42k Subscribers on Mailerlite but Wanting to Switch

Hey all. I've been wanting to make the switch to Beehiiv for about a year now but haven't made the jump and would love to hear your ideas and thoughts.

I'm currently on a Classic Mailerlite monthly sub (grandfathered in because I started with them forever ago) at $195 per month. What gives me pause is the expense for the monthly plan on Beehiiv at $249 per month. (I am eyeing the annual Black Friday discount but it feels like a big commitment)

However, I've also read that you can generate enough ad revenue that it pays for itself. My question is - how realistic is that? How invasive are the ads?

I currently have 42,000 subscribers and an open rate of 32% to 50% depending on the time of the year. I'm also worried that switching will cause my open rate to plummet - especially going into the holiday season.

I have an Etsy shop for Digital Downloads and well as a Patreon that's where my revenue comes from so I'm not really interested in the Subscriber feature.