24 Publications that Pay Freelance Writers

A wide variety of publications -- many with rates up to $1 per word.

Dear Writers — I’ve been doing a lot of research lately, digging up more publishers that pay freelance writers. I also hired another research assistant (thanks to our paid subscribers), to help with this work.

Below are 24 publishers that accept pitches from freelance writers, covering a wide variety of topics, including brain health, journalism, birds, cities, op-eds, politics, climate, corporate culture, craftsmanship, and more.

Please carefully study these publications before sending a pitch. I’m also happy to give feedback on your pitch, if you’re a paid subscriber. (Please take advantage of this if you’re new to pitching. I very much want to help you!) If you’re not paid subscriber, sign up here.

Without further ado — here are the publishers…

Brain Facts publishes narratives of scientific breakthroughs that resonate with everyday life and human experiences, which can keep their non-scientific readership fascinated. They are looking for writers and journalists with a strong portfolio in neuroscience communication. Word length can vary from assignment to assignment, with long pieces being (1000-1200 words), medium (700-900 words), and short-form (500-800 words). They pay a flat rate of roughly $1.00 per word. To learn more, visit their pitching guidelines page, or use this pitch form.

Nieman Journalism Lab is focused on helping journalism "figure out its future in the internet age." They are published by The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. They don't list pay rates, but their sibling publications pay as low as $150 per article and as high as $1.00 per word. To learn more and contact them, visit this page.

Nieman Reports publishes features and opinion pieces about the challenges and opportunities facing journalism today. They're published by The Nieman Foundation at Harvard University. They pay $250 for opinion pieces, and $1 per word for features. To learn more, read this page.

Audubon publishes journalism, photography, and illustrations to "to celebrate the joy and wonder of birds and to inform its readers about the natural world, inspire them to care passionately about that world, and motivate them to take action on its behalf." They prefer freelancers to write articles up to 1,200 words. They pay $0.50 to $1.50 per word. They particularly like if there's a "solutions" element. To learn more, read their pitching guide here.