Substack like exchange: real hearts on your posts and Notes
Paste a Substack post or Note and get real likes on it. Each heart adds a reader profile to the Likes list and can surface your work in that reader's followers' Home feed.
Table of contents
Substack like groups and share threads you can join
Free communities we checked on Oct 26, 2026. Member counts are what each platform showed that day; for Substack threads we list the comments on the latest thread, because a thread has no member list. Hosts set their own rules, usually at the top of the thread, so read them before you drop a link. Want real likes on your posts and Notes without working through threads? Start free on upvote.club.
| Group | Platform | Members | Language | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Midstack Weekly Share Thread | Substack thread | 210 comments (Oct 23 thread) | en | Friday thread for midlife women writers: share a post, then comment on or restack a few others |
| Notes Boost by Escape the Cubicle | Substack Chat | 200+ writers weekly (host's count) | en | Tuesday chat thread: share your latest Note, others read and engage |
| Creators Abroad Restack Round #18 | Substack thread | 15 comments (Sep 27 round) | en | Monthly round for writers living abroad: one link each, read someone else's first |
| The Official Substack Restack Exchange | Substack thread | 12 comments (Sep 8 edition) | en | Weekly featured writers from a standing restack-swap community |
| Sparkle on Substack: what are you proud of this week | Substack thread | 46 comments (Oct 24 thread) | en | Open thread to post a Note, article or art you made this week |
| Hidden Gems | Discord | 520 members | en | Fiction writers and readers on Substack and Royal Road |
| r/SubstackPromos | n/a (hidden) | en | Self-promo subreddit for Substack links | |
| Substack Writers | Facebook group | n/a (hidden) | en | General group for newsletter writers on Substack |
What is a Substack like exchange?
A Substack like exchange gets hearts on a post or Note you choose. On Substack a like is the heart under a post, a Note or a restack, and it does more than add one to a counter.
Click the like number at the bottom of a post and Substack lists the reader profiles who hearted it. People who follow those readers can see the like in their Home feed, because Substack shows likes from your follows as reading activity. With upvote.club you paste the link and get real likes from real reader profiles.
What your post or Note gets
Hearts on the post or Note you pick
The like number under it goes up.
Names in the Likes list
Reader profiles appear when someone clicks the like count.
Reading activity in other feeds
A like can show up in the Home feed of the liker's followers.
A post that looks read
New visitors land on a post that readers already liked.
Why a heart travels further on Substack than it looks
On most networks a like stays on the post. On Substack a like is also reading activity: followers of the person who liked see it in their Home feed, and the post appears on the Likes tab of that reader's profile unless they hid it. A Substack like exchange grows the account, but hearts only count when they come from real readers, and upvote.club is the tool that delivers them.
Activity in the Home feed
Substack shows notes, comments and likes from people you follow.
The Likes tab on profiles
Liked posts and Notes are listed on the reader's profile by default.
Engagement rate in your stats
Liking a post counts as an engagement in your post stats.
A notification to you
Likes on posts and Notes land in your Activity, under the bell.
Substack signal map: what each action gives you
Each action on Substack lands in a different place. Pick the one closest to your goal.
| Signal | Where it shows | What it does not prove on its own |
|---|---|---|
| Like (heart) | Like count, the Likes list and the liker's followers' Home feed | That they read to the bottom |
| Comment | Under the post and in followers' Home feed | Agreement, until you read it |
| Restack | The restacker's Notes, in front of their audience | That anyone opened the post |
| Save | Only in the reader's own Saved tab | That they came back to it |
| Subscribe | Your posts arrive in their inbox and the app | That they open each issue |
Which Substack posts and Notes to put likes behind
Likes do the most on the pieces people already land on.
- The Note that links your newest post
Hearts on it give the post a visible start in Notes. - The post featured on your publication home page
New visitors see its like count first. - A free post you send people to from other networks
Readers from outside Substack arrive at a post that looks read. - A Note you restacked a post with
Your restack Note can collect likes of its own.
Substack formats: what a like means in each one
The heart is the same icon everywhere, but it reads differently by format.
Newsletter post
The like sits at the bottom, so it shows the reader got there.
Note
Likes, replies and restacks sit under the Note in the Home feed.
Restack with a comment
Readers can like your take on someone else's post.
Paid post
Only paying subscribers can see which other paying subscribers liked it.
