Design on Substack
The top 100 Design writers on Substack's Bestsellers and Rising boards, with moves between my reads, follower counts, who's gaining recommendations and who recommends them. Boards read once a day.
Board read · moves compare with the read at Oct 31 19:47 UTC
- Writers on the two boards
- 159
- Median followers, Rising
- 2,686
- Smallest on the board
- 0
- Berenice Howard-Smith, #35
- New recommendations, 30 days
- 323
- to writers whose main category this is
Rising in Design: new recommendations
Writers in this category who picked up the most new recommenders in the last 30 days. A new recommendation puts a writer in front of another publication's readers.
The Curiosity Department
293k followers · #12 Design Bestsellers
Felix Haas
57k followers · #81 Design Bestsellers
Jenna O'Brien
54k followers · #20 Design Bestsellers
Designer
20k followers
Amanda Hesser
617k followers · #4 Design Bestsellers
Rose Florence
79k followers · #37 Design Bestsellers
Kelly Wearstler
71k followers · #1 Design BestsellersNew recommenders per week, last 12 weeks; the orange bar is this week to date. Same scale in every panel. Dated by Substack; only recommendations still live. Outlined weeks are incomplete: Substack lists only a publication's 50 newest recommenders, so for busy writers older weeks can't be counted, and a 30-day count marked + is a floor.
Rising
Substack ranks Rising by recent growth in paid subscribers. Followers are my daily reading.
Climbed most since Oct 31: Chelsea new at #4, Danielle Moss new at #5, Colin King new at #11, Christene Barberich new at #12, Leonora Epstein new at #13.
| # | Move | Writer | Followers | Recommended by | Watch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 |  Lacy PhillipsBy Candlelight |
32,540 | 59 +7 | |
| 2 | ▲2 |  Kristin Ellen HockmanThe Dip by Kristin Ellen Hockman |
8,390 | 46 +1 | |
| 3 | ▲27 |  Anna LiesemeyerThe Weekly Dish |
23,249 | 19 | |
| 4 | ▲18 |  Chelsea@legallychelsea1 |
1,494 | 0 | |
| 5 | new |  Danielle MossBreakfast at Toast |
12,132 | 52 +4 | |
| 6 | ▼1 |  Taliathere_y0u_are |
29,255 | 53 +3 | |
| 7 | ▲49 |  Megan FitzpatrickNever Sponsored |
36,376 | 52 | |
| 8 | ▲67 |  Zoë FeldmanSidenote |
5,121 | 11 +1 | |
| 9 | new |  Corinne BackThe Back Room |
2,101 | 3 | |
| 10 | ▲25 |  Melissa ForbesSingular by Sense of Spencer |
5,441 | 19 +1 | |
| 11 | ▲9 |  Colin KingThe Last Layer by Colin King |
11,137 | 51 +4 | |
| 12 | ▲40 |  Christene BarberichA Tiny Apt. |
43,967 | 60 | |
| 13 | new |  Leonora EpsteinSchmatta |
12,458 | 52 +1 | |
| 14 | new |  The Curiosity DepartmentDesign Better |
292,703 | 56 +23 | |
| 15 | 0 |  Kate Rheinstein BrodskyStay Home |
643 | 3 +3 | |
| 16 | new |  Club Coverjunkieclub coverjunkie |
9,318 | 51 +4 | |
| 17 | new |  Jessica HelfandDesign Observer |
3,570 | ? | |
| 18 | ▲62 |  No.17 HouseWhite Rose House |
369 | 0 | |
| 19 | new |  Rose FlorenceThe Rose Period |
78,530 | 73 +10 | |
| 20 | new |  Chloe LegrasA Breath of French Air |
4,856 | 27 +3 | |
| 21 | ▲48 |  Chrissy HunterTrove |
1,023 | 3 +2 | |
| 22 | ▼3 |  Mindy GayerFeels Like Home by Mindy Gayer |
1,080 | 3 | |
| 23 | new |  Ilaria FatoneLa Maison Épurée |
