Ghost
Platform · this deep dive is built from the official pages of the platform itself and of the tools that support it.
Overview
Ghost is a publishing platform for sites with a newsletter and paid subscriptions. It exists in two forms: open source code that you install on your own server, and Ghost(Pro), paid hosting from the organization itself. Both options give you the same core: a site, an editor, a subscriber list, emails and taking money through Stripe.
The organization describes itself directly: we are a non-profit organization making open source software for modern publishing. The same page says that Ghost was founded in April 2013 by John O'Nolan and Hannah Wolfe, that the organization's charter does not allow it to be sold, and that all revenue goes back into the product.
The main difference between Ghost and showcase platforms: you have no feed and no ready-made audience. You get your own site on your own domain and your own subscriber base, but you will have to find readers yourself.
Who's here
Ghost has no shared audience - only the sum of individual sites. The organization publishes two measurements of its own. The first: more than 100,000,000 installs of Ghost to date - this is a counter of downloads and deployments, not a number of people or live sites. The second, on the pricing page: 6,896 brand new publications appeared on Ghost last week - also a claim by the platform, with no starting date given for that week.
The only indirect signal about geography is the payment requirement: Stripe is "our exclusive payments partner", meaning you can take money from readers wherever Stripe works. The site interface can be translated: the pricing page lists internationalization as a feature of all plans.
Getting started
Registration is standard: email, name, password. The terms require a real full name and a valid email address, and prohibit registration by bots and one login shared by several people. The minimum age is stated directly: the site and services are available only to those who are 13 or older.
After that there is a fork in the road. Ghost(Pro) is paid hosting with a free trial period; a self-hosted install requires your own server, and the procedure is described in the developer documentation. There is no document verification at sign-up; the identity check is done not by Ghost but by Stripe, when you connect payments.
What you can publish
The formats are posts and pages with images, files, audio and video. There is one hard limit, and it is tied to the plan: the size of a single uploaded file is 5 MB on the Starter plan, 100 MB on Publisher, 250 MB on Business and 1 GB on Custom. The number of files is not limited, but a fair use policy applies.
The prohibitions are listed in the terms: infringing the rights of others, invasion of privacy, deception, defamation, pornography in violation of applicable law, incitement to hatred, threats and violence, promotion of anything illegal. Separately prohibited are unsolicited advertising, spam and chain letters.
The rights to your text stay with you, but the licence to the platform is broad: by submitting material you grant Ghost Foundation a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, sublicensable, royalty-free and non-exclusive licence to reproduce, modify, adapt and publish your material - solely to display, distribute and promote your site. "Perpetual and irrevocable" are the key words here: deleting a post does not cancel the licence itself.
How to grow
Ghost has no algorithmic feed - and the platform does not promise one. Instead it names four mechanisms available on all plans: connecting to the "social web" through ActivityPub (your publication is visible in Ghost, WordPress, Bluesky, Threads, Flipboard, Mastodon), the Ghost Explore directory, mutual recommendations between publications, and a referral program for subscribers through First Promoter.
Analytics is split by plan: third-party counters such as Google Analytics are available everywhere, while Ghost's own detailed analytics starts with the Publisher plan. Ad networks (AdSense, BuySellAds and any others) are allowed, but also from Publisher upwards.
Path to monetization
This is a case where the platform's commission is given as a number, and that number is zero. The pricing page states: the transaction fee is 0%, Ghost takes no additional charges on payments, but the payment processor's fee remains. In other words, Ghost earns from the hosting subscription, not from a share of your revenue.
Hosting fees with annual billing: Starter - $18 per month, Publisher - $29, Business - $199, Custom - by arrangement. What is included: 1,000 subscribers on Starter and Publisher, 10,000 on Business, unlimited on Custom; 1, 3, 15 and unlimited staff members respectively. Paid subscriptions, tips and donations, paid tiers (3 / 10 / unlimited) and discount offers (15 / 50 / unlimited) are not available on the Starter plan - they start with Publisher.
The geography of payouts is determined entirely by Stripe: it is Ghost's exclusive payments partner, and there are no other built-in ways to take money from readers.
