Utah’s largest independent newsroom, The Salt Lake Tribune, will remove its digital paywall in the first quarter of 2026, making all online content free for the first time in years — a move made possible by the nonprofit outlet’s strongest financial performance since converting from for-profit status in 2019.
CEO and Executive Editor Lauren Gustus announced the decision Friday night at the Tribune’s annual NewsMakers gala, revealing the paper is on track for $13.57 million in gross revenue and approximately $1 million in net income for 2025 — its first profitable year.
The paywall drop fulfills a public pledge: raise $1 million in new philanthropic support within 12 months and the wall comes down. With five months still left in the fiscal year, the Tribune has already locked in 40 % of that goal and secured multi-year commitments from major donors to cover the estimated $2.6 million in annual subscription revenue that will vanish.
- $5/month – basic support
- $10/month – newsletters and events
- $26/month – premium perks including home print delivery
Leadership says internal polling shows most current subscribers pay to “support journalism,” not just to read, and expects 70–80 % to convert to donors. Past experiments — lifting the paywall during the 2024 election and COVID-19 coverage — actually added thousands of new digital subscribers without hurting revenue.
The financial turnaround underscores a successful nonprofit pivot:
Philanthropy and reader donations:
- 33 % of revenue
- Advertising and sponsorships: 26 %
- Circulation (mostly digital): 35 %
- Other (events, syndication): 6 %
The strategy also includes aggressive expansion into Utah’s news deserts, such as the October 2025 launch of the free Southern Utah Tribune mailed to 40,000 homes.
By going fully open-access, the Tribune aims to dramatically widen reach in a state where local newspapers have disappeared at an alarming rate, betting that broader readership plus sustained donor enthusiasm will more than offset the lost subscription income.