Most "platform comparison" articles are written by people who signed up for a free trial and read the features page. This one isn't.
I run 18+ local newsletters on Beehiiv. Before that I tested Substack with two markets. I've used Ghost for a content site. Here's the actual comparison.
What You Actually Need From a Local Newsletter Platform
Local newsletters aren't the same as creator newsletters or B2B newsletters. You need:
Strong deliverability — local content competes with neighborhood Facebook groups. If your email lands in spam, you lose.
Subscriber analytics that show you who your readers are and where they come from. This becomes your selling point for sponsors.
A referral system. Word-of-mouth is your cheapest subscriber acquisition channel once you're past 1,000.
Monetization tools built in — ideally a native ad network for when sponsors are slow.
Pricing that makes sense as you grow — not platforms that take a cut of your revenue.
Beehiiv
This is what I use. Here's why.
Beehiiv was built by former Morning Brew people who understood what newsletter operators actually need.
Deliverability: Best I've tested across 18+ publications.
Analytics: Detailed subscriber-level analytics. Open rates by segment, click maps, subscriber source tracking. When a sponsor asks "who reads this?", I can answer with actual data.
Referral program: Built-in. Readers share a custom link, you reward them with perks. Our referrals typically drive 8-15% of new subscribers once momentum builds.
Monetization: The Beehiiv Ad Network pays you when they match advertisers to your newsletter. Direct sponsorships — where the real money is — have no Beehiiv cut.
Pricing: $49/month (Scale) or $99/month (Max) once you're past the free tier. No revenue share.
What Beehiiv doesn't do well: The website builder is serviceable but not great. If you want a polished editorial site with SEO-optimized article archives, you'll want a separate site eventually.
Substack
Substack takes 10% of paid subscription revenue. That's irrelevant if you're running a free newsletter with sponsors — but the whole platform is optimized around the paid subscriber model. Local newsletters with free/sponsor models don't benefit from most of Substack's features.
Analytics: Basic. Open rates and subscriber counts, not the segmentation you need for selling sponsors.
Referral program: No native referral system.
Who Substack is right for: Individual writers with a strong point of view who want paid subscribers. Not local newsletter operators building sponsor-based businesses.
Ghost
Ghost is an open-source platform primarily built for websites and blogs. Newsletter functionality exists but it's not the core product.
Deliverability: Dependent on your setup. Ghost Pro uses a third-party email service and deliverability has historically been less reliable than Beehiiv.
Who Ghost is right for: Content sites that also send a newsletter. Not the right starting point for a local newsletter operator focused on growth and sales.
The Decision
Starting a local newsletter and want to focus on growth and sponsors: Beehiiv.
Individual writer building an audience around paid subscriptions: Substack.
Building a content/media site with a newsletter as one component: Ghost.
Use Beehiiv from day one. The free tier works fine until 2,500 subscribers. Then upgrade to Scale at $49/month.
Don't overthink this. Pick a platform and start publishing. The biggest mistake new operators make isn't picking the wrong platform — it's spending two weeks evaluating platforms instead of writing their first five issues.
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