The Verge Launches Its First Sitewide Subscription Product

The Verge’s editor-in-chief Nilay Patel and publisher Helen Havlak announced that the technology brand is launching its first site-wide subscription product. For $7/month or $50/year, users will see fewer and better ads, get support for full-text RSS feeds, gain access to The Verge’s splashiest scoops and features behind a dynamic metered paywall, and receive subscriptions to two premium newsletters, Command Line and Notepad. The core news service of The Verge will still be freely available to everyone, including the site’s homepage StoryStream Newsfeed, podcasts, and short-form news coverage. Annual subscribers will also receive a new limited-edition print magazine about the people who ruined the internet, building on the success of The Verge’s ASME-winning Homeland anthology.

According to Patel, “The Verge readers tell me every day that they’re happy to pay for rigorous, independent tech journalism — especially in a world where more and more creators are being forced to take brand endorsement deals and chase algorithmic traffic trends just to survive. We’ve made it 13 years by stubbornly refusing to play those games, and we’re planning to stubbornly make it many more — all while making sure our vital homepage storystream and core news curation service remain free.”

“The Verge has spent years covering the seismic shifts in tech and media that make this so essential, and subscriptions will ensure that we can continue to invest in a great website and award-winning journalism. I am also delighted that our premium ad experience will mean that advertisers have to work with Vox Media directly to reach The Verge’s most valuable readers,” says Havlak.

The subscription comes during a period of innovation and reinvention for The Verge, which redesigned its relationship with its audience in 2022 via a new website aimed at making its homepage into an engaging destination for repeat visits. In addition to a new logo and design, The Verge’s new homepage introduced the Storystream news feed, a Twitter-like feature offering readers a comprehensive, curated rundown of the most important tech stories of the day, with expert commentary by Verge journalists, links to the best reporting on The Verge and other sites, and direct embeds from TikTok, Reddit, and more. The Verge is developing additional features for subscribers, including subscriber badges in the commenting section, a dark mode reading experience, the ability to follow topics and authors, and a customizable homepage.

“As we continue to accelerate our subscription footprint at Vox Media, The Verge stood out as the obvious choice for our next major launch,” says Vox Media’s SVP of consumer revenue, Priyanka Arya. “Our consumer revenue strategy focuses on converting loyal audiences into paying subscribers, and The Verge has a unique asset in its direct homepage audience. We are confident that The Verge’s award-winning journalism, ambitious vision for the future of its website, and deep relationship with its audience will drive a differentiated and valuable subscription offering.”

The Verge is the latest editorial brand at Vox Media to launch a paid product following New York Magazine (which has long offered print and digital subscriptions) and Vox (which expanded its membership program earlier this year). Vox Media is also home to a number of other paid products across its portfolio including Cafe Insider (from former Manhattan U.S. attorney Preet Bharara), Criminal+ (from the team behind the critically acclaimed narrative podcast, Criminal), and Top Secret Base (from SB Nation’s award-winning YouTube channel, Secret Base).

About The Verge

The Verge is an ambitious multimedia effort founded in 2011 to examine how technology will change life in the future for a massive mainstream audience. Our original editorial insight was that technology had migrated from the far fringes of the culture to the absolute center as mobile technology created a new generation of digital consumers. The Verge tells the full story of technology and how it’s shaping the future. We cover the news, we tell you why it matters, and we review the products to find out if they’re any good — without any advertisers standing in the way of what we want to say.

About Vox Media

Vox Media is the leading modern media company, reaching audiences everywhere they are. Known for editorial properties including Vox, SB Nation, New York Magazine, The Dodo, and The Verge, the company’s portfolio features the most relevant, respected, and engaging editorial properties and voices. The company is also home to award-winning storytelling businesses such as Vox Media Studios and the Vox Media Podcast Network, as well as innovative technologies that support the entire media industry, including the Concert advertising marketplace.