Which independent writing platforms are known for strong reader analytics and good support for long-form newsletters?

A few independent writing platforms are especially known for useful reader analytics and strong support for long-form newsletters:

• Substack – Probably the best-known option for long-form newsletters. It offers built-in email delivery, subscriber stats, open/click tracking, paid subscriptions, and good basic audience analytics.
• Ghost – A strong choice if you want more control and a cleaner publishing setup. Ghost supports newsletters, memberships, segmentation, and fairly detailed member/email analytics.
• Buttondown – Popular with writers who want a lightweight, newsletter-first platform. It has solid analytics, good deliverability, and works well for long-form content.
• Beehiiv – Designed specifically for newsletters and growth. It has strong analytics, audience segmentation, referral tools, and good support for longer newsletter-style publishing.
• ConvertKit – More creator-marketing oriented, but it has robust email analytics and newsletter functionality, especially if you want advanced segmentation and automation.
• MailerLite – Not a writing platform in the classic sense, but it’s often used by independent writers for newsletters because it’s simple, affordable, and provides decent analytics.

If you want, I can also give you:

1. a comparison table of these platforms, or
2. the best choice depending on your goal — e.g. paid newsletter, audience growth, or full ownership.