Site Subscriptions FAQ (updated 5/13/2026)
Thank you for considering a Daily Kos site subscription for yourself or for a friend. Your subscribed membership supports the independence of our site. In return, we allow subscribers to hide all ads.
If you are ready to subscribe for yourself, simply visit our subscription portal and follow the prompts. If you would like to purchase a gift subscription for someone else, visit this gift subscription portal instead. If you have questions about the process, the following set of FAQs may address yours.
Please note that the process differs at several key points for “self-subscribers,” namely those purchasing subscriptions for their own user accounts, and “gift subscribers,” namely those who are the recipients of subscriptions purchased for them by someone else. These differences are called out below where needed.
If the Q/A below does not help you resolve your issue completely, please feel free to open a ticket at the Help Desk [dkhelp@dailykos.helpscoutapp.com].
THE BASICS: WHO CAN SUBSCRIBE, HOW MUCH DOES IT COST, AND HOW DO I PURCHASE A SUBSCRIPTION FOR MYSELF OR FOR SOMEONE ELSE?
Who may subscribe?
Site subscriptions are now open to ANYONE who would like to support the site.
Already-registered members may purchase subscriptions for themselves, or purchase a gift subscription for someone else, whether a current site member or not.
Similarly, non-members may purchase subscriptions for themselves, or purchase a gift subscription for someone else, whether a current site member or not.
Detailed instructions for each case are provided below: see under GIFT subscriptions or SELF subscriptions.
Please note: Subscription eligibility is UNLIMITED in regard to U.S. citizenship status.
How much does it cost to subscribe?
Subscriptions cost $90 US/year, a rate available both to SELF subscribers and as GIFT subscriptions. SELF subscribers may purchase a one-month subscription for $8 US/month ($96 US/year total).
GIFT subscriptions are available at two levels as well: the annual subscription for $90 US, and a six-month subscription for $45 US.
SELF subscriptions will auto-renew on the expiration date, whether monthly or annually.
GIFT subscriptions will not roll over; they are a one-time purchase.
NOTE: We no longer allow the purchase of lifetime subscriptions, but we continue to honor those that were purchased when they were available.
How do I purchase a SELF subscription?
→ If I am a NON-MEMBER
Good news! NON-MEMBERS may now join and subscribe in one sequence.
If you wish to purchase a subscription but have yet to register an account, please follow these steps.
- Navigate to dailykos.com/subscribe in your web browser.
- On that page, supply your information to create a site username. (Note the optional step of joining our Action Alert mailing list on this registration form.)
- Upon completion of registration, you will receive an email link to confirm your now registered account.
- Once you have verified your email via the confirmation email, you will be redirected to the subscription page where you can set up either a one-year or a monthly subscription.
Please be aware that site members often subscribe simply for the sake of avoiding the ads and/or to support the site. We welcome all members to take an active role on the site through commenting, posting, or recommending, but there is no obligation to do so.
Please note as well that joining our Daily Kos email list, though often also called "subscribing," is an entirely different and separate process. (Membership on our email list, like basic site membership, is free.) Details about signing up for our emails may be found in this article, “Daily Kos Activism.”
→ If I am already a site member (with a site username)?
If you're logged in, take either of these paths to reach the site subscription portal.
- Click on the "SUPPORT US" heading in the top nav bar, next to the "WRITE STORY" button, and then click on the "Subscribe to Daily Kos" link in the first option you see on the next page.
- Go directly to the Subscribe page https://www.dailykos.com/subscribe
Either route will redirect you to the page shown below. Choose the annual or monthly option and click the one you prefer, and the next page will display the fields to complete to initiate the subscription, with your email of record for your username pre-populating that field.
How do I sponsor a GIFT subscription?
PLEASE NOTE two significant changes from past practice:
1) It is NOT CURRENTLY POSSIBLE to purchase a gift subscription for a user on the basis of their site username, only via an email address.
2) A person intending to give a site subscription to someone else must be logged in on the site with their own username.
The email address for a gift recipient MAY OR MAY NOT be an email of record for someone who already has a site username. Once you have completed the gift purchase, an email will be sent to the recipient along with an explanation of how to join the site if they do not already have a site username. If they do have a username associated with the email you supplied, then that subscription will be applied automatically to their username.
