You agree to the terms of service below, and the Terms of Use for Substack, the technology provider.

These terms apply to your use of The Economist’s publications on the Substack platform, including the Off the Charts newsletter and linked articles. They supplement The Economist Group’s Terms of Use (“Economist TOU”), but modify or exclude certain sections as explained below. By subscribing to or reading The Economist’s Substack publications, you agree to these terms and to the Substack Terms of Use.

For clarity, subscription mechanics (including purchase, renewal, cancellation, and refunds) are not governed by The Economist Group Terms of Use. These are determined by Substack under its Terms of Use and its published subscription policies.

1. Ownership of Economist Content

All content published by The Economist on Substack, including The Economist: Off the Charts newsletters, linked Graphic Detail articles, and any other Economist material, is owned by The Economist Newspaper Limited and/or its licensors. You may not copy, redistribute, or exploit this content except as permitted by law or through Substack’s built-in sharing features.

2. Permitted Use

Our Substack publications are provided for your personal, non-commercial use. Any other use, including commercial exploitation, republication, or creation of derivative works, requires our prior written consent.

3. Third-Party Platform Disclaimer

The Economist does not operate or control the Substack platform. Your access, account, payments, and any technical issues are governed by Substack’s Terms of Use and its published subscription policies (including guidance on renewal, cancellation, and refunds). The Economist is not responsible for the operation, security, or availability of Substack.

4. Comments and User Interaction

Where commenting is enabled, it is hosted and governed by Substack’s Content Guidelines and Acceptable Use Policy. The Economist may moderate or report comments, but we are not responsible for the removal of any user content. We may participate in discussions at our discretion and may report or request removal of comments that infringe our rights or breach applicable law.

5. Links to Additional Content

Our newsletters may contain links to other Economist content or to third-party material. We are not responsible for third-party sites or content.

6. Changes to Content Offering

We may change the frequency, scope, or availability of our Substack content, or withdraw it entirely, without liability, except where required by law.

7. Liability and Indemnity – Allocation of Responsibility

For issues relating to the Substack platform, including but not limited to service availability, technical functionality, account access, payment processing, and subscription management, Substack’s Terms of Use (including its limitations of liability and indemnity provisions), together with its published subscription policies, apply exclusively.

For issues relating to Economist content (including its accuracy, lawfulness, or intellectual property), the Economist TOU “Liability and Indemnity” provisions apply to your use of our Substack publications, and are incorporated by reference.

If you post any content, comments, or other material to The Economist’s Substack pages, you agree to indemnify The Economist Newspaper Limited and its affiliates from and against any claims, damages, liabilities, costs, or expenses (including legal fees) arising from your content.

8. Subscription Price, Renewal, and Cancellation

Subscriptions to The Economist’s Substack publications are managed by Substack under its platform rules.

  • Price: Subscription fees are set by The Economist through Substack and are displayed at the point of purchase. Prices may be changed from time to time but will not apply retroactively (see Substack TOU for further details).

  • Automatic Renewal: Paid subscriptions (monthly or annual) renew automatically unless cancelled. Substack sends renewal reminders about a week before renewal (see Substack Help: renewal for further details).

  • Cancellation: Subscribers can cancel at any time via their Substack account settings. Cancellation stops further charges and takes effect at the end of the current billing period (see Substack Help: cancel for further details).

  • Refunds: Refunds are not automatically provided. Substack enables publishers to issue refunds at their discretion through the platform (see Substack Help: refunds for further details).

For clarity, The Economist does not itself process payments, manage billing, or administer cancellations for Substack subscriptions. These matters are handled entirely by Substack under its Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and published subscription policies (including renewal, cancellation, and refund policies set out in its Help Center).

9. Relationship with the Economist TOU

These Substack Terms supplement The Economist Group Terms of Use. The following sections of the Economist TOU do not apply to your use of our Substack publications:

  • Registration, Passwords and Responsibilities

  • Subscription, Renewal, Changing Subscription, and Cancellation

  • Fees and Payments

  • Gift Subscriptions

  • Enterprise Subscriptions

  • Team Subscriptions

  • User-Created Content (Forums)

  • Changes to the Site and Digital Applications

  • Liability and Indemnity

  • Force Majeure

  • Governing Law & Jurisdiction (except for matters relating to The Economist’s intellectual property rights)

  • Advertising, Third Party Content and other Websites

For the avoidance of doubt: Subscriptions purchased through Substack are administered entirely through Substack’s platform. Substack’s Terms of Use, together with its published subscription policies (including renewal, cancellation, and refund policies set out in its Help Center), govern all matters relating to purchase, renewal, payment, and cancellation. The definition of “Subscription” in The Economist Group Terms of Use does not apply to Substack subscriptions.

If these Substack Terms conflict with the Economist TOU, these Substack Terms take precedence for Substack use.