Is Ghost CMS or SmartNews better?

Neither clearly leads. Ghost CMS starts at $18/month and SmartNews at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, Ghost CMS or SmartNews?

SmartNews has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $18/month for Ghost CMS and Free for SmartNews.

Does Ghost CMS or SmartNews run on more platforms?

Ghost CMS runs on Web, Self-hosted. SmartNews runs on Ios, Android.

Can I use SmartNews for free?

Yes. SmartNews has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Ghost CMS starts at $18/month.

What is Ghost CMS best used for?

Ghost CMS is most often used for running a publication or newsletter with paid subscriptions, self hosting a headless or full stack publishing platform. Of those, running a publication or newsletter with paid subscriptions and self hosting a headless or full stack publishing platform are not what SmartNews is typically brought in for.

What can Ghost CMS do that SmartNews cannot?

Ghost CMS covers Publishing platform, Email newsletters, Membership management, Analytics. SmartNews covers Machine learning curation, Smart Mode, Local news, Breaking alerts.

News · head to head

Ghost CMS vs SmartNews

Ghost CMS

News

Modern platform for professional publishing

From: $18/month
Rated: -

Full review Website

SmartNews

News

Local news and breaking news from top sources

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Only SmartNews has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
Each has a real cost: Ghost CMS ghost Pro plans cap members, at 1,000 on both Starter and Publisher and 10,000 on Business; SmartNews no specific pricing published for SmartNews+ subscription
They diverge on capability: Ghost CMS covers Publishing platform, SmartNews covers Machine learning curation.
Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Ghost CMS and SmartNews actually diverge.

Attributes where Ghost CMS and SmartNews differ
Attribute	Ghost CMS	SmartNews
Starting price	$18/month	Free
Pricing model	subscription	free
Free tier	No	Yes
Platforms	Web, Self-hosted	Ios, Android
Founded	2013	2012

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 Ghost CMS

Publishing platform
Email newsletters
Membership management
Analytics
Paywall support
SEO optimization
Media library
API access

Only in SmartNews

Machine learning curation
Smart Mode
Local news
Breaking alerts
Offline reading
Social sharing
News publishers
Ios support

What people use each for

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

Ghost CMS

Running a publication or newsletter with paid subscriptionsnot SmartNews
Self hosting a headless or full stack publishing platformnot SmartNews

SmartNews

Daily newsnot Ghost CMS
Local newsnot Ghost CMS
Breaking newsnot Ghost CMS
Quick readingnot Ghost CMS

Where each one falls short

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

Ghost CMS

Ghost Pro plans cap members, at 1,000 on both Starter and Publisher and 10,000 on Business
Staff users are limited to 1 on Starter and 3 on Publisher
Custom themes and integrations require the Publisher plan at $29 a month billed yearly
The jump to 10,000 members is the $199 a month Business plan, with nothing between
Self hosting is free but installing under a subdirectory needs a custom reverse proxy that Ghost does not officially support

SmartNews

No specific pricing published for SmartNews+ subscription
Requires visiting separate product page for pricing details
Subscription service model described but not detailed with costs

Pricing, plan by plan

Ghost CMS

$18/month

Starter$18/month
- For solo blogs and newsletters
- Your own website
- Email newsletter
Publisher$29/month
- For custom publications
- 3 staff users
- Custom themes
Business$199/month
- For teams scaling up
- 15 staff users
- Priority support
Custom$null/contact
- For organizations with complex needs
- Unlimited staff users
- Dedicated IP addresses

SmartNews

Free

FreeFree
- Trending news
- Local news
- Smart Mode reading

Which should you pick?

Choose Ghost CMS if

You need publishing platform.
You work on Web, Self-hosted.
You also want email newsletters.

Ghost CMS review

Choose SmartNews if

You need machine learning curation.
You want to start without paying.
You work on Ios, Android.
You also want smart mode.

SmartNews review

Questions people ask

Is Ghost CMS or SmartNews better?: Neither clearly leads. Ghost CMS starts at $18/month and SmartNews at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ghost CMS or SmartNews?: SmartNews has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $18/month for Ghost CMS and Free for SmartNews.
Does Ghost CMS or SmartNews run on more platforms?: Ghost CMS runs on Web, Self-hosted. SmartNews runs on Ios, Android.
Can I use SmartNews for free?: Yes. SmartNews has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Ghost CMS starts at $18/month.
What is Ghost CMS best used for?: Ghost CMS is most often used for running a publication or newsletter with paid subscriptions, self hosting a headless or full stack publishing platform. Of those, running a publication or newsletter with paid subscriptions and self hosting a headless or full stack publishing platform are not what SmartNews is typically brought in for.
What can Ghost CMS do that SmartNews cannot?: Ghost CMS covers Publishing platform, Email newsletters, Membership management, Analytics. SmartNews covers Machine learning curation, Smart Mode, Local news, Breaking alerts.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Ghost CMS: How much does Ghost CMS cost?

Ghost(Pro) pricing starts at $18 per month when billed yearly for the Starter plan, with Publisher at $29 per month and Business at $199 per month. All plans include unlimited email sends and enterprise-grade security.

Source

SmartNews: How much does SmartNews cost?

SmartNews does not publish specific subscription pricing on its main website. The vendor offers SmartNews+, described as a subscription service aggregating paid business news and coupons, but cost details must be found on the dedicated SmartNews+ product page.

Source

Ghost CMS: Can I cancel my Ghost subscription anytime?

Yes, users can upgrade, downgrade, or cancel their Ghost subscription anytime without penalties.

Source

SmartNews: Does SmartNews offer a free tier?

SmartNews provides free access to curated news content. For additional business news and coupons, the vendor offers SmartNews+ as a paid subscription service. Pricing and trial details for SmartNews+ are available on the dedicated subscription product page.

Source

Ghost CMS: Are there any additional fees with Ghost?

Ghost waives transaction fees on all plans, though payment processor fees still apply. There are no setup fees or hidden charges.

Source

Ghost CMS vs SmartNews

Ghost CMS

SmartNews

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in Ghost CMS

Only in SmartNews

What people use each for

Ghost CMS

SmartNews

Where each one falls short

Ghost CMS

SmartNews

Pricing, plan by plan

Ghost CMS

SmartNews

Which should you pick?

Choose Ghost CMS if

Choose SmartNews if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on Ghost CMS

More on SmartNews

Keep looking

Other head to heads