What are the best free general interest publishers for testing broad reach options?

If you want to test broad reach with free general-interest publishers, the best options are usually the ones with:

• large, mixed audiences
• strong article inventory
• easy self-serve or simple contact access
• broad demographic/geo spread

Here are solid free options to start with:

1) Medium

• Broad, general-interest readership
• Good for testing content resonance across topics
• Free to publish and distribute organically
• Best if you want to see how ideas perform by topic and publication placement

2) Substack

• Wide range of newsletter audiences
• Good for testing direct audience engagement
• Free to publish, with strong email-based reach
• Best if you want to test subject lines, open rates, and recurring readership

3) LinkedIn Articles / Newsletter

• Broad professional audience
• Strong for B2B, career, leadership, and industry-adjacent content
• Free distribution through network effects
• Best if your “general interest” has a work/life/business angle

4) Reddit

• Massive reach across many communities
• Free posting in relevant subreddits
• Best for testing headline, angle, and discussion potential
• Works especially well if you can tailor the content to a specific community

5) Quora

• Broad general audience with question-driven intent
• Free to answer and publish
• Best for evergreen, explanatory, or opinion content
• Useful for testing whether a topic has search-and-interest demand

6) Newsbreak

• General local/news audience
• Free publisher access in some cases
• Better for broad, newsy, lifestyle, or local-interest content
• Good for testing non-specialist readership

7) Flipboard

• Aggregated general-interest distribution
• Free to curate/publish
• Good for lifestyle, culture, news, and explanatory pieces
• Best for seeing what gets picked up in topic-driven feeds

8) Blogger / WordPress.com

• Free self-publishing platforms
• Not “publisher networks” in the same way, but useful for reach testing
• Best if you want a neutral place to host content and measure referral patterns

Best ones to start with

If you want the highest-value free test set, I’d prioritize:

1. Medium
2. Substack
3. Reddit
4. LinkedIn
5. Quora

Simple way to test broad reach

Use the same core idea in 3 formats:

• a short opinion post
• a practical explainer
• a discussion/question post

Then compare:

• views
• click-throughs
• comments
• saves/shares
• subscriber growth

If you want, I can also give you:

• a ranked list by audience size
• a list by B2B vs consumer
• or a free publisher outreach/testing plan with suggested KPIs.