Who really funds the Kyiv Independent?
The Kyiv Independent has no one single owner, but instead receives the majority of its funding from readers who pledge to contribute financially on a monthly or yearly basis. Other sources of funding include one-time donations, our online store, content syndication, and advertising. In this way, we can ensure that we serve our readers and community, and nobody else.
Our readers who provide recurring financial support are called members of the Kyiv Independent. Most of our members give $5 a month — and thanks to their contributions, we are able to fund our operations and reach millions of readers around the world every week. Membership shows just how powerful collective action can be.
Why did the Kyiv Independent decide to be funded by its members?
The reason for this funding model lies in the history of the company — the Kyiv Independent was born out of a fight for freedom of speech, and for that reason, a founding principle was that no single owner could control the publication.
The Kyiv Independent was co-founded by a group of journalists in November 2021 who had been fired from the Kyiv Post, the biggest English-language newspaper in Ukraine at the time, as the owner attempted to take the newsroom under control and end its independent coverage.
When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, tens of thousands of people decided to support our journalism, both by donating and becoming members. This gave us the financial stability to scale our work and set us on the path to becoming the largest English-language media outlet from Ukraine.
We still rely on our readers to fund our journalism, because it keeps us truly independent — we’re only accountable to the community we serve.
What is a membership model, exactly?
In short, membership is a way to fund journalism that places readers at the center. Members give a recurring contribution every month, and in return, they receive membership benefits and additional ways to get involved in a cause they believe in.
By the end of 2024, the Kyiv Independent’s community was around 14,000 members, which accounted for 70% of our entire revenue. At the time of publishing this article in May 2025, our community has grown to over 17,500 members.
Membership goes beyond a subscription in that it’s more than just a monetary transaction. It’s essentially a social contract between those who produce the news and the communities who rely on it.
What benefits do members get?
Membership benefits refer to the exclusive offerings available to our members. These benefits not only allow us to express our gratitude to those who support our journalism, but also mean we can learn from those who care about our reporting, giving our members a way to get more involved in a cause they believe in.
This model lets our members connect with our team, provide feedback, and share ideas. At the Kyiv Independent, some of our membership benefits are Q&As with our journalists, ad-free reading on the Kyiv Independent website, and a discount to our online store.
We also grant you access to our community Discord server: An exclusive space we set up so our members can discuss current events, share resources on how to get involved to help Ukraine more, provide feedback on our website and journalism, and even share memes.
One of our most popular benefits is a letter we send our members every Friday, which shows you what we accomplished in the last week, highlighting our top stories and giving you behind-the-scenes updates of our office.
Membership benefits are optional to engage with — members don’t have to use their benefits — but the option is always there. You can read more about our membership benefits here.
Why do we prioritize memberships over one-time donations?
Sustainable revenue means truly independent journalism. Recurring contributions, rather than one-time donations, mean that we can better plan for the future because we have an accurate idea of what our revenue will look like. With stable funding, we know that we can cover any topic or voice our true opinions without fear that our budget might be affected by those in power.
If I become a member, what difference do I make?
Quite simply, we wouldn’t be here without our members. It’s the thousands of people from around the world who have chosen to support our work who’ve made it possible for us to build a media company — showing the world the truth about Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Journalism isn’t free, so it’s our members who allow us to pay the salaries of journalists who bring you the news, fund reporting trips to the front lines, and help finance the production of our documentaries investigating Russian war crimes.
Our reader revenue model means we don’t have to rely on any government funding, including foreign grants — which can be unreliable sources of revenue, as they can be directly and immediately affected by the policy of new administrations. The freeze on USAID severely impacted other independent media outlets in Ukraine earlier this year — but thanks to our members, we were insulated from this extreme policy change.
It’s also thanks to our members that we don’t have a paywall on our articles. All of our journalism is free and accessible to everyone, because a core part of our mission is to act as a bridge between Ukraine and the world. Especially during war, access to accurate and reliable information is critical — and this shouldn’t be affected by someone’s socioeconomic status.
In the words of the Kyiv Independent’s CEO Daryna Shevchenko, “We want to ensure reliable information from Ukraine reaches as many people as possible, regardless of their ability, or even willingness to pay for it.”
“We need to ensure that as many decision-makers, political and state actors, and active society members in different countries are exposed to truthful information about what is happening in Ukraine now, regardless of their views, values, or political stance.”
“We want to make sure that no one out there would be able to say — ‘we did not know.’”
Author's note: We've set a goal of 20,000 members to prove that journalism doesn't need a paywall or a wealthy owner to survive. Join our community and help us make a difference today. We also want you to know when you contribute to the Kyiv Independent, your bank data is processed by a secure third-party system, and we don’t get access to it. If you have any questions about membership, you can always email community@kyivindependent.com.