News & Media · head to head
Substack vs Cision
Substack
News & Media
The newsletter platform for writers and publishers
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Substack has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- They diverge on capability: Substack covers Newsletter publishing, Cision covers Media monitoring.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Substack and Cision actually diverge.
Identical on both: 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 Cision
- Media monitoring
- PR Newswire distribution
- Media database
- Analytics & reporting
- Influencer identification
- Salesforce
- Google Analytics
- Slack
Both cover
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Substack
- Newsletter distributionnot Cision
- Reader monetizationnot Cision
- Community buildingnot Cision
- Subscriber managementnot Cision
Cision
- Press release distributionnot Substack
- Media monitoringnot Substack
- PR measurementnot Substack
- Media outreachnot Substack
- Crisis communicationsnot 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
Cision
Nothing recorded yet. See the Cision review.
Pricing, plan by plan
Substack
Free- FreeFree
- Unlimited newsletters
- Basic design
- Archive access
- Pro$12/month
- Custom domain
- Advanced analytics
- Member chat
Cision
On request- Cision Communications CloudFree
- Media monitoring
- Media database
- PR analytics
- EnterpriseFree
- Full platform access
- PR Newswire distribution
- Custom integrations
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 Cision if
- You need media monitoring.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want pr newswire distribution.
Questions people ask
- Is Substack or Cision better?
- Neither clearly leads. Substack starts at Free and Cision at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Substack or Cision?
- Substack has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Substack and On request for Cision.
- Does Substack or Cision run on more platforms?
- Substack runs on Web, Mobile. Cision runs on Web, Ios, Android.
- Can I use Substack for free?
- Yes. Substack has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Cision starts at On request.
- 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 Cision is typically brought in for.
- What can Substack do that Cision cannot?
- Substack covers Newsletter publishing, Subscriber management, Paid subscriptions, Email analytics. Cision covers Media monitoring, PR Newswire distribution, Media database, Analytics & reporting. Both handle Web support.