Beacons vs Linktree: which link-in-bio tool is right for you?

TL;DR

Beacons is free to start: a link in bio with a store, email, a media kit and Instagram auto-DMs, plus Beam, Beacons' built-in AI that builds them with you on every plan. Linktree is the name people recognize for a simple list of links; selling paid products starts on Pro at $17 a month.

What Beam builds for you

Linktree gives you a page to fill in. On Beacons you describe what you do and Beam builds the page, adds your products, writes a welcome email, sets up an Instagram auto-DM that sends a link when someone comments, and fills in your media kit. It's on every plan, including Free, and you can edit anything it makes.

How we compared

We used each company's pricing page and help center (Nov 2, 2026; Linktree's US prices rechecked Nov 6). Linktree prices by region. We make Beacons, so where Linktree fits better, we say so. I run our creator email, so read that section most skeptically.

At a glance

Prices in USD, checked Nov 2, 2026; Linktree prices and custom-domain article rechecked Nov 6, 2026. Sources: Beacons pricing; Linktree pricing; Linktree paid features; Linktree fees; Linktree Earn requirements; Linktree: About custom domains.

What a sale costs on each plan

Linktree charges a subscription before your first paid sale, then takes nothing. Beacons lets you sell on the free plan and takes a 9% Beacons fee until Creator Plus ($30 a month).

You keep = sales minus plan price, platform fee and Stripe processing (2.9% + $0.30 per order), with monthly billing and $20 orders.

To be straight about it: above about $190 a month in sales, Linktree Pro costs less than Beacons Free, and it stays $13 a month cheaper than Creator Plus. The extra $13 buys email with no monthly send limit, courses with video hosting, memberships and 100% of your affiliate commissions on Creator Plus (no Beacons fee). If you're making your first few sales, I'd start on Free and let a sale, not a subscription, be the first thing you pay for. Creator Max ($100 a month, or $83.33 billed annually) adds white-glove onboarding with a dedicated Beacons support person, prioritized support, Google Workspace on your custom domain, a physical NFC card and VIP access to Beacons events.

Your page, domain and analytics

Both give you unlimited links, themes and click analytics. Linktree's edge is recognition: brand managers know the linktr.ee URL. Its paid plans add scheduling, logo removal and longer analytics, and Pro adds Meta Pixel, Google Analytics and UTM tracking.

On Beacons, the $10 Creator plan is mostly about owning your address: a custom domain, free for your first year, email from that domain and 500 sends a month. Store pixels (GA4, Meta, TikTok, Pinterest) are on every plan; page-level pixels need Creator Plus at $30, while Linktree Pro includes them at $17.

Selling, courses and memberships

Linktree sells paid digital products, courses and bookings on Pro and Premium; Free and Starter offer free downloads only, and paid communities are US only.

Beacons sells unlimited digital products on every plan, with bookings, discount codes and limited-quantity offers. Creator Plus adds buy now, pay later at checkout and unlocks unlimited courses with video hosting, memberships and installment plans.

Where Linktree wins: 0% on every sale for $17, the better deal for an established seller who doesn't need email or memberships.

Where Beacons wins: selling on the free plan, PayPal payouts, and courses plus memberships in one $30 plan.

Email and brand deals

Linktree collects email and phone sign-ups but doesn't send email. On Pro, sign-ups sync to tools like Mailchimp or Kit, which you pay to email your list. On Beacons, the form, list and send live in one account, so Beam can write and schedule the email.

Both offer a media kit that refreshes daily; Linktree's reordering and PDF export need Pro or Premium. A Beacons media kit is on every plan and built to turn into deals: brands reach you through its "Work with me" form, which lands in your email, and Beam can find brands that fit and draft pitches that go out only after you approve them. When a deal lands, the rate calculator suggests a price, and Beacons takes no fee on the invoice.

Would you still need a second tool?

For most creators selling digital products, no. You'd still want another tool for branching email automations, or to have sales tax or VAT collected for you, since Beacons leaves tax to you.

Switching from Linktree to Beacons

There's no Linktree importer, but setup pulls in your social links and Beam can build the rest. URL Import creates store products from Etsy, Shopify, Payhip or Snipfeed product URLs. Then update the link in your bios.

When to choose Linktree vs Beacons

Choose Linktree if:

• You want a simple, recognizable link page and nothing else.
• You sell more than about $190 a month and want 0% fees for $17.
• Your email and courses live in other tools.

Choose Beacons if:

• You want to start selling without paying a subscription first.
• You want links, store, email and media kit in one place, set up by Beam.
• You sell courses or memberships, or want a custom domain.

Our data: what Beacons creators add to their pages

• About a quarter of creators who added something other than a link to their page added a store.

Source: Beacons product data (PostHog), Sep 28 to Oct 27, 2026: creators who added a store block, out of all who added any non-link block.