In terms of payment tools, Patreon might be the most popular on the internet - at least for creators.

If you're a youtuber, a content creator, a podcaster, anything - you probably use Patreon.

It's a great system - I've played with it in the past, and it makes it really easy to collect subscriptions.

In terms of the tech it gives you, it's decent, but the real reason I gave it 5 stars is because of it's brand recognition.

If you're a creator, your followers or subscribers KNOW what Patreon is. They've heard of it before, or they've already used it to support other creators like you.

They know what they get, it's not hard to explain because that work has already been done for you.

So if you're a creator, it makes sense to use something like Patreon because your followers are already comfortable with it.

It's like asking someone to pay you over Venmo - they're happy to do that, because they trust it.

They have a chat system, a content management system, and more. But to be honest, it's not really that special beyond it's brand power.

The tech you can find or build elsewhere, but the recognition is really helpful.