What is Ghost?
Blogs and newsletters with paid subscriptions and email delivery, for independent writers.
Who is Ghost best for?
Ghost is best for independent writers who want a newsletter with paid memberships on software they can host.
Paid newsletters
Readers sign up as free or paying members, and each post can go out by email from the same editor.
Independent publications
Custom themes, 8,000+ integrations and advanced analytics turn a newsletter into a full publication site.
Headless content
The Content API lets a separate front end pull posts from Ghost.
Writers who want hosting handled
Ghost(Pro) runs the CDN, backups, security and updates, and its revenue goes to the Ghost Foundation.
How much does Ghost cost?
Ghost is free to self-host, and Ghost(Pro) hosting starts at $18 a month for up to 1,000 members, or $180 a year.
- MIT licence, every feature
- Ubuntu with MySQL, or Docker Compose
- You handle updates and backups
- Your own website and email newsletter
- Free custom domain
- Official themes, 1 staff user
- Paid subscriptions
- Custom themes and 8,000+ integrations
- Advanced analytics, 3 staff users
- 15 staff users
- Priority support
- Higher usage limits and early features
Ghost(Pro) prices rise with audience size: Publisher is $105 a month at 10,000 members. Billed yearly, the entry prices are $180 for Starter, $348 for Publisher and $2,388 for Business. Ghost(Pro) takes no payment fees on paid subscriptions. Full pricing on ghost.org. We checked these prices on .
How do readers rate Ghost?
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Is Ghost open source?
Yes. Ghost's code is public under the MIT licence, so you can run it on your own server.
On GitHub
55,800stars
+264 (+0.5%) in the last 30 days
- Last commit
- 13 Nov
- Repository age
- 13 years
- Latest release
- 11 Nov
- Licence
- MIT
- Self-hosted
- Yes
- Repository
- TryGhost/Ghost
What are the best Ghost alternatives?
Ghost is an open source alternative to beehiiv, Pagecord, Wisp CMS and Kit. Strapi and Hyvor Post do the same job and are open source too.
beehiivFreeAll-in-one newsletter platform built for growth, monetization, SEO.
PagecordFreeBlogging by email, nothing to set up.
Wisp CMSFreeA blog CMS for Next.js apps.
KitFreeEmail lists, newsletters, automated sequences and digital product sales for independent creators.
StrapiOpen SourceHeadless CMS in Node.js with REST and GraphQL APIs, roles and an admin panel for editors.
Hyvor PostOpen SourceNewsletter service with signup forms, an archive site and no open or click tracking, made in France.
Questions about Ghost
What is Ghost?
Blogs and newsletters with paid subscriptions and email delivery, for independent writers.
Who is Ghost for?
Ghost is best for independent writers who want a newsletter with paid memberships on software they can host.
Is Ghost free?
Yes. Ghost has a free Self-hosted plan: MIT licence, every feature.
How much does Ghost cost?
Ghost's paid plans are Starter at $18 per month, up to 1,000 members, Publisher at $35 per month, from 1,000 members and Business at $239 per month, from 10,000 members.
Is Ghost open source?
Yes. Ghost's code is public under the MIT licence, so you can run it on your own server.
What are the best Ghost alternatives?
The closest alternatives on Recaply are beehiiv, Pagecord, Wisp CMS, Kit, Strapi and Hyvor Post.
Where can I try Ghost?
On its official website, ghost.org.
What do I need to self-host Ghost?
Ghost's production guide uses Ubuntu 22.04, 24.04 or 26.04 with NGINX, a supported Node.js version, MySQL 8 and at least 1 GB of memory, set up with Ghost-CLI. The newer Docker Compose install adds Caddy and MySQL and is the way to self-host ActivityPub and web analytics.
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