What HowStuffWorks does

HowStuffWorks is a commercial edutainment website founded in 1998 by Marshall Brain, operating as a division of System1 LLC through InfoSpace Holdings LLC. The platform publishes explanatory articles, videos, quizzes, and newsletters across science, technology, health, auto, animals, culture, money, lifestyle, and entertainment topics. Over 25+ years of operation, the company has produced a library of 40,000+ articles contributed by a network of 2,000+ writers, reaching 12 million+ monthly visitors and 25 million monthly pageviews across nearly 250 countries. The company pioneered podcasting through "Stuff You Should Know," which was later sold to iHeartMedia in 2018. It expanded into television through partnerships with Discovery Channel and National Geographic Channel. HowStuffWorks maintains editorial partnerships with The Conversation and Covering Climate Now, reflecting a commitment to fact-checked, peer-reviewed journalism.

The company's core technology is a digital publishing platform delivering multimedia educational content distributed through its website (howstuffworks.com and topic-specific subdomains such as science.howstuffworks.com, auto.howstuffworks.com), social media channels, a thrice-weekly email newsletter, and native advertising amplification on platforms like Outbrain and Taboola. The platform operates without disclosed APIs, SDKs, mobile applications, or AI/ML capabilities, relying on traditional editorial workflows and human-authored content. Marshall Brain remains a contributing writer and founder figure, while Nicole Antonio serves as Editorial Director.

HowStuffWorks generates revenue primarily through advertising (native, display, and search ad formats served to its 12 million+ monthly visitor audience) and secondarily through content licensing via PARS International for commercial reprint permissions. The consumer-facing content is free, with monetization occurring through owned-property ad inventory and third-party traffic acquisition networks. The business operates as a content-led, advertising-supported digital media property within System1 LLC's portfolio of acquired content assets.

Name

HowStuffWorks

Legal name

HowStuffWorks, LLC

Website

https://howstuffworks.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

HowStuffWorks is a 25-year-old educational content website publishing 40,000+ articles and multimedia content across science, technology, health, and lifestyle topics. It serves 12 million+ monthly global visitors with free explanatory content, monetized through digital advertising and content licensing as a System1 LLC subsidiary.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online Educational Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312), Periodical Publishers (513120), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Online Article & Blog Publishing Platforms (MPAJAMAF)

Keywords

• Educational content publishing
• Online articles and videos
• Digital advertising network
• Content licensing services
• Newsletter media brand

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Advertising Revenue: The company generates revenue through advertising, including native ads placed with targeted keywords on multiple platforms such as Outbrain and Taboola, which lead to their various sites where search ads are served. The site attracts 12 million+ monthly visitors providing an advertising audience.
2. Content Licensing: Content licensing and reprint permissions are available for a fee through their partner PARS International at HSWreprints.com. Business and commercial use of content requires proper licensing through this channel.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

HowStuffWorks publishes free, ad-supported explanatory editorial content (articles, illustrated videos, quizzes, puzzles, and a tri-weekly newsletter) across ten topic verticals including Science, Tech, Auto, Health, Money, Animals, Culture, Lifestyle, Home & Garden, and Entertainment. The platform also licenses content for commercial reuse through PARS International.

Product overview

HowStuffWorks operates as a unified content platform centered on HowStuffWorks.com, an educational website publishing thousands of articles that explain how things work across diverse topics. The portfolio includes the core website, a video section featuring illustrated explainers (HowStuffWorks Illustrated series), interactive quizzes and puzzles (crosswords, riddles), and newsletters delivered three times weekly. The company was founded in 1998 by Marshall Brain and has partnered with brands including Discovery Channel, TLC, The Conversation, and Covering Climate Now. HowStuffWorks is a division of InfoSpace Holdings LLC, a System1 property.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• HowStuffWorks.com Educational Content Website Free, ad-supported online publication delivering explanatory articles on how the world works across Science, Tech, Home & Garden, Auto, Culture, Health, Money, Animals, Lifestyle, and Entertainment for general consumers.
• HowStuffWorks Illustrated Video Series Explainer video series hosted on HowStuffWorks that uses illustrations and narration to explain how things work across the site's topic verticals, available free with advertising.
• HowStuffWorks Quizzes and Interactive Content Interactive quizzes, crosswords, riddles, and puzzles hosted at play.howstuffworks.com, designed to engage and educate general consumers through gamified content.
• HowStuffWorks Email Newsletter Free email newsletter sent three times per week to subscribers, featuring a curated collection of HowStuffWorks articles, podcast episodes, and trending content across the site's verticals.
• Content Licensing via PARS International Commercial content licensing and reprint permissions for HowStuffWorks articles, administered by partner PARS International at HSWreprints.com, for businesses seeking to reuse HowStuffWorks editorial content.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• iHeartMediaflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1998HowStuffWorks was the original home of 'Stuff You Should Know' podcast, which is now part of iHeartMedia. The company pioneered podcasting and partnered with iHeartMedia for distribution of this popular podcast.
• Discovery ChannelcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for TV series content on the Discovery Channel, expanding HowStuffWorks content into television programming.
• National Geographic ChannelcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for TV series content including 'Factory Floor with Marshall Brain' on the National Geographic channel.
• The ConversationminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartner outlet that shares HowStuffWorks' passion for rigorous fact-checking, sound research, and responsible journalism.
• Covering Climate NowminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartner organization focused on climate coverage, aligned with HowStuffWorks' commitment to responsible journalism on environmental topics.
• PARS InternationalcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLicensing partner for content reprints and commercial use permissions. Handles business and commercial content licensing requests at HSWreprints.com.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• WiseGEEK: Educational article publisher producing short explainers across diverse topics including science, technology, animals, and lifestyle. Closely comparable in format, breadth, and target audience to HowStuffWorks.
• eHow: How-to and explainer article publisher covering a broad range of practical and scientific topics. Direct overlap with HowStuffWorks' explanatory article format and ad-supported model.
• Mental Floss: Direct competitor in the online edutainment article space, covering science, history, culture, and lifestyle explainers with a similar factual, entertaining voice. Closest comparable in tone, format, and audience.
• ThoughtCo: Educational article publisher (formerly About.com) covering science, history, language arts, and more. Highly comparable explainer content model targeting students, educators, and curious general consumers.
• Live Science: Online science explainer publisher owned by Future plc, producing articles on how natural phenomena, technology, and the human body work. Direct overlap with HowStuffWorks' science, tech, and health verticals.

Emerging players

• Treehugger: Sustainability and environmental education publisher (formerly part of Discovery) producing explanatory articles. Overlaps with HowStuffWorks' environment, science, and home & garden content.
• Dictionary.com: Reference and educational content site owned by Dictionary.com, LLC, extending into explanatory articles beyond definitions. Adjacent competitor for factual explainer queries from curious consumers and students.
• ScienceABC: Online science explainer publisher producing 'how things work' style articles aimed at curious general readers. Niche competitor in the science/tech explainer subcategory of HowStuffWorks' content.

Broad incumbents

• Dotdash Meredith: Large-scale digital publisher operating vertical content brands (e.g., Investopedia, The Spruce, Verywell) that produce educational/explainer articles. Competes with HowStuffWorks for advertiser budgets and search-driven informational traffic.
• Britannica: Established reference and educational publisher with both free and subscription content covering all major knowledge areas. Competes with HowStuffWorks for factual explainer queries and educational research use cases.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/HowStuffWorks
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/HowStuffWorks?sub_confirmation=1
• Facebookfacebook.com/HowStuffWorks
• Instagraminstagram.com/howstuffworks
• Pinterestpinterest.com/HowStuffWorks

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors4 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HowStuffWorks