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Substack Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. The terms of our ...

Product Analyst

San Francisco, CA · Remote

$95K - $225K/yr

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. The terms of our ...

Product Analyst

San Francisco, CA · Remote

$95K - $225K/yr

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. The terms of our ...

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. The terms of our ...

Senior Recruiter

San Francisco, CA · Remote

$135K - $175K/yr

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. Substack empowers ...

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. The terms of our ...

Senior Recruiter

New York, NY · Remote

$135K - $175K/yr

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. Substack empowers ...

Senior Recruiter

San Francisco, CA · Remote

$135K - $175K/yr

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. Substack empowers ...

Senior Recruiter

New York, NY · On-site +1

$135K - $175K/yr

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. Substack empowers ...

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. The terms of our ...

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. The terms of our ...

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Showing results 1-20

Substack information

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Substack Writer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Substack Writer, you need strong writing skills, expertise in your chosen subject area, and the ability to consistently produce high-quality content. Familiarity with newsletter platforms like Substack, email marketing tools, and basic analytics is typically beneficial. Exceptional self-motivation, audience engagement, and adaptability to feedback are standout soft skills in this role. These capabilities are crucial for building a loyal subscriber base, growing readership, and sustaining a successful independent publication.

What are some common challenges writers face when building an audience on Substack, and how can they overcome them?

One of the biggest challenges for Substack writers is growing and maintaining an engaged subscriber base, especially in a crowded newsletter market. Successful writers consistently publish high-quality, unique content and actively interact with their readers through comments and email responses. Collaborating with other writers, leveraging social media, and offering occasional free content can also help expand reach. Persistence and adaptability are key, as building a loyal audience often takes time and experimentation.

What are Substack writers?

Substack writers are individuals who create and publish newsletters on the Substack platform. They produce content—ranging from news and analysis to personal essays and fiction—and distribute it directly to their subscribers via email. Many Substack writers monetize their work by offering paid subscriptions, allowing them to build independent media businesses. The platform provides tools for publishing, audience management, and payment processing, enabling writers to focus on content creation.

Does Elon Musk own Substack?

Elon Musk does not own Substack. Substack is an independent platform for newsletter publishing, and there is no public information indicating Musk's ownership or direct involvement with the company.

What is the difference between Substack vs Freelance Writer?

AspectSubstackFreelance Writer
CredentialsNo formal credentials required; strong writing skills preferredNo formal credentials required; strong writing skills needed
Work EnvironmentIndependent, self-managed platform for publishingVaried; often remote, working for multiple clients
Industry UsageUsed by independent writers, journalists, and creatorsUsed across media, marketing, and content creation
Work ModelSubscription-based revenue from readersProject-based or hourly payments from clients

Substack is a platform enabling writers to build subscription audiences directly, earning through reader subscriptions. Freelance writers work on a project basis for clients, often across various industries. While both involve writing, Substack emphasizes independent publishing and audience building, whereas freelance writing focuses on client projects and contractual work.

More about Substack jobs
Full Stack Software Engineer - Video

Full Stack Software Engineer - Video

Substack

San Francisco, CA • Remote

$175K - $260K/yr

Full-time

Posted 26 days ago


Job description

Substack is building a new economic engine for culture, giving the brightest, most interesting, and most creative people on the internet the power of their own publishing platform. The terms of our culture should not be set by gate-keeping legacy media or chaos-fueling social media, but by the people who make and participate in that culture. Substack’s model, based on direct subscriptions, has fueled an explosion of independent publishing. It empowers creators with economic autonomy, creative ownership, and a direct connection to their most engaged audiences.

As a Software Engineer at Substack, you are responsible for the core product platform, from APIs, low-level services, and database operations, to frontend UI and testing. On the Video team you’ll be working on live streaming, video and audio recording, podcasting, uploading, clipping, and everything related to an excellent video product experience. Full Stack Engineers work in close partnership with designers, product thinkers, and customers directly to build out new product offerings and tooling across the platform. They are on the front-lines of product development and are responsible for creating what’s next for Substack.

Responsibilities

  • With the support of the engineering team, develop the core Substack product for readers and writers. This is a dynamic organization with needs across the board. We expect that engineers will be able to jump into any area of the product, learn quickly and add value.

  • Support and collaborate with other team members, including engineers, designers, writers, support staff, and many others.

  • Own your work and deliver high-quality solutions from product concept and proposal to implementation, experimentation, and measurement.

  • Work directly with customers to solve their problems. The entire company (CEO included) participates in customer support in order to drive empathy for our users and help us build better products.

  • We work with TypeScript, especially Node/Express and React, and Postgres. It’s helpful if you know these technologies already, if not, we’ll be excited to help you learn.

  • We work to stay on the leading edge of AI tooling, to both improve our internal workflows, as well as utilize them in product to improve publisher capabilities and experiences

Requirements

  • 4+ years of non-internship professional full stack web software development using Node.js

  • Have a degree in Computer Science or have the equivalent industry experience.

  • Independent and autonomous. We’re too small to micromanage, and expect that every person at the company owns their work and can be a leader.

  • Proficiency with Python is an advantage

  • Proficiency with video processing frameworks and libraries such as FFmpeg is an advantage

  • Experience with workflow systems such as Temporal is an advantage.

  • Take pride in building elegant and delightful product experiences. Substack works best when it gets out of the way so writers can focus on writing and connecting with their readers.

  • Enjoy collaboration with a diverse group of thinkers while bringing our own unique experience and background to the team.

  • Believe in Substack’s mission to build a better business model for writing.

Substack’s compensation package includes a market competitive salary, equity for all full time roles, and exceptional benefits. Our cash compensation salary range for this role is $175,000 - $260,000. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors including candidate experience and expertise and may vary from the amounts listed above.

Substack is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or transgender status), age, national origin, veteran or disability status. We’re seeking people passionate about enabling independent expression and building a better business model for creators. If you want to see what media, communities, and content can become when unmoored from advertising models, and you have the skills and experience to contribute, we’d love to meet you.

Please see our Privacy Notice for details regarding Substack's collection and use of personal information relating to the application and recruitment process by clicking here.