Is Substack Better than Medium?

… and should you start a Substack if you want to make money from writing?

Image credit: Canva AI and author

A favourite Medium writer of mine just published a Medium versus Substack article, in which he said there is literally no comparison because Medium is so much better than Substack. Not true.

Comparing Medium and Substack, he said, is like asking which is better: Coke or Pepsi, which (he said) is a no-brainer because Coke is clearly better. That settles it then, hey Tom Kuegler?

He also said something about Medium being like Five Guys and Five Guys being better than something else which confused me because I’m just a middle-aged woman and Five Guys is a brand we don’t have in my country.

Gosh I hope he’s talking about a brand, it could be a sexual fantasy for all I know…

But honestly, it was all bullshit anyway. Medium versus Substack isn’t like Coke versus Pepsi, it’s like Coke versus lasagna: both good but not really comparable.

[Full disclosure: I’m on track to make around $10 K using Substack this year and I’ll make maybe $200 from Medium if I’m lucky.]

Coke versus Lasagna

Medium is great for getting your writing in front of people. Substack is great for publishing…