Kajabi vs Substack
Side-by-side comparison on fees, payouts, monetization, and audience ownership.
Platform fee
from $179/mo · monthly subscription · 0% on revenue
10% · of revenue
Payout speed
weekly
weekly
Minimum payout
$0
$0 (Stripe)
Countries
Stripe- or PayPal-supported
Stripe-supported
Email list export
Full access (built-in email marketing)
Full access
Custom domain
Yes
Yes ($50 one-time)
Community features
Native Communities feature on every plan
Comments, paid Chat, DMs
Best for
Course creators, coaches, community builders with established businesses
Newsletter writers, podcasters, established creators who want audience ownership
Kajabi vs Substack: which one wins?
Kajabi charges from $179/mo (monthly subscription · 0% on revenue) versus Substack at 10% (of revenue).
On payout speed, Kajabi pays weekly while Substack pays weekly. No difference here.
For audience ownership, Kajabi offers full access (built-in email marketing) email export and Substack offers full access. Email portability matters most for creators planning to migrate later or build a list independent of any single platform.
Best for: Kajabi suits course creators, coaches, community builders with established businesses. Substack fits newsletter writers, podcasters, established creators who want audience ownership.