The Pragmatic Engineer
Investor Due Diligence Report
by Gergely Orosz
substackBusiness
Big Tech and startups, from the inside. Highly relevant for software engineers, AI engineers and engineering leaders, useful for those working in tech.
Investor Due Diligence Report
by Gergely Orosz
Big Tech and startups, from the inside. Highly relevant for software engineers, AI engineers and engineering leaders, useful for those working in tech.
1.1M
41.3K paid
-0.6%
-1.2%
net churn
Pricing
$15/mo
$150/yr annual option
$492K
41.3K paid subs
$344K/mo – $639K/mo(±30%)
3.3
93.3
0.01%
(comments + likes) / subscribers
~2x per week
2.0 posts/week
71/100
Consistent (~3.6d avg)
| Newsletter | Subscribers | Weekly Growth | Price | Platform |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| a16z speedrun | 168K | +1.2% | Free | substack |
| The Business Engineer | 90K | N/A | $99/mo | substack |
| Better You | 76K | +2.8% | Free | substack |
| Scarlet Ink | 73K | N/A | $12/mo | substack |
| Month | Subscribers | Est. Revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2026 | 1M | $458,373.15 | — |
| Feb 2026 | 1.1M | $500,850 | +9.3% |
| Mar 2026 | 1.1M | $497,725.65 | ~0% |
| Apr 2026 | 1.1M | $491,906.25 | ~0% |
Platform Dependency
Operates on custom domain (newsletter.pragmaticengineer.com)
Publishing Consistency
Regular publishing schedule
Key Person
Single-author publication — key-person dependency
Audience Concentration
Consistent engagement across posts
Subscriber threshold
1.1M subscribers — above the 2K category median for first paid tier
Has paid tier
Active paid subscription offering
Peer monetization
100% of 16 similar-size peers in Business have paid tiers
Pricing position
$15/mo vs $144.67/mo category average (1517 newsletters)
| Date | Monthly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2026 | $15 | $150 |
Disclaimer: This report is generated automatically based on publicly available data and proprietary estimation models. Estimated subscriber counts are derived from engagement patterns and should be verified through direct disclosure. Revenue estimates are based on known pricing and estimated paid subscriber counts. This report is for informational purposes only and should not be the sole basis for investment decisions.
Score based on available components only.
| Component | Score | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement Rate | 50/100 | 30% |
| Paid Subscriber Ratio | 100/100 | 25% |
| Publishing Consistency | 76/100 | 10% |
| 38K |
| N/A |
| Free |
| substack |
Revenue Model
Active paid subscription tier