Brandwave

How popular isSubstack in search?

In August 2026, there were an estimated 2.5M branded searches for Substack worldwide which is up 79.4% over the last 11 months. Substack holds 37.9% estimated Share of Search among membership platforms worldwide and is ranked 2nd of 5 competitors for search popularity. These are worldwide searches for English-language branded terms.

Share of Search, August 2026
  1. Patreon61.8%
  2. Substack37.9%
  3. Wild Apricot0.15%
  4. MemberPress0.07%
  5. Memberful0.02%
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Which membership platforms compete with Substack?

Substack against membership platforms worldwide, by month

Share of Search by month for Patreon, Substack. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of search table
MonthPatreonSubstackWild ApricotMemberPressMemberful
Oct 202570.2%29.3%0.25%0.21%0.05%
Nov 202570.1%29.4%0.25%0.21%0.04%
Dec 202566%33.6%0.2%0.16%0.05%
Jan 202665.9%33.7%0.24%0.16%0.04%
Feb 202665.5%34.1%0.24%0.16%0.05%
Mar 202666.1%33.5%0.2%0.13%0.04%
Apr 202661.8%37.9%0.18%0.12%0.04%
May 202666.6%33.2%0.16%0.09%0.03%
Jun 202666.2%33.6%0.16%0.09%0.03%
Jul 202661.5%38.2%0.18%0.08%0.03%
Aug 202661.8%37.9%0.15%0.07%0.02%
Sep 2026—————

  1. 1.Patreon

    61.8%

    Held 1st. 4.1M estimated branded searches, +22.1% vs prior month. Share +0.3 points.

  2. 2.Substack

    37.9%

    Held 2nd. 2.5M estimated branded searches, +20.6% vs prior month. Share -0.3 points.

  3. 3.Wild Apricot

    0.15%

    Held 3rd. 9.9K estimated branded searches, 0% vs prior month. Share 0 points.

  4. 4.MemberPress

    0.07%

    Held 4th. 4.4K estimated branded searches, 0% vs prior month. Share 0 points.

  5. 5.Memberful

    0.02%

    Held 5th. 1.3K estimated branded searches, -18.8% vs prior month. Share 0 points.

Compare search popularity between Substack and its closest rivals

Every comparison with Substack

How has branded search demand for Substack changed worldwide over the last 12 months?

  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, estimated monthly branded searches for Substack worldwide rose from 1.4M to 2.5M.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Substack’s estimated Share of Search among membership platforms worldwide increased from 29.3% to 37.9%.
  • Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Substack’s estimated Share of Search among membership platforms worldwide peaked at 38.2% in July 2026 and was lowest at 29.3% in October 2025.

How did search popularity change for membership platforms worldwide in August 2026?

  1. Estimated monthly branded searches for Substack worldwide rose 79.4% over 11 measured months, from 1.4M to 2.5M in August 2026.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for Patreon worldwide rose 22.1% over 11 measured months, from 3.4M to 4.1M in August 2026.

  3. Estimated monthly branded searches for MemberPress worldwide fell 55.6% over 11 measured months, from 9.9K to 4.4K in August 2026.

  4. Estimated monthly branded searches for Memberful worldwide fell 45.8% over 11 measured months, from 2.4K to 1.3K in August 2026.

  5. Estimated monthly branded searches for Wild Apricot worldwide fell 18.2% over 11 measured months, from 12.1K to 9.9K in August 2026.

Where does Substack compete?

Substack is ranked in three competitor sets. Each share is worked out among that set's brands, so it differs from set to set.
Competitor setRankShare of SearchRanking
Membership platforms2nd of 537.9%Shown above
Newsletter platforms1st of 764.1%Show ranking
Paid newsletter platforms1st of 587.7%Show ranking

How is Substack measured?

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Substack’s name. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brand is growing, holding steady, or fading.

18 branded search terms

  • Substack
  • substack app
  • substack articles
  • substack com
  • substack live
  • substack newsletter
  • substack newsletter platform
  • substack newsletters
  • substack notes
  • substack podcast
  • substack subscribe
  • substack subscription
  • substack web
  • substack website
  • substack websites
  • substack.com
  • what is a substack
  • what is substack

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How the Brand Demand Index is measured

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