Start a newsletter, get a website
It’s free to start a website with a built-in newsletter. Unlimited subscribers and unlimited sends on every plan, with room to add a store, memberships, or plugins later without starting over.
What comes with a WordPress.com newsletter
Room for every reader
Unlimited subscribers and unlimited sends, on every plan including the free plan.
Set your own price
Paid subscriptions with your own monthly and yearly pricing.
You decide what’s free
A paywall you can drop into any post, so you choose which part is for paying subscribers.
Add what you need
Install plugins on any paid plan, so you can add any functionality you need.
Let readers support you
Payment buttons, tips, and donations from the Premium plan up.
An address that’s yours
A custom domain name, included free for the first year on annual paid plans.
Newsletters that run on WordPress.com
Substack became an obstacle to me writing. With WordPress.com, I don’t feel like I’m losing agency by using the platform. I like feeling like it’s mine.
I didn’t want my newsletter to be reduced to a ‘Substack’. Frankly, as a freelancer, my branding is more important than theirs.
Social media sites may come and go, but your own site can, like mine, outlast several generations of these increasingly ephemeral places.
Over the years, I’ve acquired a gratifying number of readers and followers, with more arriving each day, and I owe much of that audience to the tools and opportunities that WordPress.com provides.
WordPress.com has allowed me to present my content in an attractive way. It’s given me a platform to reach thousands of people. It’s made people notice me and what I write … With my WordPress site, I feel like a professional.
How readers find you
Get discovered
Every public post can be found in the WordPress.com Reader, and editors feature standout work in Discover.
Show up in search
Your posts are public web pages, so search engines can index them and readers can find you before they subscribe.
Easy to follow
Following you takes one click, with no email address to hand over first, so your posts reach people in their feed as well as their inbox.
Grow at your own pace
No posting quota, no algorithm to feed. Publish whenever you have something to say, and everyone who subscribed still gets it.
Your newsletter’s forever home
Own your content, your data, and your audience without being locked in. You decide how often you publish, and you can export your posts and your subscriber list whenever you want, in a format you can take anywhere. Most writers move platforms because the platform changed, not because they wanted to.
Hosting sites since 2005
More than 20 million emails sent every day
One plan covers hosting and a domain name for 100 years
Make it look like you, not like everyone else
Most newsletter platforms hand every writer the same page. Same header, same layout, same everything but the name at the top, and readers can tell.
Start with a theme
Pick a newsletter theme or pattern. Switch anytime without losing your posts or subscribers.
Change anything
Click anything to change it: colors, type, spacing, logo, page order. Plugins and CSS on paid plans.
Let AI draft it
On a paid plan, describe what you want, and the WordPress Agent makes a complete starting point in minutes.
More than a place to send email
Comparing a specific platform? See how WordPress.com stacks up against Substack, Ghost, and beehiiv.
 | A newsletter tool | |
|---|---|---|
| Where your posts live | Where your posts liveOn a site you control, at your own address | Inside the platform |
| Subscribers | SubscribersUnlimited on every plan, including the free plan | Often priced by list size |
| Payment fees | Payment fees10% on the free plan, down to 0% on Commerce, plus Stripe fees | Commonly a flat cut of revenue |
| How it looks | How it looksYours to design, by theme, block editor, or AI | The platform’s layout, same as everyone else’s |
| Selling anything else | Selling anything elseA store, memberships, and gated posts included | Usually not supported |
| Adding functionality | Adding functionalityPlugins on every paid plan | Whatever the platform ships |
| Finding new readers | Finding new readersThe Reader, plus a site Google can index | Whatever the platform’s feed sends you |
| If you outgrow it | If you outgrow itAdd to what you already have | Rebuild somewhere else |
| Who owns the list | Who owns the listYou do, exportable at any time | Platform-dependent |
Already have a newsletter? Bring it with you
Coming from Substack, beehiiv, Ghost or Kit? Your posts, your list and your paying readers come too.
Bring your posts and list
Substack importer for posts, subscriber importer for your list. Free and paid subscribers both.
Paying readers stay paying
Connect the same Stripe account you used on Substack. Nobody has to sign up again.
Coming from anywhere else
Upload a CSV. Paid plans have no import limit. The free plan caps imports at 100 subscribers.
Make it look like you
Every newsletter on a closed platform looks like them. Here you pick a theme or describe what you want, and change any part of it whenever you like.
Your list is yours
Export your subscribers and your posts at any time, in a format any other platform will accept. Nothing about staying should depend on it being hard to leave.
Your growth is yours
No posting quota, no daily posting to stay visible. You publish when you have something worth sending, and it reaches the people who asked for it.
How to start a newsletter on WordPress.com
Create your site
Sign up and choose the newsletter setup. Pick a theme, set your colors and type, and add your logo.
Bring your subscribers
Upload a CSV from any platform, or import from Substack with your posts and paid subscribers included.
Write and publish
Your post goes live on your site and lands in inboxes at the same time.
Charge when you’re ready
Set a monthly and yearly price, then choose who sees each post: everyone, subscribers, or paid only.
Newsletter FAQ
What is a newsletter website?
A newsletter website is a site that publishes your writing and emails it to your subscribers from the same place. You write once, and it goes out both ways: published on your site, delivered to inboxes. Most newsletter platforms give you a sending tool with a landing page attached instead. On WordPress.com, your newsletter runs on a full site, so you can add a store, memberships, or plugins without moving.
How much does a newsletter cost on WordPress.com?
