Kit vs beehiiv: the point where the cheaper one changes
Last updated 2026-10-04 · By Smart Pick Desk editors · beehiiv read on 2026-10-04; Kit's price slider read on 2026-09-20, its default view re-opened 2026-10-04 · We have not used either product · How we checked ↓
The short answer
Most comparisons of these two end with "it depends". Here is the part that actually decides it, and it is arithmetic rather than opinion: Kit's first paid plan is the cheaper one up to 25,000 subscribers, beehiiv's is cheaper from 50,000 — and between 10,000 and 25,000 the gap is three dollars a month. beehiiv renamed and repriced its plans before our 2026-10-04 check, which moved the crossing point up from where this page used to put it.
- Choose Kit if the list is the asset. Its free plan is listed as “Free—up to 10,000 subscribers” with “Unlimited landing pages & forms”, “Unlimited email broadcasts” and “Sell digital products & subscriptions”, and its comparison table ticks “Customizable domain” on Free.[1] Four times beehiiv's free ceiling, and the cheaper paid plan until your list is somewhere past 25,000.
- Choose beehiiv if the newsletter is the product. Its Free plan lists a website builder, web hosting and a podcast show, unlimited sends and a welcome email — a publication rather than a mailing tool — and its paid price rises more slowly at the top, so by 50,000 subscribers Lite is the cheaper of the two.[2]
If you want one sentence: Kit stays free for a much bigger list and costs less to start paying; beehiiv gets cheaper only once you are paying for a very big one.
On this page
At a glance
| What you need first | Kit | beehiiv | Which fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| The biggest free list | “Free—up to 10,000 subscribers”[1] | Free: “Up to 2,500”[2] | Kit, by four times |
| Your own domain without paying | “Customizable domain” ticked on Free[1] | Custom domains: a dash on Free, Yes from Lite[2] | Kit |
| A website and a podcast without paying | a newsletter site is ticked; no podcast hosting on the pricing page[1] | Website builder, web hosting and 1 podcast show on Free[2] | beehiiv |
| An automatic welcome email | Automation builder and sequences: a dash on Free[1] | “Welcome email”: Yes on Free[2] | beehiiv, for one email |
| Lower paid price at 1,000 subscribers | Creator, $33/mo billed yearly[1] | Lite, $49/mo with yearly billing[2] | Kit |
| Lower paid price at 50,000 subscribers | Creator, $316/mo billed yearly (55,000 step)[1] | Lite, $249/mo with yearly billing[2] | beehiiv |
| Removing the platform's branding | “Remove Kit branding” on Creator[1] | “Remove beehiiv branding”: Yes from Pro[2] | Kit, one plan earlier |
How we checked this (and what we did not check)
Last updated 2026-10-04 (beehiiv's half rewritten for its new plans; see the change log). Prices change — confirm on the official page before you sign up.
What we did. On 2026-10-04 we opened beehiiv.com/pricing in a browser with no account, moved its subscriber slider through all eleven positions with the billing switch in both positions, and saved the page text, including the opened comparison table and FAQ. Kit's prices come from our 2026-09-20 reading of kit.com/pricing, where we recorded every slider step in both billing modes; Kit's comparison table was re-read on 2026-09-28, and on 2026-10-04 we re-opened Kit's default view (1,000 subscribers, billed yearly) and it still showed $33 for Creator. Feature wording in quotation marks is copied from the saved pages word for word.
What we did not do. We have not used either product. There are no screenshots of either tool on this page, no account, no test send, and no opinion about how either one feels to use. We cannot tell you which editor you will prefer, how their deliverability compares, or how their support answers, because we have not measured any of it.
What that leaves. Two price ladders side by side — which is the one comparison neither company publishes, because it involves the other one.
