Substack tests three ways for brands to pay creators: Upgrade, Unlock and Masthead
Substack is testing a native Sponsorships programme that lets brands fund paid access, unlock single posts and sponsor themed collections — for a limited group of publishers, for now.
Substack has built its creator business on paid subscriptions. Now it is testing a second lane: brands paying creators directly through the platform. Its native Sponsorships programme adds three formats — Upgrade, Unlock and Masthead — according to The Creators Index, and each one moves money in a different way.
Upgrade lets a brand fund one month of paid access for a publisher's free subscribers, who can then choose to keep paying afterwards. Unlock lets a brand sponsor a single paywalled post and make it free for everyone, with the publisher still paid for the work. Masthead is broader: a brand works with writers around a theme and the work is gathered in a dedicated destination, closer to a digital zine than a newsletter ad.
Access is still narrow. Substack is bringing together small groups of Bestsellers and brands while it tests the programme, and its Creator Kit — the way publishers signal interest — is open to Bestsellers and publications with at least 100 paid subscribers. There is no public rollout date and no published standard fee structure yet. For larger campaigns, Kantar studies will measure brand awareness, perception and consideration.
From the crate: Substack, a sponsorship lane is welcome — but publish the fee terms and open the door past the top shelf, so smaller publishers can plan on it too.
Source: The Creators Index · October 9, 2026. Summarised by Vera Ríos for the Pangea+ desk, in our own words — a pen name; the numbers aren't.