Beacons vs Stan Store
A feature-by-feature comparison based on our hands-on evaluation. 27 features differ between these tools.
Data verified
Which is better for creators, Beacons or Stan Store?
Beacons and Stan Store both want to be where creators get paid, and they price that in opposite directions. Beacons is free to start and takes 9% of every sale until you reach Creator Plus at $30/mo. Stan takes 0% on both plans but has no free tier at all, so $29/mo starts running before your first sale. Counting subscription and fees on both sides, Beacons' free plan is the cheaper total until you sell roughly $322 a month; above that, Stan's flat fee wins. The clearer tiebreakers are email, where unlimited sends cost $30/mo at Beacons and $99/mo at Stan, and the domain, which Stan does not offer on any plan.
Beacons
An all-in-one creator toolkit that goes well beyond links.
Stan Store
A creator storefront that doubles as a link-in-bio.
Scores
Scores are based on our evaluation methodology. Each criterion is scored 0-10 based on hands-on testing.
Core Features
| Feature | Beacons | Stan Store |
|---|---|---|
| Unlimited links | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Custom domain | Creator · $10/mo | |
| Remove branding | Creator Plus · $30/mo | Creator · $29/mo |
| Link scheduling | Creator Plus · $30/mo | |
| Sensitive content warning | ||
| Password protection | Creator · $29/mo |
Monetization
| Feature | Beacons | Stan Store |
|---|---|---|
| Digital products | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Tip jar / donations | ||
| Paid links | ||
| Affiliate link support | Creator Pro · $99/mo | |
| Shopify integration | ||
| Built-in payments | Creator · $29/mo |
Analytics
| Feature | Beacons | Stan Store |
|---|---|---|
| Basic analytics | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Click tracking | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Visitor demographics | Creator Plus · $30/mo | Creator · $29/mo |
| Conversion tracking | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Google Analytics | Creator Pro · $99/mo | |
| UTM parameters | Creator · $29/mo |
Customization
| Feature | Beacons | Stan Store |
|---|---|---|
| Custom themes | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Custom CSS | ||
| Custom fonts | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Animated backgrounds | ||
| Button styles | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Thumbnail images | Creator · $29/mo |
Integrations
| Feature | Beacons | Stan Store |
|---|---|---|
| Email collection | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Built-in email marketing | Creator Pro · $99/mo | |
| Social icons | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Music embeds | ||
| Video embeds | Creator · $29/mo | |
| Zapier integration | Creator · $29/mo |
Pricing
Beacons
Stan Store
The 0% fee headline is true, and it settles less than it looks
Stan charges 0% on both the $29 Creator plan and the $99 Creator Pro plan. Beacons charges 9% on Free and Creator ($10/mo), then 0% from Creator Plus ($30/mo). Compare a fee against a fee and Stan wins every time; compare total cost and the answer moves with your sales volume.
The crossovers, counting subscription and platform fee together: Beacons' free plan costs less than Stan Creator until about $322 a month in sales. Beacons Creator ($10/mo plus 9%) crosses over at about $211. Once you're on a 0% tier on both sides (Beacons Creator Plus at $30 against Stan Creator at $29), Stan is a dollar cheaper each month and the fee argument is over.
Bill annually and even that dollar disappears. Beacons Creator Plus is $300 a year. Stan Creator is $300 a year. Two products with opposite pricing philosophies land on exactly the same number, which is a useful reminder that the fee structure is a marketing choice, not an economic one.
Stan has no custom domain, and that is not a tier you can buy
Stan's help centre is blunt about it: you cannot create or embed a custom domain, and your store URL is always stan.store/yourusername. Forwarding a domain from your registrar is the only workaround, and connecting one properly still sits on Stan's own list of unshipped feature requests.
Beacons includes a free custom domain from the Creator plan at $10/mo, covering both the link-in-bio and store product URLs, plus a custom media kit domain and authenticated sending from that domain.
For a creator whose whole positioning is a personal brand, that is a $10-a-month fix on one side and an unavailable feature on the other.
Email is where the price gap gets absurd
Beacons includes email sending on every tier: 50 sends a month on Free, 500 on Creator, unlimited on Creator Plus and above, with 5 automation sequences a month on the lower tiers and 20 on the higher ones.
Stan's $29 Creator plan collects addresses through lead magnets, and stops there. Broadcasts, flows and contact import are all Creator Pro features at $99/mo.
So if you want to send campaigns from the same tool that collects the addresses, the price is $30/mo at Beacons and $99/mo at Stan. That is $69 a month, $828 a year, for a capability plenty of creators treat as table stakes. That single line decides this comparison more often than the fee structure does.
