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Ghost vs HARO

Ghost logo

Ghost

News

Modern publishing platform with content API and membership support

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
HARO logo

HARO

News

Help A Reporter Out - connecting journalists with expert sources

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Ghost backup and migration processes have significant limitations and are problematic for long-term users; HARO hARO was rebranded and phased out by Cision in favor of Connectively (www.connectively.us) starting early 2024, per the vendor's own helpareporter.com notice (Internet Archive capture, 2023)
  • They diverge on capability: Ghost covers Content API, HARO covers Daily journalist queries.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Ghost and HARO actually diverge.

Attributes where Ghost and HARO differ
AttributeGhostHARO
Pricing modelUnknownfreemium
PlatformsWeb, Self-hosted, Cloud-hostedWeb, Email
Founded20132008

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Ghost

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

Only in HARO

  • Daily journalist queries
  • Source submissions
  • Query archives
  • Response tracking
  • Source directory
  • Email matching
  • Profile management
  • Email

What people use each for

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

Ghost

  • API Developmentnot HARO
  • API Gatewaynot HARO
  • API Testingnot HARO
  • API Documentationnot HARO
  • Microservicesnot HARO

HARO

  • Finding expert sourcesnot Ghost
  • Press coveragenot Ghost
  • Expert positioningnot Ghost
  • Media relationsnot Ghost

Where each one falls short

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

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

HARO

  • HARO was rebranded and phased out by Cision in favor of Connectively (www.connectively.us) starting early 2024, per the vendor's own helpareporter.com notice (Internet Archive capture, 2023)

Pricing, plan by plan

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

HARO

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Daily email alerts
    • Query submissions
    • Source directory
  • Pro$19.99/month
    • Advanced features
    • Priority support
    • Analytics

Which should you pick?

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

Choose HARO if

  • You need daily journalist queries.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Email.
  • You also want source submissions.
HARO review

Questions people ask

Is Ghost or HARO better?
Neither clearly leads. Ghost starts at Free and HARO at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ghost or HARO?
Ghost starts at Free and HARO at Free.
Does Ghost or HARO run on more platforms?
Ghost runs on Web, Self-hosted, Cloud-hosted. HARO runs on Web, Email.
Can I use Ghost for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Ghost best used for?
Ghost is most often used for api development, api gateway, api testing, api documentation. Of those, api development and api gateway are not what HARO is typically brought in for.
What can Ghost do that HARO cannot?
Ghost covers Content API, Membership, Analytics, Webhooks. HARO covers Daily journalist queries, Source submissions, Query archives, Response tracking.

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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