Nothing to start. Sending is free with unlimited subscribers and unlimited sends on every plan, including the free plan. You only pay if you want a paid plan for a custom domain name, plugins, more storage, or lower payment fees. If you charge readers, WordPress.com takes 10% of each payment on the free plan, 8% on Personal, 4% on Premium, 2% on Business, and 0% on Commerce, plus Stripe’s standard 2.9% and 30 cents per transaction.
Do I need design or coding skills to start a newsletter?
No. Choose a newsletter theme, set your colors and add your logo, and start writing. Everything on the page can be changed in the block editor by clicking on it. If you want to go further later, paid plans open up plugins and deeper customization.
Can I build my newsletter site with AI?
You can build the site with AI, then add the newsletter to it. On a paid plan, the WordPress Agent takes a plain language description and produces a complete site in minutes, and you can keep prompting it or edit anything by hand in the block editor. Adding a Subscribe block then turns it into a newsletter, with the same unlimited subscribers and unlimited sends as any other WordPress.com site.
Will my newsletter look like everyone else’s?
No, unless you want it to. On most newsletter platforms every publication shares one layout, and the only thing that changes is the name at the top. On WordPress.com the design is a starting point rather than a fixed frame: change the colors, type, layout, and images by clicking on them, add your own CSS or a plugin on a paid plan, or switch themes entirely without losing your posts or your subscribers.
Do I need a newsletter plugin on WordPress.com?
No. Sending posts to subscribers, managing paid subscriptions, and tracking opens and clicks are all built in, with nothing to install. A plugin can still make sense if you need something outside that scope, like automated drip sequences, heavy list segmentation, or standalone campaigns unconnected to your posts. Plugins are available on every paid plan.
How do new readers find my newsletter?
Two ways that most newsletter platforms cannot offer. Your posts are public web pages, so search engines can index them, and readers can find you before they subscribe. And every public post is discoverable in the Reader, the WordPress.com network where people browse by tag, follow writers, and see featured posts in Discover. Following you there takes one click, with no email address needed first.
What is the relationship between WordPress.com and Jetpack Newsletter?
WordPress.com hosts your site, and Jetpack provides the newsletter functionality: sending emails, managing paid subscriptions, and reporting on your audience. Both are made by Automattic. When you start a newsletter on WordPress.com, you’re using Jetpack Newsletter on a WordPress.com site, with nothing separate to install or configure.
Are newsletters free with WordPress.com?
Yes. Sending is included on every plan, including Free, with unlimited subscribers and unlimited sends. There is no cap on people subscribing to you directly, on any plan. Paid plans lower the fee on paid subscriptions and lift the 100-subscriber cap on imported lists.
Can I earn money from my newsletter?
Yes, and you can start on the Free plan. Set up a paid newsletter tier with your own monthly and yearly price, then decide who sees each post: everyone, anyone subscribed, or paid subscribers only. Payment buttons, tips, and donations start on Premium. All of it runs through Stripe, so you need a connected Stripe account first.
Can I put part of a post behind a paywall?
Yes. Add a paywall anywhere in a post, and everything above it stays public, while everything below it goes to your subscribers or your paying subscribers. It works on every plan, including Free, and it is how most paid newsletters give readers a taste before asking them to pay.
I already have a WordPress.com site. Can I add a newsletter to it?
Yes, and you do not need a separate account. Add a Subscribe block or a newsletter subscription pattern to your existing site, and readers who enter their email are notified whenever you publish. If you would rather keep the newsletter separate from your current site, you can start a fresh one.
What are the fees on paid subscriptions?
Fees are a percentage of your subscription revenue and depend on your plan: 10% on Free, falling with each tier to 0% on Commerce, plus standard Stripe fees. If a paid plan expires, the fee returns to 10%.
Can I customize how my newsletter emails and landing page look?
Yes. Emails can feature your own accent color and logo, and your newsletter landing page is editable in the block editor, just like any other page on your site.
When do newsletter emails go out?
Automatically, the moment you publish a post. If you schedule a post, the email sends at the scheduled time. Subscribers can choose to receive every post as it publishes, or a daily or weekly digest. Editing a post after publishing does not resend it.
Can I move my newsletter from Substack, beehiiv, Ghost, or Kit?
Yes. Upload a CSV of your subscribers from any platform, or use the Substack importer to bring your posts and your subscribers across in the same flow, free and paid subscribers both. Paid plans have no import limit, though imports of more than 10,000 subscribers go through a manual review. The free plan caps imports at 100 subscribers to keep spam off the platform, and that cap is cumulative, so removing imported subscribers does not reset it. There is no limit on people subscribing to you directly, on any plan. Your posts and your list stay exportable afterwards, so moving here does not lock you in either.
How long has WordPress.com been running newsletters?
WordPress.com sends more than 20 million emails a day and has been hosting sites since 2005. For anyone who wants a stronger guarantee than a track record, the 100-Year Plan covers hosting and domain name registration for a century.
Do I own my content and my subscriber list?
Yes, both. You can export your content and your subscriber list at any time, and take them with you if you move.
How does WordPress.com compare to other newsletter platforms?
The main difference is that a WordPress.com newsletter runs on a full website rather than a landing page. Alongside that: unlimited subscribers on every plan including free, payment fees that fall to zero rather than staying flat, plugins on every paid plan, a design you control instead of a shared platform layout, and the Reader for finding readers who are not already yours. See how it compares with Substack, Ghost, and beehiiv.
Where can I get help launching my newsletter?
The complete newsletter guide in the support center walks through setup, subscriber management, paid tiers, and sending.
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