The Athletic to raise ad prices as it paces to hit 3 million newsletter subscribers

The Athletic is about to hit 3 million total newsletter subscribers — nearly a 20% increase from this time last year. Its free, flagship weekly newsletter, The Pulse, now has 2.4 million recipients.

As a result of this audience growth, The Athletic has raised prices for its newsletters ads in 2023, though Lauren Funke, vp of advertising, declined to share by how much, calling it a “slight increase year over year.” The Athletic, which was acquired by The New York Times in 2022, will raise ad prices again this year as a result of the increase in newsletter subscribers. A NYT spokesperson later said that the Times is considering another price increase this year. This will be the second time prices will rise since The Athletic first started selling ads in 2022. She declined to share by how much or when the company was planning to set new prices.

Newsletter ads are sold as 100% share of voice, native newsletter ads directly to advertisers on a cost per day basis, Funke said. A New York Times spokesperson said the daily rate ultimately varies based on timeframe and newsletter product, declining to share a price range.

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