Best link-in-bio tools: Linktree vs Beacons vs Stan Store
One link in your bio has to carry everything — your content, your offers, your store. These three dominate the category, but they charge you in very different ways. Here's what each really costs, and who each one is for.
How these tools actually charge you
The sticker price is only half the story. Link-in-bio tools monetize three ways: subscriptions, transaction fees on anything you sell, and keeping your audience on their domain. Linktree's free plan is genuinely free for links — but sell through it and a cut of each sale goes to the platform, and your URL is forever linktr.ee/you. Beacons' free plan takes 9% of sales, dropping to 0% on paid tiers. Stan Store flips the model: a flat $29/month, no free plan, and 0% fees — which only makes sense once you're selling enough for the math to work.
| Beacons ★ | Linktree | Stan Store | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | No |
| Paid from | $10/mo | $5/mo | $29/mo |
| Fee on sales (free plan) | 9% | up to ~12% | n/a |
| Fee on sales (top plan) | 0% | varies | 0% |
| Sell digital products | Yes | Limited | Yes |
| Email list building | Yes | No | Yes |
| Design customization | Deep | Basic | Moderate |
| Custom domain | Yes | No | No |
| Our score | 8.8 | 8.0 | 8.4 |
| Visit Beacons | Visit Linktree | Visit Stan Store |
Beacons 8.8/10
The best free-to-paid path: start free, and the paid tier adds deep customization, email tools, and 0% fees on sales. The most complete page for the price.
Check Beacons priceLinktree 8.0/10
The one everyone knows. Fastest setup and fine for organizing links — but your URL is always linktr.ee/you, and selling through it costs a cut per sale.
Check Linktree priceStan Store 8.4/10
A storefront, not a link list. Zero transaction fees and checkout built in — worth the $29/mo only if you actively sell courses, coaching, or downloads.
Check Stan Store priceBreak-even math for sellers
If you sell digital products, the fee structure decides your tool. At a 9% free-plan fee, $1,000/month in sales costs you $90 — nearly the price of three months of Beacons' paid tier, and triple Stan's flat rate starts looking reasonable past roughly $300–$400 in monthly sales. Under that, stay on a free or cheap plan. Over it, zero-fee plans pay for themselves.
The upgrade most people overlook
Here's the honest take that the link-in-bio industry won't give you: if you're a business — a shop, a service, a consultant — a bio page on someone else's domain is a rented billboard. For about $3/month you can put a one-page site on your own domain with your email address on it, no platform fees on anything you sell, and a URL that builds your brand instead of theirs. That's the same setup from our budget website guide, and it's what we'd point any business owner to first. Creators living on TikTok and Instagram? The dedicated tools above are genuinely more convenient. Businesses? Own your homepage.
Frequently asked questions
Is Linktree free to use?
Yes, the basic plan is free for organizing links — but your URL stays on linktr.ee, and selling through it costs a percentage of each sale depending on your plan.
What is better than Linktree?
Beacons for most creators: deeper customization, email tools, and 0% transaction fees on paid tiers. Businesses are usually better off with a one-page site on their own domain.
Is Stan Store worth $29 a month?
Only if you actively sell digital products. Its zero transaction fees beat percentage-fee tools once you pass roughly $300–$400 in monthly sales.
Creator? Start with Beacons.
Free to start, and the paid tier removes fees on your sales. Business owner? Read the budget site guide instead — own your domain from day one.
Try Beacons free