Free tools for Substack writers

Updated 2026-10-23 · 40 of our 56 hand-checked tools have a free plan · Prices and limits checked on each vendor's site

You can grow a Substack without paying for any software. Substack already handles hosting, email, payments, recommendations and Notes, and the gaps that remain (analytics, images, editing, scheduling, planning) all have free options. This page lists every tool in the StackKit directory with a genuine free plan, grouped by what it helps you do, with the paid upgrade next to it so you know where the limits are.

A free starter kit: Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Canva, Grammarly, Hemingway Editor, Notion, Buffer, Subshack, SparkLoop. That covers traffic sources, search, header images, proofreading, planning, Notes scheduling and recommendations for $0.

"Free plan" here means you can keep using the tool without paying, not just a time-limited trial. Free tiers usually come with limits such as watermarks, monthly credits or a cap on scheduled posts; those limits are in each tool's pricing line below.

Built specifically for Substack and free: Supascribe, Byline OS, Subshack, Substack Insights.

Growth & Notes (2)

• SparkLoop: Getting paid recommendations and buying cross-newsletter referrals. Pricing: Free to join the Partner Network and Upscribe recommendation widget (SparkLoop takes a share of paid-recommendation earnings). Paying other newsletters to recommend you is a separate paid program.
• Supascribe: Writers with their own website who want on-brand Substack signup forms, popups and landing pages. Pricing: Free for your first 100 subscribers captured and 1,000 embed views; a paid Pro plan after that (usage add-ons beyond plan limits).

More: all growth & notes tools, free and paid.

Analytics (6)

• Bitly: Tracking clicks on links you share to social, podcasts and print. Pricing: Free (with ads); Core $10/mo (annual only); Growth $29/mo; Premium $199/mo (annual pricing).
• Byline OS: Paid-newsletter writers who want MRR, churn, cohort and revenue-per-post analytics. Pricing: Starter free (CSV import, 30-day retention); Growth $19/mo; Scale $49/mo. 14-day trial. Currently in private beta.
• Google Analytics: Seeing where your Substack traffic comes from (Substack lets you add a GA measurement ID). Pricing: Free.
• Google Search Console: Seeing which Google searches bring readers to your Substack and whether your posts are indexed. Pricing: Free.
• Subshack: Finding out which Notes and posts actually bring subscribers, and auditing your profile. Pricing: Free (Subshack 1.0), including a no-signup public profile audit.
• Substack Insights: Writers who want a cheap, private look at their best posts, best publishing times and Notes engagement. Pricing: Free for publications under 1,000 subscribers; $9.99 one-time above that. The pricing card lists Notes analytics and conversion stats under the paid tier.

More: all analytics tools, free and paid.

Cross-posting & Social (2)

• Buffer: Scheduling Notes alongside every other social channel from one calendar. Pricing: Free (up to 3 channels, 10 scheduled posts per channel at a time); Essentials $5/channel/mo billed yearly ($6 monthly); Team $10/channel/mo billed yearly.
• Typefully: X-first writers who also want to post to LinkedIn, Threads, Bluesky and Substack Notes. Pricing: Free (10 posts/mo); Creator $99/yr; Business $20 per social set/mo.

More: all cross-posting & social tools, free and paid.

Design (5)

• Canva: Header images, social graphics, Notes images and simple brand kits. Pricing: Free; Pro US$144/yr for one person (before tax).
• Figma: Custom visual systems, templates and detailed design work. Pricing: Free Starter; Professional full seat $16/mo.
• Kittl: Typography-heavy graphics and AI-assisted illustrations. Pricing: Free plan; paid Pro, Expert and Max plans (see pricing page).
• remove.bg: One-click background removal for headshots and product images. Pricing: Free to try; paid plans for full-resolution output (see pricing page).
• Unsplash: Free, high-quality photos for post headers. Pricing: Free to use under the Unsplash License.

More: all design tools, free and paid.

Editing & Proofreading (5)

• Grammarly: Catching typos and clarity issues everywhere you write, including the Substack editor. Pricing: Free; Pro from $12/mo.
• Hemingway Editor: Making dense posts easier to read. Pricing: Free web editor; Editor Plus (AI rewrites) Individual 5K $8.33/mo billed annually ($100/yr) or Individual 10K $12.50/mo billed annually ($150/yr); desktop app $19.99 one-time (no AI features).
• LanguageTool: Multilingual writers and anyone who wants a Grammarly alternative. Pricing: Free; Premium $24.90/mo monthly or $69.90/yr.
• ProWritingAid: Deep style reports for long-form and fiction writers. Pricing: Free; Premium $10/mo billed yearly ($120) or $30/mo monthly.
• QuillBot: Paraphrasing, summarizing and quick rewrites. Pricing: Free; Premium $19.95/mo or $99.95/yr.

