News & Media · head to head
Substack vs Artifact
Substack
News & Media
The newsletter platform for writers and publishers
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Substack substack takes a 10% cut of subscription revenue (writers keep 90%), plus separate credit card processing fees; Artifact wound down in early April 2024. Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger closed it, saying the market opportunity was not large enough to keep investing
- They diverge on capability: Substack covers Newsletter publishing, Artifact covers AI recommendations.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Substack and Artifact actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (News & Media).
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 Substack
- Newsletter publishing
- Subscriber management
- Paid subscriptions
- Email analytics
- Post scheduling
- Archive creation
- Free/paid tier split
- Comments & discussion
Only in Artifact
- AI recommendations
- Article summaries
- Clickbait detection
- Social sharing
- Topic following
- Social sharing
- Ios support
- Android support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Substack
- Newsletter distributionnot Artifact
- Reader monetizationnot Artifact
- Community buildingnot Artifact
- Subscriber managementnot Artifact
Artifact
- News consumptionnot Substack
- Content discoverynot Substack
- Staying informednot Substack
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Substack
- Substack takes a 10% cut of subscription revenue (writers keep 90%), plus separate credit card processing fees
Artifact
- Wound down in early April 2024. Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger closed it, saying the market opportunity was not large enough to keep investing
- Yahoo acquired the personalisation technology and folded it into Yahoo News, so the app itself is not coming back
- The founders stayed only in an advisory capacity through the transition
Pricing, plan by plan
Substack
Free- FreeFree
- Unlimited newsletters
- Basic design
- Archive access
- Pro$12/month
- Custom domain
- Advanced analytics
- Member chat
Artifact
Free- FreeFree
- AI-powered recommendations
- Article summaries
- Social features
Which should you pick?
Choose Substack if
- You need newsletter publishing.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Mobile.
- You also want subscriber management.
Choose Artifact if
- You need ai recommendations.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Ios, Android.
- You also want article summaries.
Questions people ask
- Is Substack or Artifact better?
- Neither clearly leads. Substack starts at Free and Artifact at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Substack or Artifact?
- Substack starts at Free and Artifact at Free.
- Does Substack or Artifact run on more platforms?
- Substack runs on Web, Mobile. Artifact runs on Ios, Android.
- Can I use Substack for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Substack best used for?
- Substack is most often used for newsletter distribution, reader monetization, community building, subscriber management. Of those, newsletter distribution and reader monetization are not what Artifact is typically brought in for.
- What can Substack do that Artifact cannot?
- Substack covers Newsletter publishing, Subscriber management, Paid subscriptions, Email analytics. Artifact covers AI recommendations, Article summaries, Clickbait detection, Social sharing.