Worried that you need a huge audience to earn from your work? A membership business model for creators lets a small, loyal group pay you a recurring fee for ongoing access, so fees and uniqueness matter more than reach.
For the wider context, read about what is the creator economy before you pick a pricing model.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Patreon platform fee, new creators after August 4, 2025 | 10% of earnings |
| Patreon total effective cost, typical USD memberships | Roughly 13% to 15% |
| Substack platform fee | 10% of paid subscription revenue |
| Ghost platform fee | 0%, plus a flat hosting cost |
| Ghost(Pro) Publisher plan, annual billing, July 2025 pricing | $29/month |
| Stripe card processing | 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction |
These figures come from a creator platform comparison and can change, so check that page and this Patreon pricing breakdown before you rely on them.
How a membership model works
A membership asks your fans to pay a recurring fee for continuing access to your work, such as gated posts, perks or a community. Ghost’s guide to membership websites says the recurring revenue business model that sustained the software industry has been unlocked for creators.
Ghost sells hosting, so read its claims as one vendor’s view. Still, the benefits it lists are a useful checklist of what you are aiming for, according to its membership guide:
- Your revenue is predictable and sustainable.
- You don’t need a large, broad audience to succeed.
- Members make the choice to subscribe and are genuinely invested in your work.
Memberships also sit alongside other income streams. For the full range, see how do creators make money and decide where recurring fees fit in your mix.
Is your work unique enough to charge for?
The same guide is blunt that, unless you have a unique value proposition, it will be hard to build a business with your content. Ghost’s guide treats this as a creative challenge rather than a dead end.
It points to three membership sites that each offer something specific:
- The Browser curates reading materials on every imaginable topic.
- Hot Pod, created by Nick Quah, provides analysis and insight about the growing podcast industry.
- Stratechery, created by Ben Thompson, provides deep analysis of the strategy and business side of tech and media.
Each one narrows to a topic and a reader who will pay for depth. A membership needs a core of loyal fans first, so work through how to build an audience as a creator before you set a price.
What platforms take from each payment
Before you pick a tool, work out what each payment costs you. The platform fee is only part of the bill, because card processing comes on top.
- Patreon: after its August 2025 pricing overhaul, new creators pay a flat 10% platform fee. Pages published before August 4, 2025 keep their older rates while the page stays continuously published, according to this comparison.
- Substack: it takes 10% of all paid subscription revenue, per the same comparison.
- Ghost: 0% platform fees and a flat monthly hosting cost, per that comparison.
- Ko-fi: a 5% fee on shop sales and memberships, according to a Patreon pricing breakdown that lists alternatives.
Stripe’s standard charge is 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction, per the comparison, and pledges under $3 cost about 5% + $0.10, according to the Patreon pricing breakdown. For typical USD memberships, the first source puts Patreon’s total effective cost at roughly 13% to 15%.
A worked example helps. In one Substack pricing breakdown, a creator charges $10/month for a newsletter subscription and keeps $8.41 per subscriber after Substack’s 10% fee and Stripe’s fee, according to that page.
Percentage or flat fee: where does the maths flip?
The comparison frames the choice simply: percentage platforms are free to start but take a cut forever, while flat-fee platforms charge upfront and let you keep the rest, Stripe aside. Its summary is that at low revenue percentages win, and at high revenue flat fees win.
Its estimates at $500 a month in paid subscriptions show how close the numbers are early on, per the same page:
- Substack: roughly $65 to $75 in fees, so you keep about $425 to $435.
- Ghost Publisher: $29 hosting plus about $15 Stripe, which is $44, so you keep about $456.
Plan details matter too. As of the July 2025 Ghost(Pro) update, the Publisher plan costs $29/month on annual billing with 1,000 members and paid subscriptions enabled, while the $15/month Starter plan does not support paid subscriptions, according to the comparison.
A separate Substack pricing page says that if you’re earning $1,000 or more a month, you will likely save money with flat monthly rates, per its breakdown. Both sources are written by companies that sell or compare alternatives, so run your own numbers.
One more hidden cost applies to Patreon. Apple charges Patreon a 30% fee on iOS in-app purchases, and Patreon’s response was to raise iOS prices by about 43%, according to the comparison.
Choosing tools and keeping control of your audience
At the very minimum you need software that lets you share content, protect it behind a login and take payments from members, per Ghost’s guide. The same guide lists the extras most creators end up wanting:
- A pleasant environment to create and edit content
- Robust membership management tools
- Email newsletters
- Custom domains and a custom theme or website
- SEO functionality
Ownership is the other question. Ghost argues that Patreon is a closed platform, so you can’t move your business elsewhere if your requirements change, and it says its own platform supports both free and paid-only member tiers.
That is a competitor’s claim. A Patreon pricing breakdown says the platform’s plan includes exportable email lists, so check exactly what you can take with you before you commit.
A simple way to launch your first membership
- Write down the specific thing you offer that a defined group of people would pay for.
- Estimate how many members you could realistically reach and what they would pay each month.
- Compare a percentage platform with a flat-fee one at that revenue, including processing fees.
- Confirm the tool can gate content, take recurring payments and send email to members.
- Check what you can export, so your member list is not locked in.
Start small and adjust. The fee model you choose on day one does not have to be the one you keep, as long as you can take your audience with you.
Frequently asked questions
How much does Patreon take from a new creator?
Show answer
As of Patreon’s August 2025 pricing overhaul, new creators pay a flat 10% platform fee, per this comparison. Payment processing and payout fees come on top.
Do I need a large audience for a membership?
Show answer
Ghost’s guide says you don’t need a large, broad audience to succeed, and that many membership sites only convert a small percentage of readers, per its membership guide. You do still need something unique that people will pay for.
Are memberships better than ads or brand deals?
Show answer
Ghost’s guide claims the benefits of memberships can’t be applied to advertising, brand deals or niche affiliate marketing, per its membership guide. That is a vendor’s view, so treat it as one input rather than a rule.
When should I move from a percentage fee to a flat fee?
Show answer
One comparison says the crossover happens earlier than most creators realise, per that page. A Substack pricing breakdown puts the rough point at $1,000 a month, according to its analysis.
