Growing an audience
Running the business
Both cover monetization & payments. Here is what separates them on price, billing, what you can take with you, and coverage.
| Google AdSense | Ko-fi | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | From $12 |
| Pricing model | Free | Free plan, paid tiers |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Billing | Usage-based | Monthly or annual |
| Free trial | Not stated | Not stated |
| API | Not stated | Not stated |
| Data export | Not stated | Not stated |
| Their cut | 20% of what you earn | Not stated |
| Runs on | Not stated | Not stated |
| Covers | Ad Networks, Monetization & Payments | Monetization & Payments, Memberships & Subscriptions, Tips & Donations |
| Works with | Nothing in particular | YouTube, Twitch |
| Founded | Not listed | Not listed |
| Reader rating | No reviews yet | No reviews yet |
| Live deals | None right now | None right now |
Ads on your site, paid out by Google
AdSense is the default answer to putting ads on a site, and for most creators it is the only one available until traffic grows enough for a managed network to take the call. Setup is a script tag and a review. The rate per thousand views is lower than what Raptive or Mediavine negotiate, and the trade is that nobody has to want you first.
Our note
Start here, and treat the 25,000 pageview mark as the day to apply to Raptive. The same traffic earns several times more through a managed network, and the switch is a script change.
Only on this side
Tips, memberships and a shop with no platform cut
Ko-fi takes nothing from tips on the free plan, which no other platform of its size does. Memberships, commissions and digital downloads all work from the same page. It is lighter than Patreon in every direction, which is often the point.
Our note
The best free option for somebody who mostly gets tipped, and worth weighing against Patreon the moment memberships become the larger half of the income. Do the Gold arithmetic yourself rather than taking the upgrade prompt's word for it.
Only on this side
Ratings are the average of reviews readers left. The facts are stated by each tool’s own listing and are not verified by CloutStack. How we make money.