How Beehiiv reinvented newsletters

Newsletter platform on the rise 🌐

Beehiiv markets itself as a user-friendly platform for building and managing newsletters, with features geared toward growth and monetization.

But is it better than the established competitors?

This week, we cover:

• What is Beehiiv and its features

• What sets it apart?

• Final verdict

Read Time: 2.5 minutes

Core Features
Growth-driven functionality

Beehiiv’s core features focus on simplicity and growth. It offers a clean, customizable newsletter editor and subscriber analytics that help track engagement over time. With monetization tools like paid subscriptions and referral programs, Beehiiv aims to grow your audience and revenue.

While the essentials are free, many advanced features, such as segmentation and A/B testing, require upgrading. Overall, it’s built to help creators and publishers turn their audiences into revenue streams, but it may lack some of the more advanced bells and whistles.

Beehiiv Upgrade
Is it worth upgrading? 💵

Beehiiv’s free version is solid for beginners, covering basic email design and subscriber management. It’s ideal for those starting small, as it handles standard newsletter needs efficiently.

However, for more complex requirements, the paid plans—starting at $29/month—unlock features like custom domains, segmentation, and subscriber growth analytics. Performance is reliable, and it’s user-friendly enough for individuals or small teams. But larger publications may feel limited, as advanced options are often paywalled.

The alternatives
How Beehiiv stacks up

Beehiiv’s main competitors are Substack and ConvertKit. Substack offers similar monetization tools but lacks customization, making Beehiiv more appealing to those who want branding flexibility. ConvertKit, on the other hand, excels in automation and integration, which are areas where Beehiiv falls short.

Beehiiv is a strong option if your focus is simple growth tools and monetization, but for more sophisticated workflows, ConvertKit’s automations or Substack’s built-in community features might be a better fit.

Limitations
Paywalls and customization 📉

While Beehiiv offers a good range of features, many are locked behind a paywall, leaving free users with limited functionality. Integration limitations can frustrate users who want to connect Beehiiv to other tools, and its lack of email automation feels restrictive compared to alternatives.

Another hurdle is customisation of the blog— you can only select a few designs and then edit certain colours and styles which is quite limited if you opt to post to a blog. Beehiiv has potential, but those needing advanced tools for larger publications might find these limitations restrictive.

Final verdict
Promising but limited? ⚖️

Beehiiv is a promising platform with a strong focus on growth and monetization, making it ideal for small-to-medium publishers looking to build and monetize their audience. However, it has its downsides, particularly around integrations, automation, and the paywalling of key features.

If you’re after a streamlined, growth-oriented newsletter platform, Beehiiv could be a good choice. But if you need advanced features, consider alternatives like ConvertKit or Substack, which offer more flexibility for larger, complex workflows.

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See you next week :)