Where the cheaper one changes
This is the chart neither pricing page can show you, because each one only plots itself.
| Your list | Kit Creator, billed yearly | beehiiv Lite, billed yearly | Difference per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $33[1] | $49[2] | Kit is $16 cheaper |
| 2,500 | $50[1] | $69[2] | Kit is $19 cheaper |
| 5,000 | $75[1] | $95[2] | Kit is $20 cheaper |
| 10,000 | $116[1] | $119[2] | Kit is $3 cheaper |
| 25,000 | $166[1] | $169[2] | Kit is $3 cheaper |
| 50,000 | $316[1] | $249[2] | beehiiv is $67 cheaper |
| 100,000 | $566[1] | $399[2] | beehiiv is $167 cheaper |
Look at the fourth and fifth rows. At 10,000 and 25,000 subscribers the gap is three dollars a month, and by 50,000 it has reversed and widened. If your list is between 10,000 and 25,000, the two are effectively the same price, and the decision should be made on what the plans contain rather than what they cost. Below that, Kit is meaningfully cheaper. Well above it, beehiiv is.
The two sliders use different steps, so some rows use the step a list of that size falls into. Kit has no 2,500 step: the $50 is its 3,000 step. Kit has no 50,000 or 100,000 step: the $316 and $566 are its 55,000 and 105,000 steps. beehiiv's steps run 1,000, 2,500, 5,000, 10,000, 25,000, 50,000, 75,000 and 100,000 for Lite. One consequence: a 35,000-person list pays Kit's 35,000 step ($216) against beehiiv's 50,000 tier ($249), while a 45,000-person list pays Kit's 45,000 step ($266) against the same $249. The plans are not feature-identical, so this is a price comparison, not a value judgement.
The two free plans
Both of these are generous free plans, but they are generous about different things. Kit gives you room — four times the subscribers, unlimited broadcasts, unlimited landing pages and forms, and your own domain.[1] beehiiv gives you a publication — a newsletter, a website and a podcast show on beehiiv's own address, with unlimited sends and a welcome email.[2]
| Limit type | Kit Free | beehiiv Free |
|---|---|---|
| Subscribers | up to 10,000[1] | up to 2,500[2] |
| Emails you can send | “Unlimited email broadcasts”[1] | “Unlimited” in the Email sends row[2] |
| Automations | none on Free (the comparison table shows “-”)[1] | welcome email Yes; custom automations a dash[2] |
| A website for the newsletter | “Create a newsletter feed & website” ticked[1] | Website builder and web hosting: Yes[2] |
| Custom domain | “Customizable domain” ticked[1] | a dash on Free[2] |
| People on the account | 1 user[1] | 1 team seat[2] |
Neither free plan has the second ceiling that catches people out elsewhere: both describe their sending as unlimited. The limit that will actually stop you is the subscriber count — and that is where they differ by four times. MailerLite is a tool where that second ceiling does apply; MailerLite pricing, checked shows both of its free limits.
Automations: one welcome email apart
An automation is the thing that sends a welcome email by itself when someone subscribes, then the next one a few days later. Neither free plan lets you build a sequence. Kit's comparison table shows a dash for “Visual automation builder” and “Automated email sequences” on Free, and lists “Unlimited Visual Automations” under Creator.[1] beehiiv's table lists “Welcome email” as Yes on Free, but “Live custom automations” as a dash on Free, 10 on Lite and Unlimited on Pro.[2]
So the line is in a slightly different place on each side. If one automatic welcome email is enough, beehiiv's Free plan lists it. If you want a sequence — the welcome email, then the next one a few days later — you are choosing between two paid plans, and the crossover table above is the whole price question.
Monthly or yearly: the same plan at two prices
Both pricing pages offer a yearly option with a lower price per month. Kit labels it “Pay yearly—save 17%”; beehiiv's FAQ says “Yearly billing saves up to 20% compared with paying month to month.”[1][2]
At 1,000 subscribers, Kit Creator is $39 per month billed monthly and $33 billed yearly ($390 for the year).[1] beehiiv Lite is $59 billed monthly and $49 a month with yearly billing; beehiiv does not print a yearly total.[2] Billed monthly, the two are the same price at 10,000 subscribers ($139) and at 25,000 ($199).[1][2] So if you pay month to month, the middle of the range is a tie rather than a three-dollar gap.
