LENDZ Social vs Substack
Which is better, LENDZ Social or Substack?
It depends. If you have a large mailing list and want to keep working from it, Substack is the better pick. Substack says you own your mailing list, and it can import lists from other tools. If you want your writing, your followers and your conversations in one place, LENDZ Social is the better pick. LENDZ delivers issues to the inbox inside LENDZ Social.[2],[4]
What Substack does well
Substack gave writers a direct line to paying readers. A writer chooses which posts are free and which are for paid subscribers, and Substack says writers keep 90% of their revenue, minus credit card fees.[1],[3]
Substack keeps the relationship with the writer. It says you always own your intellectual property, your mailing list and your subscriber payments.[2]
It is easy to arrive. Substack supports imports from Mailchimp, Ghost, WordPress, Medium and other tools, and says switching takes less than 5 minutes.[4]
It reaches past text. Substack says writers can host a podcast natively, go live on video, and talk with subscribers in chat.[1]
How they differ
Substack is a publishing site that added a social layer. It has Notes, subscriber chats and comment threads around each publication.[1]
LENDZ Social is a social publishing platform, built as one from day one. Neither is wrong. They serve different needs.
On Substack, readers find writers through recommendations from other publications, Notes, app-driven discovery, trending topics and leaderboards.[1]
On LENDZ, readers find you through the people they follow. The Main Feed shows posts from the people you follow, newest first, and each issue announces itself there.
Most of social media runs on algorithmic feeds built to keep people scrolling. LENDZ has no algorithmic feed. That is a choice about the whole network, and it says nothing about any one site.
Side by side
| Topic | Substack | LENDZ |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A place to start a subscription publication.[4] | LENDZ Social is an invite-only social publishing platform. |
| Paid subscriptions | Writers choose which posts are free or paid. Substack says writers keep 90% of revenue, minus credit card fees.[1],[3] | Creator enrollment, $10 once, opens paid issues and subscriptions at a price the writer sets. LENDZ keeps a 10% house share of each paid invoice. |
| Your readers | Substack says you own your mailing list, and supports importing lists from other tools.[2],[4] | Subscribers get each issue in the inbox inside LENDZ Social. |
| How readers find you | Recommendations, Notes, app-driven discovery, trending topics and leaderboards.[1] | The people they follow. The Main Feed is newest first, with no algorithmic feed. |
| Conversation | Subscriber chats, comment threads and moderation tools.[1] | Replies to an issue are Briefs, written from the same accounts readers use everywhere on LENDZ. |
| Audio and video | Podcasts hosted natively, and live video.[1] | Briefings are live audio rooms. With podcast hosting, a recorded room goes out on the host's own RSS feed. |
Choose Substack if
You have a large mailing list and want to keep working from it. Substack says you own it, and it imports lists from other tools.[2],[4]
You want a publishing home that stands on its own, with podcasts and live video beside your writing.[1]
You want a platform built around paid newsletters, where you keep 90% of revenue minus credit card fees.[1]
Choose LENDZ if
You want your writing, your followers and your conversations under one account.
You want readers to find you through people they follow, in a feed ordered by time with no algorithmic feed.
You are happy for issues to arrive in the inbox inside LENDZ Social.
You also want to go live with Briefings or post short Briefs to the same audience.
Questions
Q01Is LENDZ an alternative to Substack?
Only for some writers. LENDZ is a social publishing platform, so it suits a writer who wants a newsletter inside a social publishing platform. Substack is built as a place to publish, and suits a writer who wants that.
Q02How do paid subscriptions compare?
Q03Where do LENDZ issues arrive?
In the inbox inside LENDZ Social. An announcement with the headline and deck posts to the writer's feed at the same moment.
Q04Does LENDZ have an algorithmic feed?
No. The Main Feed shows posts and reposts from the people you follow, newest first, and nothing reorders them.
Q05Can people outside LENDZ read an issue?
Anyone with the link can open an issue's public page. LENDZ is invite-only, and a shared issue is one of the invitations: joining from that page signs a reader up with the issue waiting.
Q06Does Substack have a social side?
Yes. Substack describes Notes, subscriber chats and comment threads. LENDZ differs in being a social publishing platform, built as one from day one.
Sources, checked October 2026
- Substack, About https://substack.com/about
- Substack, home page https://substack.com/
- Substack, Start a paid newsletter https://substack.com/going-paid
- Substack, Switch to Substack https://substack.com/switch
