The 16 Best Newsletters To Subscribe To
“Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.”
-Kofi Annan
I love information to the point that I'm probably definitely an information addict. Most of this information comes through podcasts, websites, journals, and books but I can't help a good newsletter.
The popularity of the newsletter has skyrocketed in recent years (and will probably continue to boom) with entire companies dedicated strictly to the email newsletter. When I first dove into the world of starting a blog, the most popular recommendation was to start a newsletter. It's a huge benefit to a brand but because there are so many newsletters nowadays, the subscriber holds more of the advantage. There's so much content which means competition means that the power goes to the people (read: the subscriber) who opt in for the best newsletters and ignore or unsubscribe from the subpar. Thank you capitalism.
In my approach, I subscribe to every newsletter that looks even remotely interesting to me. The best ones go to my Primary Gmail tab, the second-rate ones go into Promotions (which doesn't prompt a notification), and any newsletter that doesn't hold my interest after a second attempt gets a click on the ultra-tiny, hard-to-find unsubscribe button.
Tips to avoid falling prey to the email trap. This easy-to-subscribe approach can be a slippery slope and lead to a massive time suck in your day. In addition to having my finger on the trigger of the unsubscribe button for unworthy newsletters, I use two more main techniques. I minimize phone notifications (and keep my phone on silent or airplane mode often) and I batch email reading to two points during the day: morning and lunch. Read more about productivity in my articles on productivity tips of the mind and productivity technology.
Now, let’s take a peek into my Primary tab to see the best newsletters to subscribe to.
The Best Newsletters To Subscribe To
Growth Mindset
Brain Food: Farnam Street creates articles, a podcast, a few courses, and a popular newsletter, Brain Food. Their newsletter focus is a compilation of quotes and thoughts on a wide variety of topics from decision-making to optimism to why hard is good.
"Join 450,000 subscribers and get the insights you need every Sunday. No spam. No politics. Just timeless ideas you can use to create wealth, live a meaningful life, and achieve unstoppable progress."
The 3-2-1 Newsletter. James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits, writes a newsletter that's interesting, simple, and concise.
"The 3-2-1 Newsletter is one of the most popular newsletters in the world. Every Thursday, the latest issue is sent to over 2,000,000 people. Each message includes 3 short ideas from me, 2 quotes from others, and 1 question for you to ponder."
MindBodyDad: I know, I know but I’ve got to put it on here (plus it is really good 😉). I send a weekly update highlighting the articles I write and then I send a “Monthly Update” an end-of-the-month to recap my articles and updates but primarily to provide topical or interesting articles, studies, quotes, and thoughts from around the web that fall under the Mind, Body, and Dad topics.
“Practical tips on health, fitness, resilience, and parenting sent weekly.”
Bonus: Once you subscribe you’ll be able to take a quiz to determine how healthy you are based on the 6 dimensions of health and you’ll get a free PDF for how to improve your health and quality of life.
The Growth Equation: Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness, the authors of Do Hard Things and Peak Performance, come at you with a newsletter that includes a "Quick Thought" section, promos for their recent articles and podcasts, and a "discover" list of topics relevant to their bread and butter (peak performance, discomfort, etc.) from all over the interwebs.
"Weekly insights on the art and science of success from Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness. Join over 30,000 subscribers and unlock your full potential with our weekly newsletter. Every Thursday, we share original articles and links on cultivating a more enduring and fulfilling kind of success and excellence, along with practical tips for day-to-day application."
Stronger by Science: Greg Nuckols and Eric Trexler, hosts of the Stronger by Science podcast and website, have a newsletter that highlights one study every week. Their analysis comes with many years of experience both with competitive lifting and in research. Most of their research focuses on lifting (e.g. "What is the optimal dose of resistance training for longevity?") and nutrition (e.g. "The effects on vitamin D on sleep").
"The SBS Research Spotlight newsletter is the easiest way to stay up to date with the latest exercise and nutrition research."
The 2 Percent Newsletter: Michael Easter, author of The Comfort Crisis, creates a newsletter with a free version once a week and a members only version twice more each week (with other bonuses like brand discounts, Q&As, etc.). The content focuses on everything from sleep myths to misogis to exercise (especially his favorite version: rucking).
“Self-improvement tips based on scientific evidence, epic adventures, and expert interviews. I take the most fascinating and useful information from my articles, books, travels, research, and expert interviews and drop it in my regular newsletter.”
