Buttondown
The simplest way to start and grow your newsletter
About Buttondown
Buttondown is a minimalist, developer-friendly newsletter platform designed for writers who want to focus on content rather than complex email marketing tools. It supports both Markdown and rich-text editing, offers a powerful REST API, and lets creators run paid subscriptions while taking 0% revenue cut — only Stripe fees apply. It emphasizes simplicity, high deliverability, and personal customer support over flashy features.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Markdown-native editor with zero-friction writing experience
- 0% revenue cut on paid newsletters — only Stripe processing fees apply
- Developer-friendly REST API, webhooks, and Zapier integration
- Exceptional personal support with fast, hands-on responses
- Significantly cheaper than competitors at the 5,000-subscriber mark
Cons
- Limited design templates — visual customization requires editing HTML or stylesheets
- Image handling is less intuitive than competitors like Substack
- Small team means infrastructure may not match enterprise-grade uptime
Pricing
- Up to 100 subscribers
- Markdown editor
- RSS-to-email
- Basic newsletter tools
- Up to 1,000 subscribers
- Paid subscriptions
- Analytics
- Surveys & attachments
- Segmentation
- Up to 5,000 subscribers
- Custom domain
- API access
- White labeling
- Multiple newsletters
Best For
Developer Newsletter
Write in Markdown, use the API for custom automation, and enjoy a clean, no-nonsense editing experience.
Paid Newsletter
Monetize your content with 0% platform commission — keep all earnings minus Stripe's processing fee.
Personal Blog Newsletter
Send updates to a small-to-medium subscriber list without paying for features you don't need.
RSS-to-Email Automation
Automatically convert new blog posts into newsletter editions with minimal setup via built-in RSS workflows.
Featured In
Best Tools for Technical Founders Building in Public (2026)
Best for developer-founders who want a minimal, API-first newsletter platform with no revenue cut — the Markdown editor and RSS automation fit perfectly into a technical workflow.
Best Tools for Newsletter Curators and Aggregators (2026)
Best for curators who prioritize clean writing and simplicity — Buttondown's Markdown editor and minimal design let you focus entirely on curation quality without platform distractions.
Mailchimp Alternatives That Don't Double-Count Contacts (2026)
Best for writers and developers who want the simplest possible newsletter tool — if you just want to write and send emails without any marketing platform overhead.
Best Tools for Newsletter Operators at $10K+ MRR (2026)
Best for technically inclined operators who want clean infrastructure — API-first flexibility with deliberate simplicity for newsletter businesses that don't need platform features
Best Email Tools for Bloggers (2026): 8 Platforms That Actually Grow Your List
Best for technical, indie, or writing-first bloggers who want a clean, owned newsletter without marketing-platform bloat.