Alternatives
Sites like Patreon.
Seven platforms, what they take, what they are for.
Patreon is the best known way to get paid by supporters every month, but it is not the only one, and it is not the best fit for every kind of creator. Here are six other options, read from their own pages today, with the fee each one takes and the creator each one suits.
Video hosting for filmmakers · 5 GB free · Paid plans from USD 9/month
By uncompressed.io · Updated October 2026
Short answer
What are the best sites like Patreon?
The closest alternatives to Patreon are Ko-fi and Buy Me a Coffee for tips and simple memberships, Memberful for memberships on your own website, Substack for paid writing and podcasts, YouTube channel memberships for existing YouTube channels, and uncompressed.io for creators whose members pay to watch video. They differ most in the fee they take and in what members actually receive.
- Ko-fi: tips, memberships and a shop
- Buy Me a Coffee: 5% transaction fee, tips, memberships, shop
- Memberful: USD 49 a month plus 4.9%, on your own site
- Substack: keep 90% of paid subscriptions, minus card fees
- YouTube memberships: creator receives 70% of net
- uncompressed.io: 0% commission, built for video
The list
Fees and strengths,
read from their own pages
Platform share only. Every platform also passes on card processing, which is left out so the comparison stays like for like.
Each competitor figure comes from that platform's own page, read 12 October 2026. Ko-fi's site refused an automated read that day, so no Ko-fi figure is shown. The streaming platform is included with every paid plan for members who switch it on before 31 December 2026, and stays included for them afterwards; after that date new activations add USD 39 a month.
Who each one suits
Pick by what your supporters get
in one line each
The right platform depends less on the fee and more on what a supporter receives for their money. A tip jar, a newsletter and a film library are different products.
Patreon
Best when members want a feed: posts, audio, polls and community, and when new fans find you inside Patreon's app. It also hosts video natively, described as HD.
Ko-fi
Best for a low-pressure tip jar with optional memberships and a shop. Good for artists who sell a few commissions and want something quick to set up.
Buy Me a Coffee
Best for one-time support with a friendly button, plus monthly or yearly memberships and a small shop. Its FAQ states a 5% transaction fee.
Memberful
Best when you already run a website and want members to log in there. Standard is USD 49 a month plus 4.9%, and its site builder can host video up to 1080p.
Substack
Best for writers and podcasters. Writers keep 90% of paid subscription revenue minus card fees, and video episodes can be published to other platforms too.
YouTube memberships
Best for a channel that already has an audience. Members pay through YouTube and the creator receives 70% of net revenue.
For video creators
The seventh option
when members pay to watch
When another option is better
uncompressed.io, in one table
Read from the live price list. Verified 2026-10.
| Commission on sales | 0 percent, at any volume. Buyers pay into your own payment account; your card processor's fee applies. |
|---|---|
| What you can sell | Purchases (stream forever), downloads, rentals with a viewing window, memberships with monthly or yearly tiers, bundles and series. |
| Member tools | Free trials per tier, coupon codes, gift memberships, refunds and free access from your earnings page. |
| Your storefront | A shop under your name at yourname.uncompressed.io/on-demand, or on your own domain. Buyers need no account. |
| Picture quality | Films stream as you exported them: no re-encode of video or audio, with an optional lighter copy for slow connections. |
| Viewing hours included | Lite 1,000, Pro 5,000, Max 15,000, Studio 25,000 hours a month, then USD 29 per extra 20,000-hour block. Playback never pauses. |
| Plans | Starter free (5 GB, one film at a time); Lite USD 9, Pro USD 39, Max USD 99, Studio USD 219 a month; yearly is one month free. |
| Leak Shield (optional) | Every buyer gets their own invisibly marked copy; the open web and torrent indexes are searched; a confirmed leak names and blocks the buyer and sends the takedown. USD 99 a month or USD 1,188 a year, any paid plan. |
| Inclusion window | The streaming platform is included with every paid plan for members who switch it on before 31 December 2026, and stays included for them afterwards; after that date new activations add USD 39 a month. |
Plans and add-ons: pricing. The whole cluster starts at the creator platform guide.
How to choose
Four questions
before you move anyone
What do they receive?
Posts and chat point to Patreon or Substack. A film library points to a video platform.
How big will it get?
A percentage fee grows with every member. A flat plan stays flat, so the gap widens as you grow.
Where is the money?
Some platforms hold the money and pay out later; others charge on your own payment account.
Who finds you?
If discovery inside the app matters, stay where your audience already is and add a second platform for the work itself.
Questions
Frequently asked
What sites are like Patreon?
The main ones are Ko-fi and Buy Me a Coffee for tips and simple memberships, Memberful for memberships on your own website, Substack for paid newsletters and podcasts, YouTube channel memberships for creators already on YouTube, and uncompressed.io for creators whose members pay mainly to watch films and video.
Which site like Patreon has the lowest fees?
Of the platforms on this page, uncompressed.io takes 0% of sales and charges a flat plan instead. Buy Me a Coffee states a 5% transaction fee, Memberful Standard 4.9% plus USD 49 a month, Patreon 10% of income earned, Substack 10%, and YouTube channel memberships pay creators 70% of net revenue. Card processing applies on every platform.
What is the best Patreon alternative for video?
A platform that hosts the video itself and sells access to it. uncompressed.io streams films as exported and sells memberships, rentals and purchases at 0% commission. Memberful can host video up to 1080p on its own website builder; Ko-fi, Buy Me a Coffee and Substack are built around posts, tips and newsletters rather than a film library.
Is Ko-fi cheaper than Patreon?
Ko-fi's own site refused an automated read on 12 October 2026, so this page does not state its fees. Check ko-fi.com directly for the current rates on donations, memberships and shop sales.
Can I use more than one of these sites?
Yes, and many creators do: a tip jar on one platform, a newsletter on another and a film library on a third. The cost is that members have more than one account and you have more than one dashboard.
When is Patreon still the right choice?
When your membership is mostly posts, audio, polls and community, and when fans discover you inside Patreon's own app. None of the alternatives here replaces that discovery.
If your supporters pay to watch, keep all of it.
uncompressed.io memberships, rentals and sales come with every paid plan (Lite USD 9, Pro USD 39, Max USD 99, Studio USD 219 a month), with 0% commission, paid into your own payment account.
Sources
- 1.Patreon pricing (read 12 October 2026)
- 2.Introducing Patreon Video, Patreon news (dated 3 November 2022, read 12 October 2026)
- 3.Buy Me a Coffee FAQ (read 12 October 2026)
- 4.Buy Me a Coffee home page (read 12 October 2026)
- 5.Memberful pricing (read 12 October 2026)
- 6.Memberful docs: video processing (read 12 October 2026)
- 7.Substack: going paid (read 12 October 2026)
- 8.YouTube partner earnings overview (read 12 October 2026)