As for refunds to you, the terms warn firmly: payment for additional services is non-refundable, and as a general rule all sales are final.
Tools and automation
Programmatic access is official and documented in detail. The Content API is read-only for published content, the key is passed as a parameter in the URL, it is safe for the browser, responses are cached, and the documentation names no request rate limits. The Admin API covers creating and editing content, working with subscription tiers, newsletters, offers, members, tags, themes and webhooks; authorization is either as a user with a role or as an integration.
API access is also tied to the plan: the Content API is available everywhere, while the Admin API, webhooks, custom integrations, Zapier and n8n come with the Publisher plan and above.
Data export is a strong point: the platform promises an export of posts and pages in JSON, members in CSV, themes as a ZIP archive and post analytics in CSV at any time. A custom domain is included in all Ghost(Pro) plans, including free registration of a domain in the.link zone for the first year.
Limits and rules
- Age. From 13 years.
- Files. 5 / 100 / 250 MB and 1 GB per file by plan; subscribers - 1,000 / 1,000 / 10,000 / unlimited.
- Paid features. Taking payments, tips, tiers and custom themes are turned off on the cheapest plan.
- Extra charges. A subdirectory install and your own SSL certificate cost $50 per month each on top of the Business plan.
- Rights. A perpetual, irrevocable licence to the platform for your material; refunds are as a general rule not provided.
- Legal entity. The contracting party is named as Ghost Foundation Ltd; the country of registration is not stated on the public pages.
- Scraping. The terms prohibit automated data collection by spiders, robots and similar means outside the provided programming interface.
Who it's for
It suits you if you are building a publication or a newsletter and want to keep all the revenue: the platform's commission is zero, and the subscriber list exports to CSV at any time. It suits developers and teams: the Admin API covers everything the admin panel can do.
It suits those who already have an audience. Ghost will not bring readers by itself: recommendations and the directory are the only mechanisms named, and there is no feed.
It does not suit you if you have neither money for a subscription nor a server: there is no free hosting on Ghost(Pro). It does not suit you if Stripe is unavailable in your country - then no built-in way to take money from readers is left. And it does not suit a quick start on the cheapest plan: payments are turned off there, so you will have to take Publisher right away.
Tools for this platform
The list is built from the tools' own facts: every line is a tool's statement that it supports the platform, with the source named. A tool missing from the list only means we have no such statement.
Other tasks:
Verified data
The checked data this deep dive rests on.
About the platform
the platform describes itself this way: «Beautiful, modern publishing with email newsletters and paid subscriptions built-in. Used by Platformer, 404Media, Lever News, Tangle, The Browser, and thousands more.»
Self-description: this is the platform's claim about itself, not an independent assessment
source, checked 2026-07-28
the organization describes itself as a non-profit that makes open-source software for publishing; founded in April 2013 by John O'Nolan and Hannah Wolfe; its charter does not allow the company to be sold, and all revenue goes back into the product
The organization's own claim about itself
source, checked 2026-07-28
the party to the agreement is named as Ghost Foundation; in the privacy policy it is Ghost Foundation Ltd
DISCREPANCY WITH THE REGISTER: in the project register the platform is assigned to Singapore. The registered address and jurisdiction are not given on the open pages (terms, policy, «about us») - we could not confirm Singapore
source, checked 2026-07-28
Who's here
the platform reports more than 100 000 000 installs of Ghost to date
A counter of downloads and deployments, not of people or live sites; no date is given
source, checked 2026-07-28
the pricing page states: «6 896 brand new publications appeared on Ghost last week»
The platform's claim, with no reference date for the week
source, checked 2026-07-28
Account and access
the site and services are available only to people aged 13 and over; a real full name and a valid email address are required, registration by bots is prohibited, and one login shared by several people is not allowed
source, checked 2026-07-28
Content
posts and pages export to JSON, members to CSV, themes as a ZIP archive and post analytics to CSV - at any time through settings
