At a glance

Who Paved is built for

Paved was built in 2017 as a newsletter-only marketplace and has become the industry default for that use case. If you’re:

• A marketer who wants to browse 1,500+ newsletters, pick a few, and book sponsorships without talking to a salesperson
• A small publisher (fewer than 50k subscribers) looking for a low-lift way to monetize
• Running a pure newsletter-ads test campaign with a budget under $20k

…Paved will work fine for you. The inventory is broad, the self-serve booking flow is smooth, and it’s free for advertisers (though publishers absorb a 30% commission that ultimately shows up in pricing).

Paved also runs a programmatic Ad Network for CPC-based placements. This is useful if you want scale over curation — think: Facebook Ads in your inbox.

Where Paved has gaps

Paved’s limitations become obvious once you scale past solo-founder or indie-marketer mode:

• Newsletters only. No sponsored articles, no podcast inventory, no direct media placements with major publishers.
• No affiliate integration. If a publisher wants a $5k flat fee + 10% CPA hybrid deal (which is how most tier-one affiliate-integrated publishers actually operate), Paved cannot structure it.
• Limited enterprise publishers. Major media companies with internal sales teams generally do not list on Paved.
• No agency workflows. Paved doesn’t natively support multi-brand agency accounts, client billing, or approval hierarchies.

Who MediaPact is built for

MediaPact was built by a team that ran an affiliate marketing agency for six years (LT Partners, acquired June 2023 at 10× EBITDA). The product reflects what brand and agency buyers actually need:

• Brand marketers at DTC companies, SaaS, and Fortune 500 companies who run flat-fee + performance media programs
• Agency buyers who need to manage placements across multiple clients with approval workflows and consolidated reporting
• Enterprise publishers — top-tier affiliate-integrated publishers in our current pipeline — who want a standardized path to execute flat-fee deals without re-negotiating contracts each time

Where MediaPact wins

• All media types in one platform. Newsletter sponsorship, sponsored content, podcast placements, direct media — list and buy them all.
• Affiliate network integrations. Hybrid deals (e.g., $3,000 flat fee + 8% CPA) work natively. Connect to Impact, CJ, Partnerize, or ShareASale.
• AI-assisted onboarding. Upload a media kit PDF or rate card — MediaPact extracts placements, pricing, and availability automatically.
• Built for repeat deal velocity. Standardized contracts mean agencies and brands execute the same workflow every time instead of renegotiating from scratch.
• Free for buyers. No subscription, no platform fee, no minimum spend.

Where MediaPact has gaps (being honest)

• Smaller inventory today. MediaPact launched in January 2026. Paved has 1,500+ newsletters. MediaPact’s current seller network is smaller but growing fast — and heavily weighted toward enterprise publishers and affiliate-integrated sites.
• No programmatic CPC option. If you want to bid on inventory programmatically across hundreds of newsletters, Paved’s Ad Network or LiveIntent are better fits.
• Newer product. Some workflows are still being polished (common for a pre-seed platform).

Pricing comparison

Takeaway: Both are free for buyers on the surface. The key difference: Paved’s 30% publisher commission tends to inflate pricing on the buyer side, because publishers factor the fee into their rate card. MediaPact’s commission structure is designed to keep prices competitive with direct deals.

Feature-by-feature deep dive

1. Inventory discovery

Paved: Search by category, subscriber count, CPM/flat fee, and previous sponsors. Strong filtering. “Previous sponsors” is a genuinely useful differentiator.

MediaPact: Search by media type (newsletter / content / podcast / direct), vertical, audience size, and affiliate network affiliation. Pre-vetted publishers — less directory, more curated.

Winner: Depends on need. Paved for volume. MediaPact for quality + cross-format discovery.

2. Deal execution

Paved: Book, pay, get placement. Insertion orders and invoicing handled.

MediaPact: Book, pay, get placement + standardized contracts + integrated reporting + affiliate tracking link generation (if hybrid deal).

Winner: MediaPact, especially for hybrid deals and agency clients with approval workflows.

3. Reporting

Paved: Click-through and conversion tracking via pixel.

MediaPact: Centralized dashboard for placements, IOs, reporting, and affiliate performance if applicable.

Winner: MediaPact, but Paved is adequate for pure flat-fee campaigns.

4. Support

Paved: Self-serve with email support. Managed service available at higher tiers.

MediaPact: Founder-led support — Lacie handles onboarding personally during the current phase. White-glove service is a temporary moat; will evolve as we scale.

Winner: MediaPact today; Paved at scale.

When to choose MediaPact

Choose MediaPact if:

• You’re a brand or agency running programs across newsletters + sponsored content + podcasts + direct media
• You need affiliate network integration for hybrid flat-fee + CPA deals
• You want access to enterprise publishers that don’t list on self-serve platforms
• You manage multiple clients and need agency workflows
• You want white-glove onboarding from a founder who has lived this problem

When to choose Paved

Choose Paved if:

• You want the broadest possible newsletter inventory (1,500+ options)
• You’re running a pure newsletter sponsorship test with a specific budget cap
• You want programmatic CPC newsletter advertising
• You’re a solo marketer or indie founder who wants minimal back-and-forth
• Your placement needs are 100% newsletter-only

What third parties are saying

“Paved is what you graduate to once you already know newsletter ads work and you are ready to scale.” — Dustin Howes, affiliate marketing consultant

MediaPact launched in January 2026 and has been covered by HelloPartner for its approach to flat-fee media standardization.

Bottom line

Paved won the 2017–2024 era of self-serve newsletter advertising. It’s a solid, mature product for that use case.

MediaPact is built for the next era: where brand marketers and agencies need a single platform spanning newsletters, content, and podcasts, integrated with the affiliate networks where most of their existing performance media already runs. If you’re running a media program (not just a newsletter ad test), MediaPact is purpose-built for you.