Can I open-source beehiiv?

YES · mature open-source replacement
price $49/moyou'd save $588/yrcategory 📮 newslettersreplaced by 0 people

Yes. Ghost (55k stars), Listmonk (22k stars), Keila (2k stars) are mature open-source replacements for beehiiv — self-host with real ops work and stop paying $49/mo.

why people still pay

They pay because audience growth and email reliability are harder than writing and sending HTML.

what you lose

xemail deliverability

xreferral/recommendation network

xad network

xautomations

xanalytics

xpaid newsletter tooling

xmigrations

the open-source alternatives

These projects already replace it, free.

GGhostPublishing, newsletters, memberships and paid subscriptions on your server; beehiiv's ad network and growth machinery stay behind.55kaug 2026open source↗LListmonkHigh-performance single-binary newsletter and mailing list manager with campaigns, templates, and Postgres backend22kaug 2026open source↗KKeilaLean newsletter tool in Elixir — campaigns, segments, signup forms. Bring your own SES/SMTP and sending is nearly free.2.0kaug 2026open source↗

What each one is, in full: Ghost · Listmonk · Keila

all 3 open-source alternatives to beehiiv →· no votes, no pay-to-list · just what's real

share on X ↗"I just replaced beehiiv ($49/mo) with open source"
the numbers

beehiiv pricing

planmonthlyannual (per mo)what you get
launch$0/workspace$0/workspaceUp to 2,500 subscribers, unlimited email sends, 3 publications, 1 team member, 10 AI credits/day, 1 podcast episode/month, 1 show.
scale$49/workspace$43/workspaceUp to 100,000 subscribers, unlimited sends/posts, 3 publications, up to 3 team seats, 25 AI credits/day, 4 podcast episodes/month.
max$109/workspace$96/workspaceUp to 100,000 subscribers, 10 publications, unlimited team seats, 50 AI credits/day, unlimited podcast episodes, 3 shows, 3 Getty credits.
enterprisecustom—100,000+ subscribers, custom publications/subscriber limits, 100 AI credits/day, 10 Getty credits, dedicated IPs, SSO, account manager.

free tier$0; 2,500 subscribers, unlimited sends, 3 publications, 1 team member, 10 AI credits/day, 1 podcast episode/month, 1 show.

billingmonthly + annual; annual cards show lower per-month price billed annually

hidden costsStripe processing applies to paid subscriptions; beehiiv take rate is 0% on paid subscription revenue; Enterprise needed above 100K/custom limits.

verified 2026-08-10 · source ↗

questions
Can I open-source beehiiv?

Yes. Ghost replaces beehiiv today — self-host it on your own server or machine with no subscription. The full list of open-source alternatives is on this page.

How much does beehiiv cost?

beehiiv costs about $49/month (Scale, checked 2026-07-30), which is $588 per year. That's what you save by replacing it with open source.

What do I lose by replacing beehiiv?

Honestly: email deliverability; referral/recommendation network; ad network; automations; analytics; paid newsletter tooling; migrations. If any of those are load-bearing for you, keep paying.

Is there an open-source alternative to beehiiv?

Yes: Ghost (Publishing, newsletters, memberships and paid subscriptions on your server; beehiiv's ad network and growth machinery stay behind.) Listmonk (High-performance single-binary newsletter and mailing list manager with campaigns, templates, and Postgres backend) Keila (Lean newsletter tool in Elixir — campaigns, segments, signup forms. Bring your own SES/SMTP and sending is nearly free.) All 3 curated open-source alternatives are at caniopensourceit.online/beehiiv/alternatives.