Why I Cross-Post Everything (And You Probably Shouldn’t)

My workflow and why it works for me

My Medium friends can read this story over there as well.

Photo by holigil 27 on Unsplash

I publish every single article on both Substack and Medium. Same content, same day, with little notes telling readers they can find it on the other platform too.

People ask me why I do this, and my answer is: because it works for me.

That doesn’t mean it’ll work for you.

---

What Cross-Posting Actually Means

I’m not talking about those “post once, publish everywhere” automation AI tools. Non of that. It’s good old copy paste.

I’m talking about writing a full article, publishing it on Substack (letters.byburk.net), then manually publishing the same article on Medium (stories.byburk.net), adding cross-links between them, and maintaining both platforms actively.

Same content. Two places. Intentionally.

---

Why I Started Doing This

I started blogging in 2007 with a German WordPress blog about technology. Never got anywhere.

Then discovered Medium. Found success pretty quickly. Real readers. Real engagement. Pretty cool.

Then everyone started saying “own your audience” and “Substack is the future” and “Medium is dying.”

So, of course, I started a Substack because that’s what you’re supposed to do in 2024 if you write online.

But I built something on Medium first, and I wasn’t planning on walking away from it. Substack was the shiny new thing everyone said I “should” be on. But Medium had already worked out well for me.

So, I started cross-posting. Then I tried doing different formats on each. Didn’t like it. Went back to cross-posting.

Not strategic. Just trial and error.

---

The Advantages (For Me Specifically)

Two different audiences, genuinely

Medium readers discover me through the algorithm and tags. They’re searching for “Substack tips” or “AI writing tools” and stumble onto my articles.

Substack readers are subscribers who chose to follow me (and often come from Medium or more recently from search, mor on that in a bit). They get my posts in their inbox because they actively decided they wanted to hear from me.

Medium is “find me by accident” territory. Substack is “come back because you remember me” territory. Different platforms, different discovery mechanisms, different reader behaviors.

Revenue diversification

The Medium Partner Program pays me per read, in small part even from non-members now. Not a fortune, but my older articles keep generating income months or years after I published them.

Passive feels like the wrong word, but it’s close enough.

Substack is a smaller in revenue but more predictable.

Neither platform pays enough to live on alone. Together, they add up to something that matters.

SEO benefits I didn’t plan for

Two different domains pointing to my content. Cross-links between them help both platforms. Google seems to like the validation.

I stumbled into this benefit. Didn’t plan it. But it works. And I’ve spent quite some times optimizing my workflow for SEO benefits. You can read an entire guide about that here.

---

The Technical Stuff

Cross-posting is not complicated, but you have to give it some thought at least:

The canonical URL “problem”

When you publish the same content on two different URLs, Google has to decide which one is the “real” version.

That’s what canonical URLs are for. They tell Google “this is a duplicate, but this other URL is the original.”

Medium lets you set a canonical URL when you import a story. Substack doesn’t really have this option built-in the same way. This matters more than you think.

Why I publish on Substack first

I often do. Not always.

This isn’t arbitrary. When I publish on Substack first, that becomes the canonical version in Google’s eyes. Then when I publish on Medium, I can import the story and set the canonical URL to point back to my Substack.

What this means: When someone searches Google and finds my article, they’re more likely to land on my Substack version. That’s where I want them. That’s where my email signup lives. That’s where my products are “advertised” more often (by me).

If I did it backwards (Medium first, then Substack), Google would treat Medium as the canonical version. That could be beneficial in some ways. Wrote about that in my SEO guide as well.

The actual SEO benefits

Both versions still get indexed, most of the time. Both still show up in search results somteimes. The canonical URL just tells Google which one to prioritize.

But here’s what actually happens: Medium has stronger domain authority than my Substack. So even when my Substack version is canonical, the Medium version sometimes ranks higher anyway. Google’s complicated and doesn’t always listen to canonical tags.

The result? I get traffic from both. People searching for specific phrases might find my Medium version. People searching my name or newsletter-specific terms find Substack. It’s messy but it works.

And my SEO system has resulted in search becoming my #1 source of Substack growth over the past few months, and with that also the #1 driver of paid subscriptions. That’s pretty cool!

The cross-linking bonus

Every article I publish has two versions with links pointing at each other. Substack version links to Medium. Medium version links to Substack. That’s two backlinks per article, from high-authority domains.

Does this help my SEO? Probably. Does it matter as much as just writing good content consistently? Probably not.

What can go wrong

If you don’t set canonical URLs properly, Google might see your content as duplicate spam. It might penalize on or both versions, in rare cases. Or it just randomly picks which one to index and ignore the other. Not a huge problem, but maybe not ideal for you.

Medium’s import tool handles this automatically if you use it.

Don’t just copy-paste the same article and publish it manually on both platforms without using canonical URLs. Use Medium’s import feature and set the canonical URL correctly.