1,668 | ? | |
| 24 | ▲33 |  naomiMaterial Studies |
3,291 | 8 +2 | |
| 25 | ▼15 |  W Design CollectiveW.D.C. Journal |
17,994 | 52 +2 | |
| 26 | ▼20 |  Ryan SaghianRyan By Design |
1,281 | 1 +1 | |
| 27 | new |  snacked.ai@snackedai |
889 | ? | |
| 28 | new |  Swike@swike |
872 | 4 | |
| 29 | new |  Panayiota SoutisThe Goal is to Eat |
3,589 | 30 +3 | |
| 30 | ▲51 |  Alex AdamsonDetail-Oriented |
557 | 3 | |
| 31 | ▲55 |  Angela MondlochThe Avenue Edit |
10,084 | 50 +3 | |
| 32 | ▼14 |  Virginia ChamleeWhat's Left |
30,093 | 54 +5 | |
| 33 | ▲54 |  Daniela BolzmannDesign Proof - Creative Strategy for Amazon eCommerce Brands |
10,350 | 11 +1 | |
| 34 | new |  Mikayla KimSomewhere Between Thoughts |
875 | ? | |
| 35 | new |  Berenice Howard-SmithThe Design Debrief |
0 | ? | |
| 36 | new |  rhythms of heart & home@katherinebmelvin |
267 | ? | |
| 37 | new |  Eric O’GreyShop Dog Wood Works |
2,030 | 5 | |
| 38 | new |  Jo AitkenSPACES where FAMILIES THRIVE |
4 | ? | |
| 39 | new |  Lauren LiStyle Studies |
3,298 | 7 | |
| 40 | ▼31 |  Rather Particular@lelovelylife |
968 | 2 +2 | |
| 41 | ▲33 |  CityBuilderCITYBUILDER |
4,172 | 28 +3 | |
| 42 | ▼29 |  Per My Last Find@permylastfind |
2,419 | 14 +4 | |
| 43 | ▲16 |  Casa Walish@daniellewalish |
3 | 0 | |
| 44 | ▼23 |  Beth MathewsBeth Mathews Design |
10,961 | 50 +2 | |
| 45 | new |  AliseMadeStudioIn The Round |
416 | ? | |
| 46 | new |  AlyaObject Labels |
14,196 | ? | |
| 47 | ▲14 |  Annabelle MoehlmannLand of Belle |
17,795 | 12 +2 | |
| 48 | new |  Alison Victoria@alisonvictoria |
1,484 | ? | |
| 49 | new |  Christopher SchwarzThe American Peasant |
40,695 | 55 +5 | |
| 50 | ▲21 |  Richard BairdLogo Histories |
56,691 | 53 +2 | |
| 51 | new |  Martina CasonatoThe Venetian Pantry |
5,294 | ? | |
| 52 | new |  Stacey BewkesQuintessence |
534 | ? | |
| 53 | ▼45 |  Whitney McGregorLAGNIAPPE |
1,697 | 9 | |
| 54 | new |  Sarah Hegge, PhDBreakfast Cake |
10 | ? | |
| 55 | ▼4 |  Olive CookeFile for Later |
12,929 | 51 +4 | |
| 56 | new |  FASFFriends of Architecture Santa Fe |
1,209 | ? | |
| 57 | new |  Colby Vexler@looselylooking |
132 | ? | |
| 58 | ▼41 |  Village in the Making@villageinthemaking |
9 | 0 | |
| 59 | new |  Domino MagazineHome Front |
56,047 | 59 +3 | |
| 60 | new |  Brigette MullerHummusbird |
962 | ? | |
| 61 | new |  Louis EltonNation of Artisans |
1,706 | ? | |
| 62 | new |  Behind the Masterpiece@behindthemasterpiece |
42,211 | 52 +24 | |
| 63 | new |  Tasty Magazine by Nimisha Inc@tastymagazine |
4,342 | ? | |
| 64 | new |  I'mGonnaMakeMistakes@mishyturner |
23 | ? | |
| 65 | new |  Paula CademartoriTHE UNIVERSE OF PAULA |
952 | ? | |
| 66 | new |  Lindsay O’Brienbinzie |
6,650 | 20 | |
| 67 | new |  Nathaniel RoyA Book Designer's Notebook |
8,150 | ? | |
| 68 | new |  Mattie TiegreenFollow the Feeling |
472 | ? | |
| 69 | new |  Marina KrutchinskyUX Mentor Diaries |
10,366 | 51 | |
| 70 | ▼67 |  Eleanor Cording-BoothA Considered Space |
29,573 | 61 +2 | |
| 71 | new |  Deem Journal@deemjournal |
11,440 | ? | |
| 72 | new |  Mackenzie AdamsA Collected Life |
1,640 | 1 | |
| 73 | ▼39 |  Maria IzvestkinaPLAYIN |
