# Hotly vs Buy Me a Coffee

Buy Me a Coffee is a support page: tips, memberships, a shop and a newsletter, for a flat 5% plus Stripe fees. Hotly is a paid inbox: fans pay per message and you reply when you have time. For simple tips, Buy Me a Coffee is cheaper. For conversations you'd otherwise answer for free, Hotly charges for the reply.

## Side by side

| | Hotly | Buy Me a Coffee |
|---|---|---|
| What fans pay for | A message you answer | A tip, membership, shop item or post |
| Paid messages | Yes - the core product. Fans pay $5-$20 per message. | No. Messaging supporters is free. |
| Locked media | Yes. Send a locked photo, set the price. | No |
| Platform fee | Hosted: $5.99/mo + 20% commission, or $9.99/mo + 10% commission - servers, updates and backups included. Self-hosting the code: 0% commission, ~$430/mo to run. | 5% of every transaction, plus Stripe fees. |
| Payouts | Stripe, straight to your bank. | Via Stripe once you reach $10. First payout is reviewed (7-14 days). |
| Open source | Yes. Apache 2.0 License - take the code with you anytime. | No |
| Signup | Request a hosted plan, no card - the team emails you to set it up. Or run the code on your own Linux server. | Open signup |

Buy Me a Coffee details checked September 2026: [Buy Me a Coffee fees](https://help.buymeacoffee.com/en/articles/8105744), [Buy Me a Coffee payouts](https://help.buymeacoffee.com/en/articles/6364717), [Buy Me a Coffee FAQ](https://help.buymeacoffee.com/en/articles/4539170).

## Pick Buy Me a Coffee if...

- You want tips and memberships at a flat 5%.
- You want a built-in newsletter to supporters.

## Pick Hotly if...

- Your DMs are full of questions, pitches and thank-yous you answer for free.
- Brands keep pitching you and you want them to pay to reach you.
- You want servers, updates and backups handled - and the code if you ever leave.

## Questions

**Is Hotly a Buy Me a Coffee alternative?**
Yes, if what your fans want is a reply. Buy Me a Coffee takes tips; Hotly sells answered messages at $5-$20 each.

**Which has lower fees?**
Buy Me a Coffee's 5% is lower than Hotly's hosted plans. Hotly's fee pays for something Buy Me a Coffee doesn't sell - paid messages - with servers, updates and backups handled.

**Can I use Buy Me a Coffee and Hotly together?**
Yes. Keep the coffee button for tips and add a Hotly link for people who want an answer.

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**Start:** https://www.hotly.com/hosted?ref=hosted