More: all editing & proofreading tools, free and paid.

Planning, Research & Automation (5)

• Google Trends: Checking whether a topic is rising before you write about it. Pricing: Free.
• Notion: Editorial calendars, idea banks and sponsor CRMs. Pricing: Free; Plus $10/seat/mo.
• Obsidian: Building a personal knowledge base of notes, quotes and ideas. Pricing: Free; optional Sync $4/mo and Publish $8/mo (billed annually).
• Trello: A simple kanban for drafts moving from idea to published. Pricing: Free (up to 10 collaborators); Standard $5/user/mo billed annually.
• Zapier: Automating busywork such as logging new posts to a spreadsheet or sending sponsor reminders. Pricing: Free; Professional from $19.99/mo.

More: all planning, research & automation tools, free and paid.

AI Writing & Research (3)

• ChatGPT: Brainstorming angles, outlines, headlines and research summaries. Pricing: Free; Plus $20/mo.
• Claude: Long-document feedback, structural edits and drafting help. Pricing: Free; Pro $20/mo or $17/mo billed annually.
• Perplexity: Quick research with cited sources. Pricing: Free; Pro $20/mo.

More: all ai writing & research tools, free and paid.

Audio, Podcast & Video (6)

• Adobe Podcast: Making laptop-mic recordings sound clean (Enhance Speech). Pricing: Free tier; premium features require a paid Adobe plan (check site for current offer).
• Audacity: Recording and cleaning up voiceovers on a zero budget. Pricing: Free and open source.
• Descript: Editing podcast and video by editing the transcript. Pricing: Free; Hobbyist $16/mo billed annually ($24 monthly); Creator $24/mo annually ($35 monthly).
• ElevenLabs: Producing audio versions of posts with natural-sounding AI voices. Pricing: Free (10k credits/mo); Starter $6/mo; Creator $22/mo; higher tiers available.
• OpusClip: Turning long videos or podcast episodes into short social clips. Pricing: Free (60 credits/mo); Starter $15/mo; Pro $14.50/mo billed annually.
• Riverside: Recording remote interviews in high quality. Pricing: Free (720p, Riverside watermark, 2 one-off hours of separate-track recording); Pro $24/mo billed annually ($288/yr) or $29 monthly; Grow $34/mo billed annually.

More: all audio, podcast & video tools, free and paid.

Embeds & Interactive (4)

• Datawrapper: Clean, accurate charts, maps and tables for data-driven posts. Pricing: Free (unlimited charts, maps and tables, with a "Created with Datawrapper" credit); Pro $21/user/mo excl. VAT (removes the credit); Business $39/user/mo excl. VAT.
• Flourish: Animated and interactive charts and scrollytelling. Pricing: Free (public publishing with attribution); paid Presenter (via Canva Business) and Publisher/Enterprise plans on contract.
• Linktree: A link-in-bio page that points social followers to your Substack. Pricing: Free; Starter $6/mo billed annually ($8 monthly); Pro $12/mo billed annually ($15 monthly); Premium $30/mo billed annually ($35 monthly).
• Tally: Reader surveys, sponsor inquiry forms and feedback forms. Pricing: Free (unlimited forms and submissions); Pro $24/mo; Business $74/mo.

More: all embeds & interactive tools, free and paid.

Sponsorships & Monetization (2)

• Gumroad: Selling ebooks, templates and guides alongside your newsletter. Pricing: No monthly fee; 10% + $0.50 per transaction on direct sales (profile or direct links); 30% on sales through Gumroad Discover.
• Ko-fi: One-off tips from readers who won't commit to a paid subscription. Pricing: Free with a 5% platform fee on some features; Ko-fi Gold $12/mo for 0% platform fee.

More: all sponsorships & monetization tools, free and paid.

Before you install a free browser extension

Several free Substack tools are browser extensions that read data through your logged-in Substack session. That's normal, but check each tool's privacy page, prefer read-only modes, and avoid anything that follows, likes or messages people automatically. Our 2026 growth guide explains when paid tools start to make sense.

Free plans change. Always confirm on the vendor's site. See how we verify tools.