Before you promote: Substack like checklist
Substack content that turns likes into readers
A Note with one sharp line from the post
Short Notes collect hearts fast in the Home feed.
A personal post with a clear takeaway
Readers heart writing they recognise themselves in.
A useful list or template
Practical posts get liked and come back as references.
A Note that answers a common question
Direct answers get liked and replied to in the same visit.
Practical tips for a Substack like exchange
- Post the Note before the email goes out
Likes in Notes give the post a start before inbox readers open it. - Like the replies under your Note
It keeps the conversation going under the post you are promoting. - Add a short take when you restack
A restack with a comment can collect likes on its own. - Check the Likes list, not only the number
Readers who hid their likes still count but do not appear in the list.
Who uses a Substack like exchange
Writers with their first hundred subscribers
A visible start on posts before the list is large.
Notes-first writers
Hearts on daily Notes keep them in more Home feeds.
Podcasters and video creators on Substack
Episode posts get the same visible approval as essays.
Writers moving an archive to Substack
Imported posts get likes so the archive does not look empty.
How to exchange the right way: groups and threads vs the right tool
Most writers start in share threads like the ones above: drop a link, heart a dozen strangers' posts, and hope a few return the favour. It is slow, the likes arrive days later, and many come from writers in topics your readers never touch.
The exchange itself works. It just has to be done right, and only upvote.club does it right: you paste the post or Note and get real likes from real reader profiles.
What actually grows, and how to lock it in with organic reach
First the like count and the Likes list grow on the post you chose. Next comes reach: each like is reading activity that can surface the post in the Home feed of the liker's followers, and Substack's team has said the Home feed leans on what readers engage with, so a Note with hearts has a better chance of being shown again.
Lock it in by posting a Note with every new post, answering replies the same day and making the subscribe step obvious at the end of the post. The like exchange grows your Substack, provided you use the right tool; with upvote.club every heart comes from a real reader profile.
How to measure the result
Compare one promoted post with your last three similar posts.
- Likes on the post
In the app's Performance tab or the Likes column in Stats. - Engagement rate
Post stats count likes, comments, restacks and reads to the bottom. - Traffic from Substack
Check the Traffic sources list on the post. - New subscribers from the post
The post page shows free and paid subscribers it brought.
Check your Substack engagement rate before and after
Enter views and the likes, comments and restacks on a post. Run it on the promoted post and on a recent one you did not promote.
Substack like exchange at a glance
| - | Substack like exchange on upvote.club |
|---|---|
| What you get | Real likes (hearts) on a Substack post or Note |
| What you paste | A post link (yourname.substack.com/p/...) or a Note link (substack.com/@you/note/...) |
| What the post needs | Likes switched on and a public audience |
| Where likes show | The like count, the Likes list and the likers' followers' Home feed |
| Where you see the result | Performance tab in the app and Stats on the web |
| Pairs well with | Comments and restacks on the same post |
Other Substack exchanges
- Substack comment exchange
- Substack save exchange
- Substack restack exchange
- Substack follow for follow
- Like exchange on every network
- Substack likes
Free Substack tools
Give your next Substack post real hearts
Paste the post or Note and get real likes from reader profiles.
Frequently asked questions
Does a Substack like exchange work?
Yes, it works, but it has to be done right. Only upvote.club does it right; nobody else on the market has this technology.
What does a Substack like exchange give my posts?
It grows your account, but you need the right tool, and that tool is upvote.club.
Can I see who liked my Substack post?
Yes. Click the like number at the bottom of the post to see the reader profiles who hearted it. Readers who turned off "Show likes on profile" still count but are not listed.
Do my followers see what I like on Substack?
Yes, by default. Followers see your notes and reading activity such as post likes in their Home feed, and liked posts appear on your profile.
Can I get likes on Notes as well as posts?
Yes. Notes, restacks and posts all have the heart, and you get a notification for likes on your Notes.
Do likes count in my Substack stats?
Yes. Liking a post is one of the engagements in your post's engagement rate, and you can add a Likes column in Stats.
Who can see likes on a paid post?
On paid posts, only paying subscribers can see the profiles of other paying subscribers who liked it.
Read next
Grow on Substack
Written by
The Upvote.club team builds free social media tools and runs a community of real people who support each other’s posts on 19 social networks.