How TikTok creators are bringing their followers to Substack
Own your audience and earn money with subscriptions
Substack is a subscription-based platform that helps creators share their work, grow their fan base, and build a thriving media business. As TikTok’s fate looms in the U.S., Substack allows creators to reach their audience consistently and build a loyal community.
If you are a TikTok creator and brand-new to Substack, here’s how to get started.
1. Download the Substack app
When you download the Substack app via the App Store or Google Play, you will be prompted to create a profile and claim a handle. Use the name and handle that most people know you by on social media to make it easy to find you. For Example,
uses the same handle, @condimentclaire, on TikTok and Substack.
In the app, you have publishing capabilities and essential stats. To access the full stats dashboard, podcasting, and video tools, visit Substack on the web. For advanced features like a custom website, adding multiple team members, or hosting a subscriber chat, update your profile to a full publication in settings.
2. Connect to Stripe
Moving to Substack means the ability to monetize the content you work hard to create and gain full ownership of your audience. If you have an engaged audience, turn on paid subscriptions. You can decide on a post-by-post basis what to keep free and what to make paid. As you get started, you can keep everything free, with paid subscriptions functioning like donations to support your work. If you have behind-the-scenes or exclusive content like recipes, reviews, or day-in-the-life videos, you might experiment with free previews of paid posts. Learn more
3. Make a post
Substack supports written posts from the app. If you’d like to enhance your posts with video or audio, you can do so via the web. Your first post can be simple: a short explanation of what’s coming soon or an example of the content you plan to post going forward, like a recipe, review, or episode of your video series. Be sure to include a subscribe button early in the post.
Nara Smith of
introduces herself and then gets behind the scenes using a flexible paywall:
4. Tell your TikTok followers
You’ve likely invested a lot of time in building your TikTok following and deserve to reach them directly. When launching your Substack, let people know. You don’t need to do anything radically out of your norm—be real and talk to your followers like you always do and tell them why this matters.
As you keep posting your regular content, send people to your Substack to go deeper. Be specific about what people can find on your Substack to incentivize them to stop scrolling and click in.
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Tiktok failed to load.Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
Tiktok failed to load.Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser
5. Keep going
Now that you’ve kickstarted your Substack, here are a few things to remember as you continue experimenting here.
Update your bio: Add your Substack to your link in bio or Linktree so TikTok followers, old and new, can quickly subscribe. Consider updating the text in your bio explaining what’s on your Substack.
Share a note on Substack: Notes is the best way to reach new audiences within the Substack app. Notes are short-form posts, images, and videos that land on the home feed for the broader Substack network to discover, whereas posts go directly to subscribers’ inboxes. Learn more
Experiment with Chat: Substack Chat is a subscriber-only community where you make the guest list and the rules. It’s like having a group chat or Reddit thread connected to your Substack. Learn more
katie’s Chat is a space for paid subscribers to discuss cooking Try live video: Live video allows publishers to broadcast in real time to free subscribers, paid subscribers, or the broader Substack network from the app. All “lives” are automatically recorded so you can post out to subscribers as part of your archive. Learn more and request access
As you get started, keep it simple. Create a regular routine of posting to subscribers on Substack and using your TikTok to point back to what you are doing here on Substack.
Hear stories from TikTokers making their home on Substack
“A website just felt too serious, like who did I think I was? But Substack seemed like the perfect medium for me—it kind of feels like I’m sending a love letter every time I write one.” —
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“The longer the media, the longer your audience remembers you for. TikTok was great for exposure, but it was not great for building a loyal community … For me, Substack has been such a saving grace.” —Coco Mocoe
“Substack provides me with consistent income. One Substack post can bring in a significant number of new subscribers, providing a steady revenue stream compared to the variability of brand deals. It’s reaching a point where brand deals are less appealing, and focusing on Substack seems more sustainable.” —
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