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CrowdTangle vs Ghost

C

CrowdTangle

News

Social media insights and content monitoring platform

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Ghost logo

Ghost

News

Modern publishing platform with content API and membership support

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Ghost has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: CrowdTangle crowdTangle was retired by Meta on 14 August 2024, per Meta's own transparency page (Internet Archive capture, 12 December 2024), with Meta Content Library and Content Library API offered as replacements; Ghost backup and migration processes have significant limitations and are problematic for long-term users
  • They diverge on capability: CrowdTangle covers Social listening, Ghost covers Content API.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CrowdTangle and Ghost actually diverge.

Attributes where CrowdTangle and Ghost differ
AttributeCrowdTangleGhost
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquoteUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, Self-hosted, Cloud-hosted
Founded20112013

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (News).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in CrowdTangle

  • Social listening
  • Viral content tracking
  • Competitor monitoring
  • Brand mention tracking
  • Trending alerts
  • Custom dashboards
  • Team collaboration
  • Report generation

Only in Ghost

  • Content API
  • Membership
  • Analytics
  • Webhooks
  • Zapier
  • Custom integrations
  • Node.js support
  • Cloud support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

CrowdTangle

  • Viral content trackingnot Ghost
  • Social listeningnot Ghost
  • Competitor analysisnot Ghost
  • Trend identificationnot Ghost

Ghost

  • API Developmentnot CrowdTangle
  • API Gatewaynot CrowdTangle
  • API Testingnot CrowdTangle
  • API Documentationnot CrowdTangle
  • Microservicesnot CrowdTangle

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

CrowdTangle

  • CrowdTangle was retired by Meta on 14 August 2024, per Meta's own transparency page (Internet Archive capture, 12 December 2024), with Meta Content Library and Content Library API offered as replacements

Ghost

  • Backup and migration processes have significant limitations and are problematic for long-term users
  • Open-source version lacks automatic backups, email subscriptions, and ad placement features
  • No built-in e-commerce functionality; separate platform required for product sales
  • Smaller community compared to WordPress, making support and resources harder to find
  • Narrow focus on publishing limits use cases outside content-only websites

Pricing, plan by plan

CrowdTangle

On request
  • Custom Plan$undefined/custom
    • Social monitoring
    • Competitor analysis
    • Trending content tracking

Ghost

Free
  • Self-HostedFree
    • Open-source Ghost CMS
    • Full control over data
    • No payment fees
  • Starter$15/month
    • Up to 1,000 members
    • Newsletter functionality
    • Membership management
  • Publisher$29/month
    • Unlimited members
    • Continuous member scaling
    • Advanced analytics
  • Business$199/month
    • All Publisher features
    • Custom domain
    • Priority support

Which should you pick?

Choose CrowdTangle if

  • You need social listening.
  • You also want viral content tracking.
CrowdTangle review

Choose Ghost if

  • You need content api.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted, Cloud-hosted.
  • You also want membership.
Ghost review

Questions people ask

Is CrowdTangle or Ghost better?
Neither clearly leads. CrowdTangle starts at On request and Ghost at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CrowdTangle or Ghost?
Ghost has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for CrowdTangle and Free for Ghost.
Does CrowdTangle or Ghost run on more platforms?
CrowdTangle runs on Web. Ghost runs on Web, Self-hosted, Cloud-hosted.
Can I use Ghost for free?
Yes. Ghost has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. CrowdTangle starts at On request.
What is CrowdTangle best used for?
CrowdTangle is most often used for viral content tracking, social listening, competitor analysis, trend identification. Of those, viral content tracking and social listening are not what Ghost is typically brought in for.
What can CrowdTangle do that Ghost cannot?
CrowdTangle covers Social listening, Viral content tracking, Competitor monitoring, Brand mention tracking. Ghost covers Content API, Membership, Analytics, Webhooks.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Ghost: What is the free option for Ghost?

Ghost is open-source software that can be self-hosted for free. Self-hosting costs depend on your own server, domain, SSL, email delivery infrastructure, and DevOps expertise.

Source
Ghost: What is the starting price for Ghost(Pro) managed hosting?

Ghost(Pro) Starter plan is USD 15/month when billed yearly or USD 18/month when billed monthly. This plan includes up to 1,000 members with membership features enabled.

Source
Ghost: Can I collect payments and manage subscriptions with Ghost?

Yes. Ghost includes native membership and subscription management with support for free signups and paid tiers (monthly/yearly options). All revenue goes directly to publishers with zero payment fees.

Source
Ghost: Does Ghost integrate with Stripe?

Yes. Ghost integrates with Stripe for payment processing and subscription management, plus Zapier, Slack, Google Analytics, and thousands of other third-party apps.

Source
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