Email Newsletter Business

How Profitable Is An Email Newsletter Business? (Updated for 2024)

Pat Walls

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Updated: September 2nd, 2024

So you want to start an email newsletter business?

And the first question that came to your mind was, “well, are email newsletter businesses actually profitable?”

With a market size of $7.5B - there’s plenty of business to go around.

Especially considering:

You could start a email newsletter business with as low as $100
Based on our data, email newsletter businesses generate an average of $2.27M per year
You could see gross margins as high as 32% with email newsletter businesses

There’s money to be made. Don’t worry.

But, I don't want to spoil it all. Below we’ll cover everything you need to know when it comes to the profitability of a email newsletter business.

Let’s dive in!

Yes, an email newsletter business is generally a profitable business. However, you still need to consider several factors since these things always impact the overall outcome.

For instance, since average revenue is $2.27M per year with an estimated gross margin of 65%, you could expect to recover your investment within 7 months or even less.

But of course, it all comes down to how much you earn compared to the potential revenues of your email newsletter business.

To determine whether your business is profitable, you should earn more than your expenses in the beginning months. However, while you're in your first month, it can be challenging to know what to expect.

Therefore, you should maintain a record of your monthly expenses and income to determine whether you're meeting your goals. By doing this step, you can see how your email newsletter business is doing and if any changes or adjustments need to be made to enhance or maintain your efforts.

If you’re wondering if a email newsletter business is worth it, the answer is a big YES. With email newsletter businesses, you have the potential to earn $2.27M per year (this is based on data reported by real founders).

Further, you could have your initial investment back within months. Simply put, it’s a business worth a shot, especially if you have the resources and make the necessary efforts to achieve or surpass the target.

With a market size of $7.5B, it will be possible for you to build something that grows and turns into a flourishing business. As such, it’s the type of business you might want to consider starting.

Of course, you must learn and understand every aspect of running a email newsletter business to ensure success. Still, as long as you have the initial investment and can endure a few months before your actual gains, this business could be worth it.

You might want to consider reading more specifics about successful email newsletter businesses case studies.

Here are a few examples of profitable email newsletter businesses, and a few more details about them:

1. Workspaces ($24K/year)

Ryan Gilbert came up with the idea for Workspaces when he noticed Twitter users sharing pictures of their new setups during the pandemic. Wanting to preserve these inspiring workspaces, he started a newsletter that now has over 9,000 subscribers and generates $2,000 per month from sponsorships. He recently joined YC startup Loops as Head of Content and continues to publish Workspaces while exploring new marketing initiatives.

Is it profitable? Yes
How much money it makes: $24K/year
How much did it cost to start: $500

How I Built A $24K/Year Newsletter Side Hustle That Shares Remote Workspaces And Got Acquired

The founder of Workspaces, a newsletter giving readers a behind-the-scenes tour of entrepreneurs' new desk setups, was making $2,000 per month from sponsorships and was recently acquired by YC startup Loops, with 9,000+ subscribers and open rates around 60%.

Read this case study

Read by 5,513 founders

2. The Milk Road ($1.5M/year)

Shaan Puri and Ben Levy were friends. While working on Shaan’s brand, they delved deep into the crypto ecosystem. Since they were talented writers, they decided to turn their hobby and interests into a full-time gig.

embed:tweet

Shaan's Tweet explaining how they started Milk Road

Is it profitable? Yes
How much money it makes: $1.5M/year
How much did it cost to start: $2K

How Shaan Puri Built Milk Road to 250K Subscribers and Sold for 8-Figure.

Discover how Shaan Puri grew The Milk Road crypto newsletter from a Google Doc to 250,000 subscribers in just 10 months, ultimately selling it to Bitfo for an eight-figure sum.

Read this case study

Read by 2,648 founders

3. Buttondown ($900K/year)

Justin built Buttondown to scratch his own itch — all of the other email tools he tried were either super-heavy (like Mailchimp or ConvertKit) or wanted to own his entire blogging presence like Medium or Substack. There wasn’t anything that just let him drop in a <form> tag into a blog and automatically send out emails, so he decided to build something just like that on a hunch that other people shared his use case.

Is it profitable? Yes
How much money it makes: $900K/year
How much did it cost to start: $100

Bootstrapping A [Profitable] $15K/Month Simple Newsletter SaaS With No Experience

Buttondown, a newsletter software built by an engineer disillusioned with the complicated and feature-laden email tools available, became a profitable and growing business powering over tens of thousands of customers and adding over $1,000 monthly, all made possible by keeping it simple, surgical, and functional.

Read this case study

Read by 5,323 founders

Learn more about starting an email newsletter business:

Where to start?

-> How much does it cost to start an email newsletter business?
-> Pros and cons of an email newsletter business

Need inspiration?

-> Other email newsletter business success stories
-> Marketing ideas for an email newsletter business
-> Email newsletter business slogans
-> Email newsletter business names

Other resources

-> Email newsletter business tips

With a email newsletter business, you can make an average of $2.27M revenue per year (based on data reported by real businesses).

You can start with an initial investment as low as $100. Then, with proper knowledge and sustained effort, you could have an ROI (return of investment) within 7 months.

Based on our data, average weekly revenue for a email newsletter business ranges around $47.2K. As such, you could see monthly revenues of $189K.

To know if your email newsletter business achieves the weekly profit target, you need to keep track of the total earnings you get per day. Afterward, you'll want to consider subtracting the expenses you have daily.

Learning your weekly profit can also show whether you're hitting your target goal for your email newsletter business.

The income of an email newsletter business owner can vary depending on various factors such as location, size, competition, and the owner's business skills.

But to give you some idea, the weekly revenue of an established email newsletter business is about $47.2K. But this can be lower or higher depending on so many factors - it's almost impossible to say exactly.

While the potential for earning a good income as an email newsletter business owner exists, success in this field requires a commitment to providing quality products and services and building a strong reputation within the community.

Generally speaking, an email newsletter business can expect profit margin of around 65%. Profit margins refer to the percentage of revenue that remains after deducting all expenses associated with running a business. In the case of an email newsletter business, profit margins can vary depending on various factors, such as the type and quality of products sold, the size of the store, and the level of competition in the area.

However, these figures can vary depending on the pricing strategy, inventory management, and overall efficiency of the business. To maintain healthy profit margins, email newsletter business owners must focus on managing costs, negotiating favorable supplier terms, and providing high-quality products and services to attract and retain customers. By doing so, email newsletter business owners can ensure long-term sustainability and profitability for their business.

The salary of an email newsletter business owner is an unpredictable figure. It's significantly influenced by numerous factors, including the store's location, its size, and the degree of competition. An owner of a well-established email newsletter business, in a prime position, might see an average weekly salary around the ballpark of $30.7K.

But it's worth noting, such numbers aren't always consistent. The earnings can vary wildly, potentially swinging by as much as 80% either way.

Achieving consistent success and maintaining a reliable income stream in this industry requires a deep commitment. It's imperative to offer high-quality products, deliver impeccable customer service, and nurture a trusted bond with the community you serve.

Conclusion

In a nutshell, based on many of our examples, a email newsletter business may be a promising business to start - but the success of your email newsletter business mostly depends on your effort and your approach.

If you focus on these, you'll have a much higher chance of a profitable email newsletter business.

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Starting An Email Newsletter Business: Everything You Need To Know

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