Software · head to head
Glow.fm vs Patreon
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Glow.fm the Internet Archive's capture of Glow's pricing page on 6 December 2021 listed Basic starting at $0/month plus $0.55 per listener per month or $2 per one-time purchase, and Professional starting at $300/month for unlimited listeners with podcast hosting capped at 150,000 downloads per month; card processing adds $0.30 plus 2.9% per transaction on both tiers.; Patreon takes 10% of the income a creator earns on the platform
- They diverge on capability: Glow.fm covers Private RSS feeds, Patreon covers Membership tiers.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Glow.fm and Patreon actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
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 Glow.fm
- Private RSS feeds
- Any app support
- Tiered subscriptions
- Subscriber management
- All podcast apps
- Stripe
- Private feeds
- Subscriber protection
Only in Patreon
- Membership tiers
- Exclusive content
- Private podcast feeds
- Community features
- Discord
- Podcast apps
- Zapier
- Social media
Both cover
- Payment processing
- Analytics
- Email platforms
- Secure payments
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Glow.fm
- Premium podcastsnot Patreon
- Subscriber contentnot Patreon
- Membership tiersnot Patreon
- Direct monetizationnot Patreon
Patreon
- Running a paid membership for fans of a creator or podcastnot Glow.fm
- Selling recurring access to exclusive content and communitynot Glow.fm
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Glow.fm
- The Internet Archive's capture of Glow's pricing page on 6 December 2021 listed Basic starting at $0/month plus $0.55 per listener per month or $2 per one-time purchase, and Professional starting at $300/month for unlimited listeners with podcast hosting capped at 150,000 downloads per month; card processing adds $0.30 plus 2.9% per transaction on both tiers.
Patreon
- Takes 10% of the income a creator earns on the platform
- Payment processing, currency conversion and payout fees are charged on top of that 10% and are not quantified on the pricing page
- The total deduction is therefore not calculable from the pricing page alone, and requires reading a separate support article
Pricing, plan by plan
Glow.fm
Free- StandardFree
- Private RSS feeds
- Any podcast app support
- Subscription management
Patreon
Free- FreeFree
- Free membership page
- Basic features
- Community tools
- ProFree
- All free features
- Analytics dashboard
- Priority support
- PremiumFree
- All Pro features
- Dedicated partner manager
- Custom onboarding
Which should you pick?
Choose Glow.fm if
- You need private rss feeds.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want any app support.
Choose Patreon if
- You need membership tiers.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want exclusive content.
Questions people ask
- Is Glow.fm or Patreon better?
- Neither clearly leads. Glow.fm starts at Free and Patreon at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Glow.fm or Patreon?
- Glow.fm starts at Free and Patreon at Free.
- Does Glow.fm or Patreon run on more platforms?
- Glow.fm runs on Web. Patreon runs on Web, Ios, Android.
- Can I use Glow.fm for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Glow.fm best used for?
- Glow.fm is most often used for premium podcasts, subscriber content, membership tiers, direct monetization. Of those, premium podcasts and subscriber content are not what Patreon is typically brought in for.
- What can Glow.fm do that Patreon cannot?
- Glow.fm covers Private RSS feeds, Any app support, Tiered subscriptions, Subscriber management. Patreon covers Membership tiers, Exclusive content, Private podcast feeds, Community features. Both handle Payment processing, Analytics, Email platforms, Secure payments.