| Substack | Beehiiv | |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Unlimited, 10% of paid revenue | Up to 2,500 subs free |
| Revenue share | 10% + Stripe fees forever | 0% on Scale+ plan |
| Referral program | Limited | Built-in, scales automatically |
| A/B testing | No | Yes (subject, content) |
| Best for | Writers without tech appetite, low volume | Growth-focused newsletters, paid pubs |
In Substack: Settings → Export data. You get a CSV with subscribers (email, sub date, subscription type - free/paid/founder). Paid subs include tier info.
Also export posts - Substack provides a ZIP of your archive as HTML/Markdown. You'll need both.
Create a Beehiiv account at beehiiv.com. Create a publication. If you have over 2,500 subs or want to run paid subscriptions without revenue share, go straight to the Scale tier ($99/mo).
Set up publication basics: name, description, logo, brand colors. Match your current Substack branding first - you can refresh later.
In Beehiiv: Settings → Imports → Substack. This is the killer feature - Beehiiv has an official Substack importer that brings over:
✓ Subscriber list (free and paid)
✓ All posts with images and links
✓ Post tags
✓ Publication metadata
✕ Comments (start fresh)
✕ Subscriber open/click historyThe import runs async - you'll get an email when complete. Typical time: 10-30 minutes.
This is the delicate part. Substack processes paid subs via its own Stripe account. Beehiiv needs those subs on your own Stripe account.
Two paths:
A) Use Stripe's customer portal - let existing paid subs self-migrate by clicking a link. Less reliable, loses some subs.
B) Contact Substack support - request a subscription transfer to your own Stripe account. This is a supported flow.
Option B is cleaner. Expect 3-5 business days for Substack to process.
Substack's welcome email and automations don't port. Rebuild in Beehiiv:
Welcome email - new subscriber automation.
Lead magnet delivery - if you have one.
Paid welcome - separate flow for new paid subscribers.
Sunset flow - re-engagement for inactive subs (Substack doesn't have this natively).
If your Substack is at yournewsletter.com (custom domain), plan this carefully:
1. Add the domain in Beehiiv publication settings.
2. Beehiiv gives you DNS records.
3. Update DNS at your registrar (Cloudflare, Namecheap, etc.).
4. Wait for Beehiiv to verify and provision SSL (usually 10-30 minutes).
5. Once green, disconnect domain from Substack.
There's a brief window (minutes) where the domain might 404. Schedule the switch for low-traffic time.
Beehiiv's referral program is native and one of the strongest reasons to switch. Configure:
Tiers - e.g. 1 referral → exclusive post; 5 → bonus guide; 10 → sticker pack.
Rewards - digital or physical.
Share mechanism - every email gets a personalized referral link.
Most newsletters see 10-30% growth uplift from the referral program alone.
If you kept the Substack URL (e.g. yourname.substack.com), set up a redirect in Substack pointing to your Beehiiv URL. Substack supports this natively.
Send a transparent "we moved" email to subscribers. Most don't care where the email comes from, but paid subs deserve a heads-up with clear billing details.
Beehiiv starts fresh on engagement data. Any "hasn't opened in 6 months" segmenting will need to be rebuilt over time.
Done wrong, you can cancel paying subscribers' billing. Coordinate with Substack support and Stripe support directly; don't wing it.
Substack's internal recommendation engine sends significant traffic to growing newsletters. That's gone the moment you leave. Beehiiv has its own network (the Boost program) but expect a brief traffic dip while it spins up.
New sending domains take a few weeks to build reputation. Warm up by sending to your most engaged segment first. Watch Gmail spam rates for the first 2-3 sends.
I'll handle the Substack export, Stripe transfer, DNS switch, and domain cutover - so your paid subscribers keep paying and your emails keep landing.
Work with me →
