Software · head to head
Medium vs Substack
Medium
Software
The best place to read and write stories on the internet
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Medium unlimited access to stories requires a paid Medium membership; Substack substack takes a 10% cut of subscription revenue (writers keep 90%), plus separate credit card processing fees
- They diverge on capability: Medium covers Story publishing, Substack covers Newsletter publishing.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Medium and Substack actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Mobile), 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 Medium
- Story publishing
- Member program
- Earning potential
- Reading time estimates
- Clap reactions
- Highlighting & annotations
- Story recommendations
- Following system
Only in Substack
- Newsletter publishing
- Subscriber management
- Paid subscriptions
- Email analytics
- Post scheduling
- Archive creation
- Free/paid tier split
- Comments & discussion
Both cover
- RSS
- Web support
- Mobile support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Medium
- Publishing articles without running your own blognot Substack
- Reading long-form writing across technology, culture and newsnot Substack
- Earning from writing through the Medium Partner Programnot Substack
Substack
- Newsletter distributionnot Medium
- Reader monetizationnot Medium
- Community buildingnot Medium
- Subscriber managementnot Medium
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Medium
- Unlimited access to stories requires a paid Medium membership
- Audio versions of stories are a member-only feature
- Earning money from writing requires joining the Medium Partner Program rather than being automatic
- The iOS app requires iOS 17.0 or later
Substack
- Substack takes a 10% cut of subscription revenue (writers keep 90%), plus separate credit card processing fees
Pricing, plan by plan
Medium
Free- FreeFree
- Unlimited reading
- Publishing platform
- Story drafts
- Medium Membership$5/month
- Unlimited access
- Exclusive stories
- Member earnings
Substack
Free- FreeFree
- Unlimited newsletters
- Basic design
- Archive access
- Pro$12/month
- Custom domain
- Advanced analytics
- Member chat
Which should you pick?
Choose Medium if
- You need story publishing.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Mobile.
- You also want member program.
Choose Substack if
- You need newsletter publishing.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Mobile.
- You also want subscriber management.
Questions people ask
- Is Medium or Substack better?
- Neither clearly leads. Medium starts at Free and Substack at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Medium or Substack?
- Medium starts at Free and Substack at Free.
- Does Medium or Substack run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, Mobile, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Medium for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Medium best used for?
- Medium is most often used for publishing articles without running your own blog, reading long-form writing across technology, culture and news, earning from writing through the medium partner program. Of those, publishing articles without running your own blog and reading long-form writing across technology, culture and news are not what Substack is typically brought in for.
- What can Medium do that Substack cannot?
- Medium covers Story publishing, Member program, Earning potential, Reading time estimates. Substack covers Newsletter publishing, Subscriber management, Paid subscriptions, Email analytics. Both handle Twitter, RSS, Web support, Mobile support.