Essayist
6.8#87 in writing appsFrom $79.99 a yeariOSmacOS
VisitEssayist vs Substack
What both publish
| Fact | Essayist | Substack |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Import and export | The site lists PDF and Word export and BibTeX import. | Substack can import posts or subscribers from WordPress, Ghost, Medium, Beehiiv, Mailchimp, Tumblr, Webflow, Sanity, Seeking Alpha, Bulletin, TinyLetter, Blogspot and RSS, and lets creators export publication data. |
| Mobile apps | Yes | Native iOS and Android apps provide reading, subscriptions, push notifications, saved posts and mobile earnings or statistics views. |
| Privacy | The policy says the apps have no advertising, third-party analytics, or tracking, and do not use documents, notes, or references to train AI models. | Substack's privacy policy says it endeavors to protect personal information but cannot guarantee complete security. |
Essayist plans
- Monthly$9.99 a month
- Yearly$79.99 a year
Substack plans
- Free publishingFree
- Free to startFree
- Custom domain$50, paid once
- Paid subscriptions—
Pick Essayist if…
You want what its maker publishes above — check its page for the details.
Pick Substack if…
Substack suits writers, journalists, podcasters, video creators, experts, educators, and media companies building a direct subscriber audience. It is useful for creators who want multiple media formats, audience discovery, segmentation, email automation, and paid subscription options.