Gift subscriptions, unlike self-subscriptions, do not auto-renew when the subscription period (either one year or six months) has passed. Furthermore, we no longer allow gift subscriptions to "stack" for multiple periods. Instead, a gift sub recipient will receive an alert via email shortly before the expiration date to invite them to subscribe on their own behalf. If the recipient does not choose to activate a subscription, then the original giver will be sent a notice that the gift sub has expired and was not re-established by the recipient. The original giver may choose to purchase another gift subscription but is under no obligation to do so.
If you do wish to give a six-month or annual subscription to someone else, please visit this page https://www.dailykos.com/subscribe/gift Choose the subscription period you prefer and click that button. The page to which you will be redirected will provide fields for you to complete. Your own email address will be autofilled with your email of record for your site username.
FINER POINTS of SUBSCRIBING: PROCESS DETAILS, including CONFIRMATION; RENEWALS; CANCELLATION; CREDIT CARD MANAGEMENT
How is my subscription processed?
We now operate our site subscriptions via Stripe, a secure online payment management site. The portal will permit you to view your subscription's expiration date, view (and edit) your payment method, view (and edit) your billing email, view your billing history, and cancel the autorenewal of your own annual subscription if you choose.
How do I know that my effort to subscribe succeeded?
If you have subscribed for yourself OR have purchased a gift subscription, you will have several ways to confirm it. You'll see a thank you page; you'll be able to view the payment page; and–for a self-subscription–you'll see an announcement of the subscription on your profile page.
If you’ve given a gift, then we will provide similar confirmations: a thank you page at the point of purchase, and then a record on your own subscription portal. We will also send you an email to thank you for it, and we will follow up with another email to let you know when your recipient has seen your gift. (A recipient of a gift subscription who already has a username will also see that announcement on their profile page.)
You will also see the white-heart-within-an-orange-circle badge (the image at the top of this FAQ) on the user profile page for yourself or for the recipient of the gift if they have a site username. To reach that user profile page for yourself, open the Daily Kos user menu underneath your main avatar and scroll down to the Profile link. To see another user’s profile page, search for their username or visit a page using this basic syntax: https://www.dailykos.com/user/user-name where the - [hyphen] stands in for any spaces within a username.
How do I renew a subscription?
SELF-SUBSCRIBERS: If you purchased a subscription for yourself, your subscription is set to autorenew annually on your one-year or one-month anniversary date, using the card with which you originally paid for it. You will receive a reminder via email approximately two weeks in advance of the renewal date, whether you have an annual or a monthly subscription in effect. Our updated subscription portal allows you to edit your payment method and to set a default method if you've included more than one card.
GIFT SUBSCRIPTION RECIPIENTS: If you have received a gift subscription, it will not auto-renew.
Important: While your gift subscription is in effect, you will not be able to create a new site subscription for yourself. Only after the gift subscription has expired can you click on the “Switch to Individual Subscription” button on the subscription management page and complete the payment process on your own behalf.
How do I manage a subscription?
- GIFT subscriptions are in effect for one year or six months only. They cannot be edited or canceled.
- SELF-subscriptions are designed to auto-renew either annually on the anniversary of the original purchase date, or monthly on the same date. Self-subscribers can
- Cancel
- Change the term from monthly to annual
- Update the payment method on record
How to access subscription management tools?
While logged in, visit your user profile page and click the three-dot menu on the right-side end of the menu bar to display Manage Subscriptions as an option under Notifications and Settings.
Clicking Manage Subscriptions will redirect to a page prompting you to request a login code to be delivered to your email of record. Once you have received that code and entered it, you will be able to view a page displaying your billing credit card, which you could update, and your active subscription with its expiration date. You could then change your subscription (from monthly to annual) or cancel it.
Please note that there are no refunds, pro-rated or otherwise, for canceled subscriptions. Thus, choosing to cancel your current subscription will not end it that same day. Cancellation merely means that no autorenewal will be processed on the subscription’s expiration date.
SPECIAL SUBSCRIBER QUESTIONS: TURNING OFF ADS; REASSIGNING A SUBSCRIPTION
Why do I see ads if I am a subscriber?
Site subscribers should not see ads (with rare exceptions, especially during campaign season when candidates might have special promotions). If you do even when logged-in, contact the Help Desk.
Can I reassign my subscription if I decide to create a new username and abandon the username under which I was originally subscribed?
Yes. You must contact the Help Desk for assistance with that process.