The platform frames this as «full ownership of and access to your data»
source, checked 2026-07-28
your own domain is included in all Ghost(Pro) plans via a CNAME record; by default a *.ghost.io subdomain is issued; free domain registration in the .link zone is included for the first year, renewing at standard rates
source, checked 2026-07-28
Promotion
the growth mechanisms named by the platform and available on all plans: connecting to the «social web» through ActivityPub (visibility in Ghost, WordPress, Bluesky, Threads, Flipboard, Mastodon), the Ghost Explore directory, mutual recommendations between publications and a referral programme through First Promoter
Ghost promises no algorithmic feed
source, checked 2026-07-28
Advertising
connecting any ad networks (AdSense, BuySellAds and others) is allowed from the Publisher plan onwards
Advertising is not available on the Starter plan
source, checked 2026-07-28
Analytics
the platform's own detailed analytics are available from the Publisher plan; third-party counters (Google Analytics, Plausible, Fathom) on all plans
source, checked 2026-07-28
How the money works here
the platform's fee on author revenue is 0 %: Ghost takes no additional charge on payments, the payment processor's fee still applies
THE KEY FIGURE OF THE CATEGORY. Ghost earns from the hosting subscription, not from a share of the author's revenue. The platform does not state the size of the Stripe fee
source, checked 2026-07-28
paid subscriptions, tips and donations, paid tiers and discount offers are not available on the Starter plan - they start with the Publisher plan
In practice this means a minimum of 29 $/month for any monetization
source, checked 2026-07-28
Stripe is named as Ghost's exclusive payment partner; there are no other built-in ways to take money from readers
The payout geography is determined entirely by Stripe's availability; Ghost has no separate list of countries
source, checked 2026-07-28
Pricing
Ghost(Pro) rates on annual billing: Starter - 18 $/month, Publisher - 29 $/month, Business - 199 $/month, Custom - by arrangement
The monthly values are inserted by a browser-side toggle and are not visible without running scripts
source, checked 2026-07-28
installation in a subdirectory and your own SSL certificate cost 50 $ a month each on top of the Business plan
source, checked 2026-07-28
Limits and restrictions
by plan Starter/Publisher/Business/Custom: subscribers 1 000 / 1 000 / 10 000 / unlimited; staff users 1 / 3 / 15 / unlimited; single file size 5 MB / 100 MB / 250 MB / 1 GB; newsletters 1 / 3 / 10 / unlimited; paid tiers - / 3 / 10 / unlimited; discount offers - / 15 / 50 / unlimited
The number of files is unlimited, a fair use policy applies
source, checked 2026-07-28
Restrictions
prohibited: infringing the rights of others, invasion of privacy, deception, defamation, pornography in breach of applicable law, incitement of hatred, threats and violence, unsolicited advertising and spam, and automated data collection by spiders and robots outside the provided programming interface
source, checked 2026-07-28
Legal
by submitting material you grant Ghost Foundation a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, sublicensable, royalty-free and non-exclusive licence to reproduce, modify, adapt and publish it - solely to display, distribute and promote your site
The words «perpetual» and «irrevocable» are the key ones: deleting a post does not cancel the licence itself
source, checked 2026-07-28
payment for additional services is non-refundable; as a general rule all sales are final unless Ghost Foundation decides otherwise
source, checked 2026-07-28
API access
the Content API is a RESTful read-only interface to published content; the key is passed as a parameter in the address and is safe for the browser; responses are fully cacheable, and the documentation gives no numeric rate limits
There is an official JavaScript client
source, checked 2026-07-28
the Admin API covers creating and editing content, working with subscription tiers, newsletters, offers, members, tags, images, themes and webhooks; authorisation either as a user with a role or as an integration
Available from the Publisher plan and above (https://ghost.org/pricing/)
source, checked 2026-07-28
the Content API is available on all plans; the Admin API, webhooks, custom integrations, Zapier and n8n from the Publisher plan and above
source, checked 2026-07-28
Languages
the interface language of the home page: en-gb
The language is taken from the markup attribute, the versions from hreflang
source, checked 2026-07-28
internationalization (site content and interface in any language) is declared a feature of all plans
Ghost publishes no audience breakdown by country or language
source, checked 2026-07-28
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