How Heartbeat and Patreon compare
Heartbeat is a friendly place to start a paid community without a big budget. For $49 a month you get channels, threads, chat, voice rooms, DMs, unlimited courses and events, a custom domain, checkout pages, five automation workflows, and Pulse, an AI that actually sets up channels, offers, and pages for you. Grow adds unlimited workflows, DM rules, an affiliate program, and white-label email; Scale adds a branded app. For a founder with a small group who wants courses and calls next to the conversation, Heartbeat covers a lot for the price.
Patreon turned fans into patrons. Membership tiers, members-only posts, community chats, a shop for one-off items, and native podcast and video delivery give creators steady income from the people who care most. It is the default word for creator memberships, and the tools have grown up with it.
Where they are different
Heartbeat
- Heartbeat's landing page is the door to a private space.
- Heartbeat emails members through workflows and a weekly digest.
- Heartbeat's events sync to members' calendars.
- Heartbeat charges 5% to 1.25% on payments.
Patreon
- Patreon lives at patreon.com/yourname and gates most content.
- Patreon takes a percentage of membership revenue.
- Patreon messages patrons in-app.
Choose Heartbeat when a small paid community with courses, calls, and member chat is the product.
Choose Patreon when recurring fan support with tiers and members-only perks is the model.
Compare features
What's on Heartbeat and Patreon
A check means that capability is available. Heartbeat and Patreon are marked only when the offer is comparable, not the same product.
Site and brand
- Workspace siteHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Not included
- Custom domainHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Not included
Public content
- Shop pagesHeartbeat: Not includedPatreon: Included
Audience and email
- AudienceHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Included
- Marketing emailsHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Included
- Bulk email workflowsHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Not included
- Campaign workflowsHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Not included
Messaging
- Built-in chatHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Included
Commerce
- Shop paymentsHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Included
Team
- Admin usersHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Included
- Per-admin permissionsHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Included
- AI AssistantHeartbeat: IncludedPatreon: Not included
* Note: This table does not capture every feature of Heartbeat or Patreon, and is not intended as a comprehensive list. We keep this page current, but Heartbeat or Patreon may add or remove features that are not shown here.
Heartbeat vs Patreon pricing
Compare plans, prices, and what it costs to get started.
Heartbeat
Current plans and prices
See what Heartbeat charges on their pricing page.
Patreon
Current plans and prices
See what Patreon charges on their pricing page.
Cardel: An alternative to
Heartbeat and Patreon
You don't pay until you publish.
Cardel provides a home for your craft. Share and sell your work, grow your audience, and bring your community together on a site of your own.
Common questions
Is Cardel an alternative to Heartbeat or Patreon?
Cardel is a home for your craft: a site of your own with a blog, newsletter, shop, community, and one inbox. It can replace Heartbeat or Patreon when you want your work, audience, and sales in one place. The feature list on this page shows where Heartbeat and Patreon are marked.
Can I use Cardel with Heartbeat or Patreon?
Yes. Cardel pages can link out to other products, so you can keep Heartbeat or Patreon for what it does best and bring the rest of your work to Cardel.
How much does Cardel cost compared with Heartbeat and Patreon?
You don't pay for Cardel until you publish. Choose Starter, Pro, or Studio when your site goes live. Heartbeat and Patreon set their own prices, so check their pricing pages on this page for current plans.
How do I switch from Heartbeat or Patreon to Cardel?
Start with Build Your Site, set up your home, and bring your work over at your own pace. You do not have to move everything on day one.