Subscription Discounts
How to offer discounts on Substack; links to current offers of discounts
Options for discounts
Substack allows newsletters with paid subscriptions to run special offers. The offer can be a free trial or a discount.
With respect to discounts, a percent discount can last forever or for 12 months. Substack allows the newsletter creator to select several options for discounts, such as a limit to offer duration, annual plans, and/or emails from educational institutions.
If you’ve set up paid subscriptions, you can find the following dialog for creating discounts by going to your newsletter’s settings, clicking the link to manage special offers, and then clicking the button to add a new special offer. (You can edit existing offers in a similar dialog.)
My understanding (after asking Substack support recently) is that $5.00/month is normally the minimum paid subscription price, and that a discount to less than $5.00/month is not typically available.
Current offers of discounts
I have collected links to discounts. I’ve omitted links to expired discounts, free trials, discounts offered to all subscribers, and discounts limited to group subscriptions.
Some discounts have names that suggest a time limitation (e.g., “Black Friday Special”). However, given that it’s easy to set a date by which a customer must redeem the offer, it’s possible that the newsletter creator decided to leave the offer in place and didn’t bother to adjust the title.
If you’re in doubt, you might want to contact the newsletter creator to confirm that the offer is still supposed to be available.
This list is current as of February 9, 2021. If I’ve omitted any discount — or if you think any discount should be removed from this list — please let me know.
The #AmWriting Podcast: 20% off for 1 year
Astral Codex Ten: 75% off forever
BarBalcani / BarBalkans: 50% off for 1 year
Cineaste: 33% off for 1 year
FORMA Journal: 20% off for 1 year
Hanguponline: 20% off for 1 year
I Am King Williams Newsletter: 40% off forever
Jare’s Hacks: 50% off for 1 year
John Watson’s Death by Tech Newsletter: 50% off for 1 year
Kim Werker Weekly Digest: 20% off for 1 year
Lessons from Failures: 79% off for 1 year
Lessons from Failures: 50% off forever
The Nick Warner Chronicles: 50% off for 1 year
Notes on the Crises: 50% off forever
RECIPE’D: 21% off for 1 year
Remember the Ladies Newsletter: 50% off for 1 year
The Rubesletter by Matt Ruby (of Vooza) | Sent every Tuesday: 20% off for 1 year
SellMe: 50% off for 1 year
Shenzen Front Row: 20% off for 1 year
STOCKED Newsletter: 15% off forever
The Street Rover EXTRA: 40% off forever
Thoughts Kitchen Dijon: 20% off forever
Top Shot Insights: 30% off for 1 year
Unorthodox Gymanstics: 15% off for 1 year
The Watch: 20% off forever
What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking: 15% off forever
Zimbabwe Daily Briefing: 50% off for 1 month