Why You Maybe Shouldn’t Do It

Time, obviously

Writing once and publishing twice sounds easy. But Medium and Substack have different editors. Different formatting quirks. Different image upload systems. Different ways of handling links and embeds.

Something always goes wrong when pasting or importing.

I spend an extra 15–20 minutes per article just on the second platform. That’s hours per month. Some people would rather write another article with that time.

They’re probably right.

Mental overhead

Which platform gets the “first” publish? Do I respond to comments on both? Where do I send people when sharing on social media? How do I track which platform is actually working?

Decision fatigue is real. Every article requires extra decisions that slow me down and tire me out.

And that SEO stuff too.

Audience confusion

Might be the biggest reason.

Some people subscribe to both platforms, then get confused. “Didn’t I already read this?” Email fatigue is real. Not everyone reads the cross-post notes I include.

I lose some readers to annoyance. That’s just the cost of doing business this way.

Platform risk remains

I’m still dependent on both platforms. Medium could change their algorithm tomorrow. Substack could change their terms.

“Owning” my audience is still an illusion. On both.

Cross-posting doesn’t solve platform risk. It just spreads it around.

---

When Cross-Posting Makes Sense

You already built something elsewhere. Like me with Medium’s 20K followers. You have real traction you don’t want to abandon. You tried moving everyone to a new platform and it failed.

You have different audiences on each platform. Not just follower counts, but actual different people with different discovery patterns and different reasons they follow you.

You can afford the time. You’re not publishing daily. The extra 15–20 minutes doesn’t hurt your workflow. You have systems that handle the duplicate work.

You’re experimenting with monetization. Trying different revenue models. Not sure which platform will win long-term. Hedging your bets intentionally rather than accidentally.

When You Shouldn’t

You’re already overwhelmed. One platform done well beats two platforms done poorly. Consistency matters more than coverage.

The platforms serve identical purposes. If your Substack and Medium audiences are the same people, if you’re not monetizing differently, if discovery happens the same way on both, what’s the point?

You want to “own your audience.” Cross-posting doesn’t solve this. You’re still renting on both platforms. If you want real ownership, self-hosting a blog is usually the only option. But then you lose the discovery algorithms that help new readers find you.

Trade-offs everywhere.

---

What I’d Do Differently If I Started Today

Honestly. Nothing. I’d still crosspost. With my system in place now, it’s going well.

If I were starting from zero in 2026, I’d pick Medium and Substack and go all-in. The newsletter model is stronger than Medium’s algorithm right now. But Medium’s discovery factor is greater.

But I’m not starting from zero. I have history on Medium that still pays dividends. Articles from 2023 still get reads. Followers still discover my older work. So I keep doing what works for my specific situation.

Your situation is different. Act accordingly.

---

The Actual Workflow

When I finish an article, here’s what I do:

Step 1: Publish on Substack first.

Not always, but often. This is intentional. Substack becomes the canonical version. The “original” in Google’s eyes. I publish it, check for typos, make sure the formatting looks right.

Step 2: Copy the content.

Self-explanatory

Step 3: Go to Medium

Either paste or use Medium’s import tool.

Step 4: Fix the formatting.

Medium’s import isn’t perfect. Images sometimes break. Links need checking. Headers might need adjusting. This is where those 15–20 minutes go.

Step 5: Add the cross-post notes.

At the top of the Substack version, I add: “My Medium friends can read this story over there as well [link].” Sometimes I also add a link to the Medium version.

Cross-linking both directions helps SEO and gives readers options.

Step 6: Publish on Medium.

Check it one more time. Make sure the canonical URL is set correctly (it should be if you used the import tool). Hit publish.

Step 7: Share.

On social media, I usually share the Substack link. That’s where I want new subscribers to land. But sometimes I’ll share the Medium link if I think Medium’s domain authority will help the post get noticed.

It’s inefficient. I know it’s inefficient. I do it anyway.

Some weeks I resent the extra work. Some weeks I’m grateful for the safety net. Most weeks I just do it without thinking because it’s the routine now.

---

The Bottom Line

I cross-post because I built something on Medium before Substack existed, and I love Medium.

It diversifies my revenue, reaches different audiences, and hedges my platform risk. The SEO benefits are real even if I don’t fully understand them. Publishing on Substack first and using canonical URLs properly means I keep control of where Google sends people.

For my specific situation, the trade-offs work.

For you? I don’t know. Maybe, maybe not. Trial and error. If you do cross-post, do it right. Use import tools. Set canonical URLs. Publish to your priority platform first.

Cross-posting isn’t my “perfect” strategy. It’s a compromise I made with myself and it worked out.

Just effective enough.

---

A writer is nothing without a reader. If you found this helpful, consider becoming my dear email friend. Nothing would make me happier.

---