Beehiiv Revenue Set to Nearly Double in 2026

A start-up called Beehiiv is shaking up the world of online writing. The newsletter start-up said it hoped to earn $50 million annually by 2026. That’s double what it made last year. The company is growing quickly because it offers writers a different deal than its big competitor, Substack. Whereas Substack takes 10% of a writer’s fan income, Beehiiv charges a flat monthly fee. Successful writers can then keep much more of their hard-earned money.

The creator economy is at its hottest. In this world, journalists and teachers and experts send their work directly to email inboxes instead of publishing it in newspapers that have been passed down for generations. As big media companies lay off rank-and-file employees, new waves of writers are launching small businesses. The app has become an attractive option for them since it allows them to expand their audience and locate ads without having to be tech geniuses.

Winning Over the Competition

Competition along the two platforms is intensifying. About one in seven of its new writers swapped over from Substack, according to Beehiiv. Many writers tell me they switched because at some point, Substack’s 10% felt like too much cash. One fashion writer told me she moved her 66,000 readers to Beehiiv for the cost-savings and to access more sophisticated tools for meeting new fans.

Whereas Substack functions more like a social network where people discover new writers, Beehiiv is constructing what they call an “operating system” for content. They don’t create a social app; they make a potent ad network that ensures writers can be paid by the KFCs and Netflixes of the world. This ad network is set to make $3 million per month every single month this year. That gives writers an alternative to begging their readers for a monthly subscription.

The Future of the Creator Economy

While Beehiiv is gaining traction, it remains far smaller than Substack, which was most recently valued at more than $1 billion. But the Beehiiv founder news is about staying lean and focused. They do have enough cash to keep going for more than two years and hope to begin turning a profit by 2027. They’re not trying to create a new social media app, but to provide better tools for writers to operate their own independent websites and email lists.

There are still challenges ahead. But AI tools are making it accessible to everyone, so there’s a lot more noise out there vying for the reader’s eyeballs. Plus, the big brands are growing more circumspect about where they put their advertising dollars. And yet, a lot of writers feel safer flying solo with their newsletters rather than working for a giant company. They say that it takes away the fear of losing their job, and enables them to build a genuine relationship with their readers.

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