General
Recomendo: Of all the newsletters in this list, this one might take the cake as the best newsletter to subscribe to. It's a weekly list of 6 curated and often very random "recommendations of cool stuff." They have an extensive archive which you can search by category.
"Curated by Kevin Kelly, Mark Frauenfelder and Claudia Dawson, our goal is to give our readers a weekly list of 6 things we love — travel tips, books, TV shows, clothes, tools, websites, podcasts, and so on. We want people to be able to read the entire newsletter in 90 seconds or less, with no fluff or wheel spinning."
3MM: Chris Williamson, the podcast host of Modern Wisdom, writes "3 Minute Monday." He provides an opinion on a topic of his choice, a description of his 3 upcoming podcasts for the week, three things he's learned this week, and a life hack.
Chartr: This M/W/F newsletter compiles data from the business, tech, and entertainment realms into 3 beautiful graphs. There's a brief synopsis underneath with a "More Data" section which lists sometimes random, and usually interesting info, from around the internet.
"Data-driven insights into business, tech, entertainment and society. Our visual newsletter takes 5 minutes to read and it’s completely free."
Parenting
Daily Dad: Ryan Holiday wears a lot of hats. He runs a bookstore, pumps out great books ((my favorite of his is probably The Obstacle is the Way), and writes other newsletters like Daily Stoic and a book recommendation one. The Daily Dad newsletter provides a quick blurb on how to be a better dad.
“We’re going to tackle all the big themes of our time and of all time: Grit. Resilience. Curiosity. Compassion. Character. Unconditional love. Finding purpose. Dealing with stress. Masculinity. Female empowerment. Loss. Stillness. Truthfulness. Initiative. Creativity. Passion. Family. Fun.
Join Daily Dad now and tap into a community of dads all over the world dedicated to becoming the very best dad they can be. you’ll get a daily meditation on the above themes and more.”
ParentData: Emily Oster, author of books like Cribsheet and Family Firm pens this science-driven approach to raising kids. She covers a variety of topics including fevers, constipation, alcohol, and vaccines. She’s refreshingly concise, data-focused, and practical.
She puts out 2-3 posts a week for the free plan and upgraded perks for the paid subscription plan.
Fatherly: Fatherly is like the Men's Health of dad-hood. Some of the "cover story" articles hinge on flashier things like celebrities and the like but the bulk of it is short and interesting content. They have a deep archive and pump out lots of articles from the below niches to fit your interests.
"Sign up for the Fatherly newsletter to get expert advice about fitness, gear, travel, style, parenting, and more in your inbox."
Wellness Mama: Katie Wells, the mom of 7 (!) behind Wellness Mama, has been someone I've looked up to a lot in recent years. Her areas of interest and knowledge have a huge overlap with mine, ranging from parenting to natural approaches to health to building a resilient, growth mindset. She provides a weekly recap (blog posts, podcast episodes, etc.) and a "Wellness Wednesday" that provides a list of her favorite things of the week (books, quotes, products, etc.) and a "fascinating fact of the week."
"Join the Wellness Mama VIP email newsletter to get the latest articles, podcasts, special offers, and FREE access to my Quick Start Guide, 7 Simple Steps for Healthier Families, and 1 week real food meal plan!"
Money
How to Money: Joel and Matt, hosts of the How to Money podcast, created a newsletter "you'll actually enjoy reading." It provides a ton of quick tidbits related to all things money (without the complex jargon). It's easily scannable, colorful, and comes in a friendly format.
Young Money: Jack Raines’ newsletter started with 60 people in the summer of 2021 and blew up not long after. While the topic is generally finance, he covers other things that span his interest including career advice, books he loves, and death. He writes with the flare, satire, and wit that keeps you looking forward to the next one.
"The best finance blog you've never heard of. 10/10 stories, 5/10 art."
Financial Samurai: A weekly newsletter written by a guy who worked at Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse, retired in his mid-30's, then started a blog. It's an open look into his personal finances and strategies to gain financial independence. The newsletter comes with the financial jargon but it’s broken down in an easily digestible way.
Subscription Tip: If you are interested in any of the above I recommend either looking at past newsletters first (such as my newsletter archives) and using my finger-on-the-trigger unsubscribe method (above).
What are your thoughts on my list of the best newsletters to subscribe to? What are your favorites? Put them in the comment section and I’ll be sure to check them out.
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