A list, or a publication
Underneath the numbers these two products are answering different questions, and their free plans say so out loud.
Kit's free plan is built around collecting and mailing people: unlimited forms, unlimited landing pages, unlimited broadcasts, tagging and segmentation.[1] beehiiv's free plan is built around publishing: the card names a newsletter, website, podcast, community and digital products under “All plans include”, and the table adds campaign analytics and the recommendation network on Free.[2] Both free plans can host a sign-up page, which is the route in how to start an email list for free without a website.
Which means the honest version of the question is not “which tool is better” but “is the newsletter the thing I am making, or the way I reach people for something else I am making?” The first points at beehiiv, the second at Kit — and that is true at any price. If a publication is what you want, Substack pricing, checked covers one more option, free to publish with a fee only when you charge.
Selling and sponsorships
Kit lists “Sell digital products & subscriptions” on its free plan.[1] beehiiv lists paid subscriptions from Lite, with a “0% take rate” on the Lite card, and the sponsorship storefront only on Pro.[2] beehiiv's FAQ also prints its fee in words: “beehiiv takes 0% of your paid subscription and digital product revenue.”, apart from Stripe's processing fee.[2]
Kit's pricing page does not print a transaction-fee percentage for selling, so we cannot put the two side by side here. If selling is the reason you are choosing, that number is worth finding before the monthly price matters.
Getting the platform's name off your emails
A small difference that costs real money. Kit lists “Remove Kit branding” under Creator — its first paid plan.[1] beehiiv's table prints “Remove beehiiv branding” as a dash on Free and Lite and Yes on Pro — its second.[2] At 1,000 subscribers that is $33 a month billed yearly on Kit against $95 on beehiiv, if unbranded email is a requirement rather than a preference.
What we could not test — and what each page claims about it
There is a whole half of this comparison we are not qualified to write. Whether an editor is pleasant, whether emails land in the inbox, whether support answers — those need an account and months of use, and we have neither.
What we can do is show you where each company puts those features in its plans, because that is printed on the pricing pages and it decides what you pay.
| Area we did not test | Where Kit lists it | Where beehiiv lists it |
|---|---|---|
| Deliverability | “Deliverability reporting” under Pro, the second paid plan[1] | “Optimized deliverability”: Yes on Free[2] |
| Analytics | “Engagement analytics” and “Insights dashboard” under Pro[1] | “Campaign analytics” on Free; “Advanced analytics” from Lite[2] |
| Integrations and API | “Apps & integrations” under Creator[1] | “API access” on Free; webhooks from Lite (3)[2] |
| Support | “Email support” on Free; “24/7 email & chat support” under Creator[1] | “beehiiv Agent” on Free, “Standard” on Lite, “Priority” on Pro[2] |
| Referrals and growth | “Newsletter referral system” under Pro[1] | “Recommendation network” on Free; referral program from Lite[2] |
Several things Kit keeps for its second paid plan, beehiiv lists earlier — deliverability, campaign analytics, referrals. Whether they are equally good we cannot tell you. Which plan you have to buy to get them at all, we can.
