Comparison guide
The best Patreon alternatives in 2026
Written by Lukky. Last updated June 2026. Fees verified against each platform's own pages.
Full disclosure: Folloverse is one of the platforms on this list. So we wrote it the way we'd want to read it if we weren't, with honest tradeoffs and sourced numbers. We put each platform where it genuinely wins, and we tell you when to pick something else.
The short version
- Lowest cut: Ghost (0%, you pay hosting) or Ko-fi Gold (0% for $12/mo).
- Simplest tip jar: Buy Me a Coffee or Ko-fi.
- Keep per-creation billing: Folloverse.
- Own your website and audience: Memberful or Ghost.
- Adult content: SubscribeStar or Patreon's 18+ category.
- Writers: Substack or Ghost.
- Course and community business: Circle.
- Sell digital products without an audience: Gumroad.
- Merch plus memberships: Fourthwall.
Why creators are leaving Patreon right now
Two things are pushing people to look. First, fees: creators who joined Patreon after August 4, 2025 pay a flat 10% plus payment processing. Second, and more urgent, Patreon is retiring its legacy per-creation billing. Every creator still on it has to move to monthly subscription billing by November 1, 2026, and one-to-one migration help from Patreon's support team ends on September 30, 2026. The change is driven by Apple's rule that iOS in-app purchases use subscription billing only.
When Patreon repurposes a per-creation page, it sets the new monthly price by multiplying your per-post price by the most paid posts you published in any of the last three months, and lets you choose a lower whole-number multiplier. If your output is uneven, some fans who used to pay less in slow months will land on a higher fixed price. That is the moment a lot of creators are deciding whether to stay.
What is per-creation billing?
Per-creation billing charges fans each time you publish a paid post, rather than automatically every month. Fans only pay when you actually make something, usually with a monthly cap so a busy month never surprises them. It suits creators whose output does not follow a fixed schedule. You can read a fuller explanation on our per-creation billing page.
How to choose
The right platform depends on what matters most to you. Start from your biggest constraint:
- You publish on an irregular schedule. Look at per-creation billing (Folloverse).
- You want the lowest possible cut. Ghost or Ko-fi Gold.
- You want it on your own website. Memberful or Ghost.
- You're a writer. Substack or Ghost.
- You run courses or a community. Circle.
- You sell digital downloads. Gumroad.
- You need adult content. SubscribeStar or Patreon's 18+ category.
- You want the simplest possible setup. Buy Me a Coffee or Ko-fi.
Fees and features at a glance
Platform fees only. Payment processing (about 2.9% + $0.30) applies on top for every option. Verified June 2026.
| Platform | Platform fee | Per-creation billing | Adult content | Export your audience |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patreon | 10% (new accounts) | Retiring Nov 2026 | Limited | Yes |
| Buy Me a Coffee | 5% | No | No | Yes |
| Circle | $89–199/mo + 0.5–2% | No | Limited | Yes |
| Folloverse | 6% (0% for 3 mo.) | Yes | No | Not yet |
| Fourthwall | 5% memberships | No | No | Limited |
| Ghost | 0% + hosting | No | Limited | Yes |
| Gumroad | 10% + $0.50 | No | Limited | Yes |
| Ko-fi | 0–5%, or $12/mo for 0% | No | Limited | Yes |
| Memberful | $49/mo + 4.9% | No | No | Yes |
| SubscribeStar | 5% | No | Yes | Limited |
| Substack | 10% | No | No | Yes |
Folloverse is the only option here built around per-creation billing, at a flat 6% with no platform fee for your first three months. If that's what you're after, you can create your account in a minute.
Every platform in detail
Patreon
Best for: The platform you're likely leaving- Platform fee:
- 10% for creators who joined after Aug 4, 2025 (older accounts keep legacy 5–12%)
- Processing:
- 2.9% + $0.30, plus 2.5% on currency conversion
- Billing:
- Monthly and annual subscriptions, one-time purchases. Per-creation billing is being retired (see below).
- Adult content:
- Allowed in an 18+ category with age verification; public previews must stay clean
- Export:
- Yes, member CSV (some emails withheld if a patron opted out)
- Community:
- Comments and basic messaging
Skip it if: You relied on per-creation billing, want the lowest fees, or want to own your billing relationship.