What each one simply refuses to do
Beacons has no Google Analytics integration, no UTM parameter support and no Zapier. Its pixel support covers Facebook, TikTok and Pinterest from Creator ($10/mo) and nothing else. Its free and Creator tiers cap you at one course with no video hosting, and Beacons branding stays on your page until Creator Plus at $30/mo.
Stan has no free plan, no media kit, no multi-page website builder, no music embeds and no Shopify integration. Its pixel tracking (Meta, Google, Pinterest and TikTok) is Creator Pro only, so proper attribution costs $99/mo. Neither of Stan's current published sources documents any AI tooling, while Beacons runs an AI credit system on every tier, from 30 daily credits on Free to unlimited on Creator Plus.
Both do Instagram DM automation on every plan, so that widely-cited differentiator is a draw. Both let you sell unlimited digital products. And Stan's storefront carries no platform branding at $29, which Beacons only matches at $30.
Who should choose what
Choose Beacons if
- You want to start selling without paying anything first: Stan has no free tier to fall back on
- You need a custom domain, which Beacons gives you free from $10/mo and Stan does not offer at any price
- You send email campaigns and won't pay $99/mo for the privilege
- You pitch brands and want a media kit that refreshes daily, plus invoicing and multi-currency support
- You sell under about $322 a month and would rather pay a percentage than a subscription
Choose Stan Store if
- Selling is the job, and the page is just the shopfront in front of the checkout
- You want an unlimited course builder with course analytics at the entry tier rather than one video-less course
- You need bookings, community, webinars and memberships in the same $29 plan
- You sell above roughly $322 a month and want the fee line off your books entirely
- You want no platform branding from day one without paying a $30 tier for it
Frequently asked questions
Does Stan Store have a free plan?
No. Stan Store has no free tier: the Creator plan is $29/mo, or $25/mo billed annually, with a 14-day trial. Affiliate-only Stan accounts are sometimes mistaken for a free Stan Store; they give affiliates resell links and commission cash-out, not the storefront itself. Beacons does have a free plan, including a store at a 9% seller fee, 50 email sends a month, a daily-updating media kit, unlimited Instagram auto-DMs and 30 daily AI credits.
Which is cheaper for selling, Beacons or Stan Store?
It depends on volume, and both the subscription and the fee have to be counted. Beacons' free plan takes 9% and costs nothing up front, so it is the cheaper total until about $322 a month in sales, where Stan Store Creator's flat $29 with 0% fees takes over. Beacons Creator ($10/mo plus 9%) crosses over earlier, at about $211 a month. Once both sides are on 0% (Beacons Creator Plus at $30 against Stan Creator at $29), Stan is a dollar cheaper monthly, and on annual billing both cost exactly $300 a year.
Can you use a custom domain with Stan Store?
No. Stan Store does not support custom domains on either plan; the URL is always stan.store/yourusername. Stan's help centre confirms you cannot create or embed one, domain forwarding from a registrar is the only workaround, and the feature remains an open request. Beacons includes a free custom domain from its Creator plan at $10/mo, covering the link-in-bio page, store product URLs and the media kit.
Does the $29 Stan Store plan include email marketing?
No. Stan Store's Creator plan at $29/mo covers lead magnets and email collection only. Sending broadcasts, building email flows and importing contacts are all Creator Pro features at $99/mo. Beacons includes sending on every tier (50 sends a month on Free, 500 on Creator at $10/mo, unlimited on Creator Plus at $30/mo), which makes unlimited email $69 a month cheaper on Beacons.
Which is better for selling courses?
Stan Store, at the entry price. Its $29/mo Creator plan includes an unlimited course builder with course analytics, alongside bookings, community, webinars and memberships. Beacons limits its Free and Creator tiers to one course with no video hosting; unlimited courses with hosting require Creator Plus at $30/mo, which also unlocks memberships. At around $30 a month the two are close, but below it Stan is materially stronger for course sellers.
What does Beacons have that Stan Store does not?
A free plan, a custom domain from $10/mo, a daily-updating media kit, a multi-page website builder, invoicing, multi-currency support, music embeds, a Shopify integration and an AI credit system on every tier. Email sending is also included on all Beacons plans rather than gated to a $99 tier. Going the other way, Stan has an unlimited course builder, bookings, community, webinars and 0% fees at $29, none of which Beacons matches below $30/mo.
Editorial note: All tools are evaluated using the same methodology. Feature and pricing data was verified against each vendor's own documentation on , and the written analysis above was last reviewed on .