10,000 subscribers is unusually good, and it is the single strongest argument for starting on Kit. beehiiv stops at 2,500 on the free Launch plan, so a newsletter growing steadily hits the paywall on beehiiv far sooner.
The caveat is what the free plans contain. Kit gives you the list and the sending; the deeper automation lives on paid tiers. beehiiv Launch gives you the newsletter, the website and analytics but no automations and no ad network. Either way, free is where you validate, not where you build a business.
Where Kit is clearly stronger
The visual automation builder is genuinely better than beehiiv equivalent. If you need branching logic, subscriber tagging that reflects behaviour, and sequences that adapt to what someone clicked, Kit does it more comfortably and with fewer workarounds.
Its commerce tooling is also more mature for selling things that are not a newsletter subscription. Digital products, courses and one-off launches slot naturally into Kit, which is why it is so common among course creators.
And pricing by subscriber count can work in your favour early. At 1,000 subscribers Kit Creator is $33 against beehiiv $43. That flips as you grow, since beehiiv stays flat to 100,000 while Kit keeps climbing.
Where beehiiv is clearly stronger
Sponsorship. beehiiv ad network matches advertisers to your newsletter automatically, which is the part that is genuinely hard to do alone. Chasing sponsors as an individual creator is a sales job most people are bad at and none enjoy.
Publishing. beehiiv gives you a real website, a browsable archive, SEO-friendly post pages and themes. Kit landing pages are fine but it is not trying to be your publication home.
Growth loops. The recommendation network, boosts and the built-in referral programme are distribution rather than features. Kit has a sponsor network and paid recommendations, but growth is more of a bolt-on than the centre of the product.
The honest tiebreaker
Ask what someone is buying when they give you money. If they are paying for the newsletter itself, through a subscription or by being an audience you sell sponsorship against, that is beehiiv. If the newsletter is how you stay in touch with people until they buy a course, a template pack or a coaching slot, that is Kit.
Plenty of people genuinely need both jobs done. In that case pick the one matching your primary revenue and accept the other is second best, because running two email tools splits your list and costs more than either compromise.
So which one?
Pick beehiiv if
- Sponsorship or advertising is part of the plan
- You want a proper website and public archive
- You expect to pass 10,000 subscribers and want predictable pricing
- Growth tooling matters more than automation depth
20OFF202614 days free, then 20% off your first 3 months. About $34.40/mo for Scale.
Pick Kit if
- You sell courses, templates or digital products
- You need branching automations and behavioural tagging
- You are under 10,000 subscribers and want to stay free longer
- The newsletter is a channel rather than the product
We earn nothing if you choose Kit, and it is still the right answer for plenty of people. A recommendation you cannot trust is worth nothing to either of us.
beehiiv vs Kit (ConvertKit) questions
Is Kit the same as ConvertKit?
Is Kit free plan better than beehiiv?
Which is cheaper as I grow?
Can I use both?
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All four side by side
The full table: beehiiv, Substack, Kit and Ghost in one view.
Use 20OFF2026 at beehiiv checkout
14 days free, then 20% off your first 3 months on Scale and Max. Verified September 2026.
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