Where each one is weaker
Kit: what to know before you commit
- No automations on the free plan, and no price step below 1,000 subscribers — the entry price is the same for a list of 200.[1]
- One user and email-only support on the free plan. The comparison table gives Free one user and “Email support”; 24/7 email and chat support starts on Creator.[1]
- The paid price climbs faster at the top. From 25,000 to its 105,000 step it goes from $166 to $566 billed yearly; beehiiv Lite goes from $169 to $399 between 25,000 and 100,000.[1][2]
beehiiv: what to know before you commit
- Free stops at 2,500 subscribers, a quarter of Kit's ceiling, and has no custom domain.[2]
- Branding removal is two plans up, not one.[2]
- Lite stops at 100,000. From 150,000 the Lite card reads “Unavailable” and only Pro has a price.[2]
Who should pick which
| If you are… | Pick | Why | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starting out with no list and no automation yet | Kit | Free up to 10,000 subscribers, unlimited broadcasts, unlimited forms, your own domain[1] | The day you want a sequence, it is $33/mo billed yearly, not $0 |
| Building the newsletter as the product | beehiiv | Free includes the website, a podcast show and a welcome email[2] | Free stops at 2,500 subscribers and has no custom domain |
| Already past 50,000 subscribers and paying | beehiiv | $249 against $316 per month billed yearly at 50,000[1][2] | Compare the plan contents, not only the price |
| Selling digital products early | Kit | Selling is listed on the free plan[1] | beehiiv prints a 0% take rate, but from Lite |
| Required to send unbranded email | Kit | Branding removal is on the first paid plan[1] | On beehiiv it is on Pro[2] |
See Kit's own pricing page See beehiiv's own pricing page
Comparing a third option? See Kit vs MailerLite: where the free plans actually stop. Looking at more than two? What “free” actually means on 8 email platforms compares every free plan we could read. For a third tool in the same frame, how to choose an email marketing platform sets Kit, MailerLite and beehiiv side by side, and Compare lists every comparison.
One company at a time: Kit pricing, checked and beehiiv pricing, checked go through each company's plans, billing and terms on its own.
Questions people ask
Which one is cheaper?
It flips. Billed yearly, Kit Creator is $33 a month at 1,000 subscribers against beehiiv Lite at $49; at 50,000 it is Kit $316 against beehiiv $249.[1][2] The swap happens between 25,000 and 50,000.
How big is each free plan?
Kit: “Free—up to 10,000 subscribers”.[1] beehiiv Free: “Up to 2,500”, with unlimited email sends.[2]
Can I automate emails on the free plan?
Only a welcome email, and only on beehiiv. Sequences start on Creator (Kit) and Lite (beehiiv).[1][2]
Which free plan includes a custom domain?
Kit's: “Customizable domain” is ticked on Free. beehiiv prints a dash on Free and Yes from Lite.[1][2]
What about removing the platform's branding?
Kit puts it on its first paid plan; beehiiv puts it on its second.[1][2]
Do you get paid if I sign up?
Not from this page — it has no affiliate links today. If that changes, it will say so at the top, and each link will be marked.
Sources and check log
| # | Source | URL | Checked | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kit, Pricing (plans, the “Compare plans and features” slider and table, the yearly/monthly switch) | kit.com/pricing | 2026-09-20; comparison table re-read 2026-09-28; default view re-opened 2026-10-04 | Opened in a browser; every slider step and both billing positions recorded |
| 2 | beehiiv, Pricing (Free, Lite, Pro, Enterprise, the subscriber slider, the billing switch, comparison table and FAQ) | beehiiv.com/pricing | 2026-10-04 | Opened in a browser; all eleven subscriber positions saved under both billing options |
Change log
- 2026-10-04 — beehiiv replaced Launch, Scale and Max with Free, Lite, Pro and Enterprise. We re-read beehiiv's whole price list and table and rewrote its half of this page. The crossover moved: Kit is now the cheaper first paid plan up to 25,000 subscribers, beehiiv from 50,000. Kit's free plan entries were also corrected from its comparison table (one user, email support, a newsletter site and a customizable domain on Free).
- 2026-09-23 — Added a note on Kit's 3,000 step; prices in the default views were the same as on 2026-09-20.
- 2026-09-20 — First published.
- Previous check: 2026-09-23 (default views).
- What we will re-check: the price at each step of both sliders, the two free plan ceilings, and whether the crossover point moves again.
Who writes this
Smart Pick Desk is an independent site that compares tools for people who work online. We are not employed by, or partnered with, either company on this page, and we do not run either product in our own business. What we do is read what each company publishes, write down the date we read it, and say plainly which parts we could not check. More: who the editors are and how we check a page.
We do not promise results. Nothing here is a prediction about what a tool will do for your list.