Is Beehiiv or Memberful better?

Neither clearly leads. Beehiiv starts at Free and Memberful at $49/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Beehiiv or Memberful?

Beehiiv has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Beehiiv and $49/month for Memberful.

Does Beehiiv or Memberful run on more platforms?

Beehiiv runs on Web. Memberful runs on web, api.

Can I use Beehiiv for free?

Yes. Beehiiv has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Memberful starts at $49/month.

What is Beehiiv best used for?

Beehiiv is most often used for email newsletter publishing, content monetization, audience building. Of those, email newsletter publishing and content monetization are not what Memberful is typically brought in for.

What can Beehiiv do that Memberful cannot?

Beehiiv covers Newsletter creation, Email automation, Subscriber management, Monetization tools. Memberful covers Membership checkout, Flexible subscriptions, Member management, Landing page builder.

News · head to head

Beehiiv vs Memberful

Beehiiv

News

The all-in-one platform for newsletter creators

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

Memberful

E-Commerce

Membership platform for creators to sell subscriptions, courses and gated content

From: $49/month
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Only Beehiiv has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
Each has a real cost: Beehiiv platform lacks native SMS support; requires third-party integrations via API or webhooks; Memberful charges a 4.9% transaction fee on top of the flat monthly fee on the Standard plan.
They diverge on capability: Beehiiv covers Newsletter creation, Memberful covers Membership checkout.
Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Beehiiv and Memberful actually diverge.

Attributes where Beehiiv and Memberful differ
Attribute	Beehiiv	Memberful
Starting price	Free	$49/month
Pricing model	freemium	subscription
Free tier	Yes	No
Platforms	Web	web, api
Category	News	E-Commerce
Founded	2021	2013

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Beehiiv

Newsletter creation
Email automation
Subscriber management
Monetization tools
Analytics dashboard
Referral program
A/B testing
Spam checking

Only in Memberful

Membership checkout
Flexible subscriptions
Member management
Landing page builder
Dynamic paywalls
Third-party integrations

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Beehiiv

Email newsletter publishingnot Memberful
Content monetizationnot Memberful
Audience buildingnot Memberful

Memberful

Selling paid membership subscriptions from an existing websitenot Beehiiv
Gating podcast, newsletter or course content behind a paywallnot Beehiiv
Running a WordPress site with paid member-only contentnot Beehiiv
Offering one-time purchases alongside recurring membershipsnot Beehiiv

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Beehiiv

Platform lacks native SMS support; requires third-party integrations via API or webhooks
Free Launch plan offers only read-only AI capabilities

Memberful

Charges a 4.9% transaction fee on top of the flat monthly fee on the Standard plan.
Requires a separate Stripe account, adding setup complexity compared to all-in-one checkout platforms.
Lacks built-in course-hosting depth found in dedicated learning management platforms.
No free plan beyond the pre-launch trial period; charges begin once payments go live.

Pricing, plan by plan

Beehiiv

Free

LaunchFree
- Up to 2,500 subscribers
- Newsletters, website, podcast
- Unlimited email sends
Scale$43/month
- Up to 100,000 subscribers
- Ad Network
- 0% take rate on paid subscriptions
Max$96/month
- Up to 100,000 subscribers
- Remove branding, sponsorship storefront
- Audio newsletters, RSS-to-send
Enterprise$null/mo
- 100K+ subscribers
- Dedicated account manager
- Custom publication limits

Memberful

$49/month

Standard$49/month
- 4.9% transaction fee
- Full platform access
- Free until you go live
Enterprise$undefined/mo
- Custom volume-based rates
- Premium services and success management
- Dedicated migration support

Which should you pick?

Choose Beehiiv if

You need newsletter creation.
You want to start without paying.
You also want email automation.

Beehiiv review

Choose Memberful if

You need membership checkout.
You work on web, api.
You also want flexible subscriptions.

Memberful review

Questions people ask

Is Beehiiv or Memberful better?: Neither clearly leads. Beehiiv starts at Free and Memberful at $49/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Beehiiv or Memberful?: Beehiiv has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Beehiiv and $49/month for Memberful.
Does Beehiiv or Memberful run on more platforms?: Beehiiv runs on Web. Memberful runs on web, api.
Can I use Beehiiv for free?: Yes. Beehiiv has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Memberful starts at $49/month.
What is Beehiiv best used for?: Beehiiv is most often used for email newsletter publishing, content monetization, audience building. Of those, email newsletter publishing and content monetization are not what Memberful is typically brought in for.
What can Beehiiv do that Memberful cannot?: Beehiiv covers Newsletter creation, Email automation, Subscriber management, Monetization tools. Memberful covers Membership checkout, Flexible subscriptions, Member management, Landing page builder.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Beehiiv: How much does beehiiv cost?

Launch is free for up to 2,500 subscribers. Scale plan is $43/month for up to 100,000 subscribers. Max plan is $96/month. Enterprise has custom pricing for 100,000+ subscribers.

Source

Memberful: What does Memberful cost?

Memberful's Standard plan costs $49/month plus a 4.9% transaction fee, while larger organizations can get custom volume-based rates on the Enterprise plan.

Source

Beehiiv: What does beehiiv's free Launch plan include?

Free Launch plan supports up to 2,500 subscribers and includes newsletters, website builder, podcast hosting, campaign analytics, unlimited email sends, custom domains, and API access.

Source

Memberful: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?

Memberful can be used for free while setting up a membership site, with no charges incurred until the creator goes live and starts accepting payments.

Source

Beehiiv: What commission does beehiiv take from subscription revenue?

beehiiv takes 0% of paid subscription revenue you collect. Only Stripe's processing fees (2.9% + $0.30 per transaction) apply.

Source

Memberful: What does Memberful integrate with?

Memberful integrates with WordPress, Mailchimp, Discord and Kit, among other tools, to connect membership data with existing sites and marketing systems.

Source

Beehiiv: What's the difference between beehiiv's Scale and Max plans?

Both support up to 100,000 subscribers. Scale ($43/month) includes Ad Network and 3 team seats. Max ($96/month) adds branding removal, sponsorship storefront, audio newsletters, up to 10 publications, and unlimited team seats.

Source

Beehiiv vs Memberful

Beehiiv

Memberful

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Beehiiv

Only in Memberful

What people use each for

Beehiiv

Memberful

Where each one falls short

Beehiiv

Memberful

Pricing, plan by plan

Beehiiv

Memberful

Which should you pick?

Choose Beehiiv if

Choose Memberful if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Beehiiv

More on Memberful

Keep looking

Other head to heads