5,912 | 20 +6 | |
| 74 | new |  Rafael HoffmannNewsletra |
611 | ? | |
| 75 | new |  Grant HawkesWoodshavings & Wool |
213 | ? | |
| 76 | new |  Writing on the Walls@juliafriedberg |
1,552 | ? | |
| 77 | ▼14 |  Mike Hathorne@greathousingreversal |
738 | 1 +1 | |
| 78 | new |  Emily MauldinApple of My Eye | Emily Mauldin Design |
1,231 | ? | |
| 79 | new |  Michelle HickeyInspiration Everywhere with Michelle Hickey |
13,643 | ? | |
| 80 | new |  CAROL by designCarol |
13 | ? | |
| 81 | new |  Madelynn HudsonWorn In |
517 | 0 | |
| 82 | ▼5 |  Karin NovozamskyA PASSION THING |
229 | 2 +1 | |
| 83 | ▼54 |  🎀 Rococo Ho 🎀Taste Making |
596 | 4 +1 | |
| 84 | new |  Into Design SystemsInto Design Systems + AI |
12,521 | 50 +3 | |
| 85 | new |  Alicia PedersonCourtyard Urbanist |
3,195 | 17 +2 | |
| 86 | new |  Leigh WeingusThe Aesthetic Edit |
3,175 | ? | |
| 87 | ▼71 |  Mr. ThreadMr. Thread—The Weekly Journal on the Business of Design |
810 | 2 | |
| 88 | ▼77 |  The Grumpy Decorator@thegrumpydecorator |
890 | 4 +3 | |
| 89 | ▼53 |  Alexa HötzInnere |
600 | 2 | |
| 90 | new |  Xinran MaDesign with AI |
49,320 | 53 +9 | |
| 91 | new |  Elle HervinElle the Home Bird |
8,905 | 26 +4 | |
| 92 | new |  Stephanie Sabbe@stephaniesabbe |
2,686 | 14 | |
| 93 | new |  April Yvonne InteriorsThe Design Brief |
0 | ? | |
| 94 | new |  KYLE MERTENSMEYER@kylemertensmeyer |
9 | ? | |
| 95 | new |  Mathias JakobsenThink Clearly Newsletter |
11,386 | ? | |
| 96 | new |  NatashaNatasha's Painted Stories |
6,410 | ? | |
| 97 | new |  Matt ChoiStreet Stack |
3,092 | ? | |
| 98 | new |  Pastiche StudiosPastiche Studios Substack |
460 | ? | |
| 99 | new |  Aaron LubeckBetter Cities Film Festival - South |
994 | ? | |
| 100 | new |  proyecto telartelar al sur |
8 | ? |
The top 20 on every read
Rank on each read of the Rising board. Darker is higher. A gap means the writer was outside the top 100 on that read.
| Writer | Oct 3107:00 | Oct 3113:00 | Oct 3119:47 | Nov 621:50 | Move |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lacy Phillips | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Kristin Ellen Hockman | 13 | 4 | 4 | 2 | ▲11 |
| Anna Liesemeyer | 61 | 30 | 30 | 3 | ▲58 |
| Chelsea | 22 | 22 | 4 | ▲18 | |
| Danielle Moss | 5 | new | |||
| Talia | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | ▼2 |
| Megan Fitzpatrick | 32 | 56 | 56 | 7 | ▲25 |
| Zoë Feldman | 14 | 75 | 75 | 8 | ▲6 |
| Corinne Back | 49 | 9 | ▲40 | ||
| Melissa Forbes | 12 | 35 | 35 | 10 | ▲2 |
| Colin King | 20 | 20 | 11 | ▲9 | |
| Christene Barberich | 52 | 52 | 12 | ▲40 | |
| Leonora Epstein | 13 | new | |||
| The Curiosity Department | 10 | 14 | ▼4 | ||
| Kate Rheinstein Brodsky | 55 | 15 | 15 | 15 | ▲40 |
| Club Coverjunkie | 16 | new | |||
| Jessica Helfand | 17 | new | |||
| No.17 House | 53 | 80 | 80 | 18 | ▲35 |
| Rose Florence | 19 | 19 | 0 | ||
| Chloe Legras | 20 | new |
History starts on Oct 31, 2026. Each day adds a column.
Who recommends Design writers
Publications with the most live recommendations pointing at writers whose main category is Design. If you write in this category, these are the readers' lists worth being on.