Beacons vs Stan (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Stan: it is third in our ranking of tools for selling digital products, and it grades higher too, 2.4 against 2.2.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Beacons grades higher on the free plan. Stan grades higher on features and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Beacons
Link in bio page with a store, email and media kit for creators
Stan
Link-in-bio store for creators selling downloads, courses and calls
Which one is for you
Pick Beacons if
- Fits if you want a link-in-bio page, a media kit and a small shop in one place
- Works for a creator selling a few downloads
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you sell much, because the free plan takes 9% a sale and 0% needs $300 a year
- Skip it if you want courses or memberships on a cheaper plan, as they start at Creator Plus
- Tight if you email: 50 sends a month on Free and 500 on Creator
- Watch out: web only, as the pricing page lists no mobile apps
Pick Stan if
- Fits if your audience lives on social media and buys from your bio link
- Works for creators selling coaching calls, courses and downloads side by side for $300 a year
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you need discount codes, upsells or email, as all need Creator Pro at $99 a month
- Not for you if you're on Android and want to run your store from your phone
- Skip it if you sell physical goods, since there are no shipping or stock tools
- Watch out: Stripe charges US sellers 2.9% + $0.30 a sale, plus 1.5% for buyers abroad
- Watch out: there's no free plan, only a 14-day trial
How we grade them
| 2.2GPABeaconsFair | 2.4GPAStanFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CCreator is $100 a year ($10 monthly), but 0% seller fees and courses start at Creator Plus, $300 a year ($30 monthly), above the category's $22 middle. | CCreator is $300 billed yearly with no cut of sales, so $1,000 a month in sales costs $300 a year, inside this category's usual range. Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30 comes on top and isn't counted. Discount codes, upsells and email need Creator Pro at $948 a year. |
| Free plan and trial | BA free plan with the link in bio, media kit, unlimited digital products at a 9% seller fee, 50 email sends a month and 30 daily AI credits. | CNo free plan. There's a 14-day trial of either plan, you can sell during it, and the listing doesn't say it needs a card. |
| Features | CLink in bio, a store, email, a media kit and AI credits. The listing's gap: courses with video hosting and memberships are Creator Plus features. | BDownloads, unlimited courses, coaching calls and webinars with booking, memberships, a community and Instagram auto-replies. The whole job is here, though discount codes, upsells, funnels, affiliates and email all wait for Creator Pro. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record, and the page, store and email all need building. | CNo App Store rating on record. The store is built for a phone screen and a bio link, but you're still setting up products, calendars and Stripe or PayPal. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with no mobile apps or integrations listed. | BWeb and iPhone, with Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, Zoom, Google Meet, Google Calendar, Afterpay and Klarna. There's no Android app and no desktop app. |
| Best for | a link-in-bio page with a small shop | creators selling from a link in their bio |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Beacons and Stan. How we grade
Price against what you get
Beacons starts at $8.33 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Stan starts at $29 a month and scores 2.7.
Stan scores higher, and starts $20.67 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other tools for selling digital products on the chart, 8 score higher than Beacons for less, and 2 score higher than Stan for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Beacons also covers online store.
- Stan also covers community, appointment booking and affiliate tracking.
At a glance
| Beacons | Stan | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $100 per year (Creator), or $10 per month billed monthly | $29 per month ($300 billed yearly) |
| Free plan | Link in bio, media kit, unlimited digital products at a 9% seller fee, 50 email sends a month and 30 daily AI credits. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 14-day free trial of either plan, and you can sell during the trial |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | Beacons | Stan |
| Price read from | beacons.ai | help.stan.store |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Beacons
- The Free plan takes a 9% seller fee; 0% fees start at Creator Plus, $300 per year.
- Courses with video hosting and memberships are Creator Plus features, not Creator.
- Plan prices are shown per year; the monthly figures are $10, $30 and $100.
- The pricing page lists no mobile apps, so the platform is recorded as web only.
