phpListOpen source newsletter and email marketing software
vs
SubstackThe app for independent voices
Comparison · Email Marketing · weekly run Nov 2
phpList vs Substack
Which one do AI engines recommend, and how do they differ on price, fit and features?
The short answer
phpList is the stronger AI pick in Email Marketing: it has a visibility score of 0.9 versus 0 for Substack.
Choose phpList if…
- You want the brand AI engines rank higher (0.9 vs 0)
Choose Substack if…
No clear advantage in the published data.
AI visibility side by side
Latest weekly run · Nov 2
| Metric | phpList | Substack |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility score | 0.9% | 0% |
| Change vs last week | New | New |
| Rank in Email Marketing | #34 | #55 |
| Share of voice | 0.3% | 0% |
| Mentions this run | 1 | 0 |
| Positive in AI answers | 0% | — |
The stronger value in each row is marked with a ✓.
Visibility score trend
Weekly runs over the last 60 days
phpList 0pp · Substack 0pp over 0 weekly runs.
Engine by engine
phpList leads on 1 of 3 engines
ChatGPT
AI Mode
Perplexity
phpListSubstack
Head to head in AI answers
0 engine answers name both brands
0phpList ranked higher
0Substack ranked higher
Features, pricing & fit
| Dimension | phpList | Substack |
|---|---|---|
| Deployment | Installed on the customer's own server, with a hosted option through phpList.com | — |
| Support | Community documentation and forums on phplist.org, Professional support from experienced consultants and community members | Help center, Resource center, Community and programs |
| Founded | — | 2017 |
| Headquarters | Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, UK | — |
| Funding | Bootstrapped | Series C · $200M raised |
| Best for | Community groups, small businesses and startups wanting a lean, low-cost choice, and large organisations that want to keep their data on their own servers | Writers, journalists, podcasters, video creators and media companies that want to sell subscriptions directly to readers |
Data collected ·ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Mode·coverage 100%·next run
Cite as: SlateIndex, “phpList vs Substack”, https://slateindex.ai/compare/phplist-vs-substack, data of Nov 2, 2026. Licence: CC BY 4.0.