beehiiv vs HeyNews

beehiiv

The monetisation stack is what separates it from a plain email tool: an ad network that sells your inventory for you, paid subscriptions with no platform cut, digital products and a referral engine, all in the same account. The free tier is real at 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends, but it withholds the money-making features, and paid plans now scale with list size, so the bill climbs as the audience grows.

Pros

• +Free tier up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends
• +Built-in ad network, paid subscriptions, digital products and referral program
• +Public API, send API and an MCP server for integrations
• +No commission on paid subscription or digital product revenue beyond Stripe's fee

Cons

• −Automations, the ad network and paid subscriptions are all withheld from the free plan
• −Paid plans are priced by subscriber band, so cost rises steadily with the list
• −Removing beehiiv branding needs Pro, which starts at $95 a month billed yearly

HeyNews

HeyNews is narrower than a general writing assistant - it is specifically for people who already publish a newsletter and want the weekly draft done from curated sources in their existing voice. The catch is there is no permanent free tier, only a short trial, and pricing jumps steeply between tiers ($39 to $499/month) based on volume.

Pros

• +trains its drafting on a publication's own past issues rather than a generic tone
• +curates candidate stories from many sources instead of just generating text from a prompt
• +produces a full publish-ready draft, not just bullet points

Cons

• −no permanent free tier, only a 14-day or 5-issue trial
• −pricing tiers jump sharply by volume, from $39 to $499 per month
• −the trial takes a card and bills automatically on day 14 unless cancelled

Is beehiiv cheaper than HeyNews?

On published entry prices, HeyNews starts lower — $39/mo against $49/mo for beehiiv. Entry price is the lowest paid plan as we last verified it; what each plan includes differs.

Does beehiiv or HeyNews have a free tier?

beehiiv has a free tier; HeyNews has paid plans only.

Which has a public API, beehiiv or HeyNews?

beehiiv ships a public API, as of our last verification. A public API for HeyNews is not confirmed by us — check its developer docs before you plan an integration.