Source: official pricing pageBuy Me a Coffee
Best for: The simplest tip jar plus memberships- Platform fee:
- Flat 5%, no monthly fee
- Processing:
- 2.9% + $0.30, plus 0.5% on recurring and 1% on international
- Billing:
- One-time tips, monthly memberships, a simple shop
- Adult content:
- Not allowed (artistic nudity only)
- Export:
- Yes, your supporter list is yours to export
- Community:
- Minimal, creator-to-supporter email
Skip it if: You want a route to 0% fees, adult content, or per-post billing.
Source: official pricing pageCircle
Best for: A course-and-community business in one place- Platform fee:
- $89 / $199 / custom per month, with a 2% / 1% / 0.5% transaction fee by tier
- Processing:
- 2.9% + $0.30 (Stripe), on top of Circle's fee
- Billing:
- Paid memberships, one-time payments, courses, events
- Adult content:
- Effectively not supported
- Export:
- Yes, member CSV and an admin API on higher tiers
- Community:
- The strongest here: spaces, chat, courses, events, live rooms
Skip it if: You just want a simple checkout, or you're fee-sensitive at low volume.
Source: official pricing pageFolloverse
Best for: Publishing on your own schedule (per-creation + hybrid access)- Platform fee:
- Flat 6%, and 0% for your first three months
- Processing:
- 2.9% + $0.30 (Stripe)
- Billing:
- Per-creation billing, monthly memberships, pay-per-view, and hybrid posts (free for members and a one-time unlock for everyone else, at once)
- Adult content:
- Not built for explicit adult content (payments run on Stripe)
- Export:
- Not yet — there's no lock-in and you can leave any time, but a full audience export is still on our roadmap
- Community:
- Built-in chat and forum channels, plus direct messages
Skip it if: You want an established discovery engine, a mature mobile app, or a full audience export today. We're newer than the names on this list.
Source: Folloverse pricingFourthwall
Best for: Merch plus memberships with no upfront cost- Platform fee:
- 5% on memberships; merch sold at base cost so you keep the margin; 0% on digital with Fourthwall Pro
- Processing:
- 2.9% + $0.30 on US cards
- Billing:
- Memberships, physical merch, digital products, tips
- Adult content:
- Not allowed
- Export:
- Limited and not clearly documented
- Community:
- Light: member perks and Discord roles
Skip it if: You need deep community or course tooling, or adult content.
Source: official pricing pageGhost
Best for: Owning your entire stack with a 0% revenue cut- Platform fee:
- 0% revenue cut. Self-host for free, or pay Ghost(Pro) hosting from about $18/mo by member count
- Processing:
- Your own Stripe (about 2.9% + $0.30)
- Billing:
- Monthly and annual tiers, plus native one-time tips
- Adult content:
- Publishing is permissive, but Stripe blocks adult monetization
- Export:
- Yes, full content (JSON) and member (CSV) export
- Community:
- Native comments and newsletters, no social feed
Skip it if: You want built-in discovery, zero setup, or to monetize adult content.
Source: official pricing pageGumroad
Best for: Selling digital products fast, even with no audience- Platform fee:
- 10% + $0.50 on your own links, 30% on Gumroad's Discover marketplace
- Processing:
- 2.9% + $0.30
- Billing:
- Digital products, one-time sales, subscriptions
- Adult content:
- Mostly not allowed since 2024
- Export:
- Yes (export, though no import from other platforms)
- Community:
- Minimal, an email/newsletter feature only
Skip it if: You want recurring community engagement or course delivery.
Source: official pricing pageKo-fi
Best for: Low-friction tips with a path to 0% fees- Platform fee:
- 0% on tips, 5% on memberships and shop on the free plan; 0% on everything with Ko-fi Gold ($12/mo)
- Processing:
- Paid straight to your PayPal or Stripe (about 3% + $0.30), Ko-fi never holds it
- Billing:
- Tips, monthly memberships, shop, commissions
- Adult content:
- Some suggestive and artistic content allowed, nothing explicit
- Export:
- Yes, download your supporter list any time
- Community:
- Minimal, direct messages and Discord roles
Skip it if: You need per-post billing, explicit content, or a built-in forum.
