Following on Substack helps writers grow their audience within the platform's network of millions of engaged readers. This feature complements, rather than replaces, subscriptions, which remain the most crucial connection on Substack. Following provides a simple way to connect with writers and readers, with the option to subscribe at any time.

How Following Works

Following allows you to keep up with what others are reading, liking, publishing, and subscribing to through the Home feed and their profiles. It offers a way to discover new writers, engage with existing contacts, and participate in the Substack community.

With following, you can:

• Find Contacts: Easily connect with friends already on Substack by syncing your phone contacts. Sync phone contacts
• Connect with Others: Follow friends, fellow readers, and discover exciting new writers.
• See Activity: View profiles, Notes, and reading activity (like post likes) from the people you follow.
• Invite Friends: Introduce your contacts to the Substack community.

FAQs

What's the difference between a follower, subscriber, and pledge?

• Follower: Sees your Notes and some reading activity (like post likes). They don't receive emails and won't get your posts in their inbox.
• Free Subscriber: Subscribes to your Substack and receives free posts via email and/or the Substack app. They automatically follow you and see your Notes.
• Pledge: If you don't have payments enabled, pledges allow subscribers to pre-commit to supporting your work when you do. What are Substack Pledges?
• Paid Subscriber: Subscribes to your publication on a paid plan (monthly, annual, or founding member) and receives all posts. They automatically follow you and see your Notes.

These relationships form a hierarchy. Paid subscribers automatically gain the benefits of following without needing to explicitly follow you.

Who can see my followers?

Your followers list (who you follow and who follows you) is publicly visible on your profile. For publications, a partial subscriber list (only those who've chosen to make their subscription public), along with your full follower list and who you publicly follow, is displayed. The exact subscriber count is shown for publications with under 1,000 subscribers; an estimated count is shown for larger publications.

Important Considerations:

• Only Substack profiles who have opted to make their subscription public will appear on your subscriber list.
• You can hide your subscriber count on your profile. How can I hide the subscriber count on my Substack profile?

How can someone follow me?

A "Follow" button is on your profile in the Substack app. On the web, users can follow you from the three-dot menu. For publications, the focus is on subscriptions; users can only subscribe to publications, not follow them directly. However, they can still follow your profile from the Notes feed or the three-dot menu on individual Notes.

Will I be notified when someone follows me?

Yes, you'll receive an email notification and a notification in your Activity bell. You can disable these email notifications in your profile settings. (See your profile Settings and click the toggle next to "New followers".)

Do I get my followers' emails? Can I take my follower list if I leave Substack?

No. Following is a less formal connection designed to introduce potential subscribers to your work before they subscribe.

How do I manage my followers?

You can view your followers on your profile page by clicking/tapping the subscriber count under your name. The Subscribers tab shows your total follower count and its growth over time.

What if I create a Substack publication later?

We're working on features to automatically notify your followers when you start a publication, encouraging them to subscribe.

Tips for Growing Your Audience with Following

• Engage in the Home Feed: Comment on other writers' Notes and reshare their work to reach new audiences.
• Optimize Your Profile: Make a strong first impression with a clear bio, links to your other platforms, and highlights of your work. Update your profile
• Encourage Sharing: Followers help spread your work through their activity. Engage with and thank those who share your posts.
• Sync Your Contacts: Connect with friends on Substack and see what they're reading. Sync your contacts

Further Reading: How to grow and collaborate on Substack Notes

Converting Followers into Subscribers:

While following is valuable, subscriptions are key. We're developing tools to help convert followers into subscribers, such as notifications about trending posts. Currently, your followers see your Notes, which can prompt them to subscribe.