Stan
- No free plan; Stan takes 0% of sales, but Stripe charges US sellers 2.9% + $0.30 a sale, plus 1.5% for buyers abroad.
- Discount codes, upsells, funnels, affiliates, email broadcasts and email flows all need Creator Pro at $99 a month.
- Physical products have no shipping or stock tools: sellers collect addresses at checkout and fulfill by hand.
- The mobile app is on iPhone and iPad only; there is no Android app.
Key features
Beacons
- Link in bio page
- A customizable page that collects your links in one place, with real-time analytics on every plan.
- Store for digital products
- Sells unlimited digital products on the Free plan at a 9% seller fee; courses with video hosting and memberships need Creator Plus.
- Email sends
- Sends email to subscribers, capped at 50 a month on Free and 500 on Creator, and unlimited on Creator Plus and above.
- Instagram auto replies
- A Smart Reply feature answers Instagram direct messages automatically; it is listed on the Free plan.
- AI tools on daily credits
- Text, image, page-design and chat features draw on a daily credit allowance of 30, 300 or unlimited depending on the plan.
- Media kit and affiliate links
- A media kit that updates daily and tools to create affiliate links; Creator Plus lets you keep 100% of affiliate link commissions.
Stan
- Bio-link storefront
- A mobile-first store built for a social media bio link, with digital downloads, custom products and links out to other sites.
- Courses, calls and webinars
- Unlimited password-protected courses, 1:1 or group coaching calls and webinars run through Zoom or Google Meet with calendar booking.
- Memberships and community
- Charge members daily, weekly, monthly or yearly, and run a community space with admins and moderators inside Stan.
- Email marketing on Creator Pro
- Import contacts, send broadcasts and build automated email flows with unlimited sends, all on the Creator Pro plan.
- Sales tools on Creator Pro
- Discount codes, limited-quantity offers, upsells, order bumps, funnels, payment plans with Afterpay or Klarna, and an affiliate program.
- Stan AutoDM
- Sends automated replies to Instagram messages and comments, included on both plans.
Plans
Beacons
Free$0
Link in bio, daily-updating media kit, unlimited digital products at a 9% seller fee, 50 email sends a month, 30 daily AI credits.
Creator$100
per year ($10 per month billed monthly)
Adds a free custom domain, 500 email sends a month, 300 daily AI credits and advanced SEO and marketing features.
Creator Plus$300
per year ($30 per month billed monthly)
0% seller fees, unlimited courses and memberships, unlimited emails and AI credits, Buy Now Pay Later at checkout.
Creator Max$1,000
per year ($100 per month billed monthly)
Adds a Google Workspace account, white glove onboarding, prioritized support and a physical NFC card linked to your page.
Stan
Creator$29
per month ($300 billed yearly)
Storefront, unlimited courses, calendar booking, recurring subscriptions, lead magnets, community, analytics and Stan AutoDM for Instagram. No transaction fee.
Creator Pro$99
per month ($948 billed yearly)
Adds discount codes, payment plans, upsells, order bumps, funnels, Afterpay and Klarna, affiliate management, email broadcasts and flows, and ad pixels.
Ways to pay less
Beacons
- Annual discount
Two months free on annual billing
The pricing page labels the annual toggle as two months free; Creator is $100 a year against $10 a month, and the other paid plans follow the same pattern.
Stan
- Annual discount
Lower price with yearly billing
Stan sells Creator at $300 a year instead of $29 a month ($348 over a year), and Creator Pro at $948 a year instead of $99 a month ($1,188).
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Beacons or Stan?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Beacons is cheaper to start with: $8.33 a month when paid by the year, against $29 a month for Stan. Beacons starts at $100 per year (Creator), or $10 per month billed monthly, and Stan starts at $29 per month ($300 billed yearly).
Which has a free plan, Beacons or Stan?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Beacons has a free plan. Stan does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do Beacons and Stan run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Stan lists an iOS app. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.