Source: official pricing pageMemberful
Best for: Memberships on your own website, with your own Stripe- Platform fee:
- $49/mo plus a 4.9% transaction fee
- Processing:
- Your own Stripe (about 2.9% + $0.30)
- Billing:
- Monthly, annual and custom subscriptions, one-time, trials, gifts, pay-what-you-want, digital downloads
- Adult content:
- Not suitable (billing runs on your Stripe account)
- Export:
- Yes, and this is its point: you own your Stripe and your member data
- Community:
- No native community, integrates Discord, Circle, and Discourse
Skip it if: You want no monthly fee, built-in discovery, or native community tools.
Source: official pricing pageSubscribeStar
Best for: Patreon-style memberships with lenient content rules- Platform fee:
- 5% (set per creator)
- Processing:
- Ranges from 3% + $0.30 up to 10% + $0.40, plus 3.5% international
- Billing:
- Monthly subscription tiers
- Adult content:
- Yes, via the dedicated subscribestar.adult (rules tightened in March 2026)
- Export:
- Limited, API and webhooks rather than a clean export
- Community:
- Direct messages and polls
Skip it if: You want discovery, portability, or to avoid rolling reserves and a $150 payout minimum.
Source: official pricing pageSubstack
Best for: Writers who want a zero-setup newsletter- Platform fee:
- 10% of paid subscriptions
- Processing:
- 2.9% + $0.30, plus about 0.5% on recurring
- Billing:
- Monthly and annual (both required), plus a founding-member tier
- Adult content:
- No explicit visual content; erotic writing and artistic nudity are allowed
- Export:
- Yes, export your email list and your posts
- Community:
- Chat for subscribers and Notes for cross-network discovery
Skip it if: You want to own your stack, avoid 10% at scale, or sell adult visual content.
Source: official pricing pageThe fee reality check
Most comparison pages quote platform fees and stop there. The honest number includes payment processing, which Stripe or PayPal charges on every platform at roughly 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. A "5% platform" and a "10% platform" are closer in real take-home than they look once processing is added to both. To see exact figures for your own pledge levels, use our Patreon fee calculator.
Migrating from Patreon: what actually moves
You can export your patrons' emails from Patreon as a CSV and invite them to re-subscribe elsewhere, though emails for patrons who opted out of sharing will be missing. Your posts can be exported too. What does not move, anywhere, is the active billing relationship: every patron has to subscribe again on the new platform. Plan for that gap, give your audience clear notice, and expect to re-earn some subscriptions rather than transfer them automatically.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free Patreon alternative?
Ko-fi and Buy Me a Coffee both let you start free, and Ghost is free if you self-host. None are truly free once you account for payment processing, which every platform pays to Stripe or PayPal.
What is the cheapest Patreon alternative once you include processing fees?
On a percentage basis, Ghost (0% cut, you pay only hosting and Stripe) and Ko-fi Gold (0% platform fee for a flat $12/mo) are the lowest at volume. For a flat percentage with no monthly fee, Buy Me a Coffee (5%) and Folloverse (6%, 0% for three months) are the simplest to predict.
Which platforms still support per-creation or per-post billing in 2026?
Patreon is removing it by November 1, 2026. Folloverse is built around per-creation billing as a core model. Most other platforms here use monthly or annual memberships instead.
Will my patrons' prices change when Patreon migrates me?
Patreon converts a per-creation price to a monthly price using the highest number of paid posts you published in the last three months, and lets you pick a lower whole-number multiplier down to 1. The aim is parity, but a fan who often paid less in quiet months may end up on a higher fixed monthly price.
Can I move my existing subscribers to another platform?
You can export your audience's emails from most platforms and invite them to re-subscribe elsewhere. What does not transfer anywhere is the active billing relationship itself; patrons have to subscribe again on the new platform.
Which alternatives allow adult content?
SubscribeStar (via subscribestar.adult) and Patreon (in an 18+ category with clean public previews) are the main options. Most Stripe-based platforms, including Folloverse, Memberful, Ghost, and Gumroad, restrict explicit content because Stripe does.
How we compared
Every fee, billing model, payout term, and content policy above was checked against each platform's own pricing, help, and policy pages in June 2026, not copied from other comparison articles. Pricing changes often, so each entry links to its source for you to confirm. Folloverse is included and assessed by the same criteria as everyone else, including an honest note on where it falls short. If you spot something out of date, email [email protected].
If per-creation billing is why you're here
Folloverse keeps per-creation billing alive, with hybrid post access and a flat 6% fee. Your first three months have no platform fee.