Beacons vs Linktree: Free Plans, Fees, and Custom Domains Compared
The biggest documented difference between Beacons and Linktree is where each one puts the custom-domain gate: Beacons includes a free custom domain starting on its first paid tier, while Linktree doesn't offer a custom domain at all, on any plan. Both are link-in-bio pages with a built-in store, both start free, and both charge a seller fee that drops as you upgrade. Here's what each vendor's own pricing and help pages actually say, plan by plan.
How do the free plans compare?
Both free plans are real and can sell products, not just list links, but the specifics differ:
| Beacons Free | Linktree Free | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0/mo | $0/mo |
| Custom domain | No | No |
| Selling | "Sell unlimited digital products," 9% seller fee | "Sell products, courses, and make money on brand offers" |
| Notable extras | "30 daily AI credits," a "Daily-updating media kit," "Smart Reply IG auto-DM," real-time analytics | "Unlimited basic links" |
(Sources: beacons.ai/i/pricing and linktr.ee/s/pricing, both checked September 2026.) Linktree's pricing page doesn't state a seller fee for its Free tier the way Beacons does; its documented fee tiers start at Starter.
What do the paid plans actually unlock?
Both vendors gate custom domains, fees, and analytics differently as you move up:
| Beacons Creator ($10/mo, $8.33/mo annual) | Beacons Creator Plus ($30/mo, $25/mo annual) | Linktree Starter ($8/mo, $6/mo annual) | Linktree Pro ($15/mo, $12/mo annual) | Linktree Premium ($35/mo, $30/mo annual) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Custom domain | "Free custom domain" | Included | Not offered at any Linktree plan | Not offered | Not offered |
| Seller fee | 9% | 0% | 9% (products) | 9% (carried from Starter) | 0% on digital products |
| Analytics | — | — | "Basic analytics" | "Advanced analytics" | "Advanced analytics & data export" |
| Notable extras | 300 daily AI credits, "Advanced SEO and marketing features," 500 email sends/month | Unlimited AI credits, "Keep 100% of affiliate link commissions," unlimited courses with video hosting, unlimited memberships | "Personalized Linktree" | Custom themes/fonts/layouts, mailing list integrations | Keep-100% affiliate shop, dynamic links, social scheduling, unlimited Instagram auto-replies |
(Sources: same two pricing pages, checked September 2026.) Beacons also has a fourth tier, Creator Max ($100/mo, or $900 billed annually), adding Google Workspace, white-glove onboarding, and a physical NFC card; Linktree's equivalent top tier is Agency/Enterprise, at custom pricing with team seats and SSO rather than more creator features.
What does "selling" actually mean on each platform?
Both frame it as a built-in storefront rather than a linked-out third-party checkout, but the fee structure is the headline difference. Beacons states its policy directly: "We offer 0% commission on all sales as part of the Creator Plus and Creator Max plans" and "We charge a 9% commission on all sales as part of the Free and Creator plans" (Beacons FAQ, beacons.ai/i/pricing, checked September 2026). Linktree's own pricing page shows the same shape but at a different tier: 9% seller fees appear on Starter, and 0% seller fees on digital products appear only at Premium — its second-most-expensive plan and $35/month at the monthly rate, versus Beacons' $30/month Creator Plus for the same 0% outcome.
Beacons additionally documents a wider set of things you can sell without extra tools: "Sell unlimited courses with video hosting" and "Sell unlimited memberships" both appear as Creator Plus features on its pricing page. Linktree's page doesn't list a course or membership feature by name; its monetization language centers on products, brand offers, and an affiliate shop.
What about custom domains, specifically?
This is the clearest structural difference between the two. Beacons' pricing page states plainly that Creator and above get a "Free custom domain," described further as "Get a custom domain for free and make your page truly yours. e.g. myname.com" (same source). Linktree's Help Center rules it out entirely, at any plan: "We don't offer the option to use a custom domain to replace the linktr.ee URL. We also don't provide developer tools for setting up domain forwarding" (Linktree Help Center, "Can I change the Linktree URL to a custom domain?", checked September 2026). If a page living at your own domain matters to you, that's decided before you compare anything else on this page — Linktree can't do it regardless of plan or budget.
Which one should I actually pick?
- You want the page to sit on your own domain: Beacons documents that on its Creator plan and above; Linktree doesn't offer it at any price.
- You're selling digital products and want to reach a 0% platform fee as cheaply as possible: Beacons' 0% tier (Creator Plus, $25/mo annual) is documented at a lower monthly price than Linktree's 0% tier (Premium, $30/mo annual).
- You want courses or memberships built in without a separate tool: Beacons documents both by name on its pricing page; Linktree's page doesn't.
- You're not selling anything and just want a free link list with brand-deal tools: either free plan covers this; Linktree's page emphasizes brand offers, Beacons' emphasizes a media kit and AI-assisted setup.
- You want deep customization of themes, fonts, and layout on a mid-tier plan: Linktree names this explicitly as a Pro-tier feature; Beacons' comparable customization is spread earlier, into Free and Creator.
What if I want more than a link-in-bio page?
Both tools are still, fundamentally, a single hosted page (or a handful of pages, on Beacons) rather than a site you design yourself. If you're outgrowing either one and want a broader look at the field — including tools built specifically as one-page sites rather than link lists — see our wider roundup of Linktree alternatives, which also covers Carrd and Stan Store. For a one-page site you design and host on your own domain from the start, our guide to when a one-page website is enough and how to actually build one in Carrd both cover that route directly.
Bottom line: Beacons and Linktree both start free and both take a cut of sales that shrinks as you upgrade, but only Beacons documents a path to a custom domain — Linktree rules it out at every plan. If domain ownership matters more to you than which specific creator tools are bundled in, that fact alone should decide it before you compare anything else.
