News & Media · head to head
Substack vs Ghost
Substack
News & Media
The newsletter platform for writers and publishers
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Ghost
News & Media
Modern publishing platform with content API and membership support
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Substack substack takes a 10% cut of subscription revenue (writers keep 90%), plus separate credit card processing fees; Ghost backup and migration processes have significant limitations and are problematic for long-term users
- They diverge on capability: Substack covers Newsletter publishing, Ghost covers Content API.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Substack and Ghost actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (News & Media).
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 Substack
- Newsletter publishing
- Subscriber management
- Paid subscriptions
- Email analytics
- Post scheduling
- Archive creation
- Free/paid tier split
- Comments & discussion
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.
Substack
- Newsletter distributionnot Ghost
- Reader monetizationnot Ghost
- Community buildingnot Ghost
- Subscriber managementnot Ghost
Ghost
- API Developmentnot Substack
- API Gatewaynot Substack
- API Testingnot Substack
- API Documentationnot Substack
- Microservicesnot Substack
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Substack
- Substack takes a 10% cut of subscription revenue (writers keep 90%), plus separate credit card processing fees
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
Substack
Free- FreeFree
- Unlimited newsletters
- Basic design
- Archive access
- Pro$12/month
- Custom domain
- Advanced analytics
- Member chat
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 Substack if
- You need newsletter publishing.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Mobile.
- You also want subscriber management.
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.
Questions people ask
- Is Substack or Ghost better?
- Neither clearly leads. Substack starts at Free and Ghost at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Substack or Ghost?
- Substack starts at Free and Ghost at Free.
- Does Substack or Ghost run on more platforms?
- Substack runs on Web, Mobile. Ghost runs on Web, Self-hosted, Cloud-hosted.
- Can I use Substack for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Substack best used for?
- Substack is most often used for newsletter distribution, reader monetization, community building, subscriber management. Of those, newsletter distribution and reader monetization are not what Ghost is typically brought in for.
- What can Substack do that Ghost cannot?
- Substack covers Newsletter publishing, Subscriber management, Paid subscriptions, Email analytics. 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.
SourceGhost: 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.
SourceGhost: 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.
SourceGhost: 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