Overview
Ghost is an open-source publishing platform that offers both self-hosted and managed (Ghost Pro) options. Our analysis reveals strong content ownership terms, full data portability, and the unique benefit of self-hosting to avoid any third-party terms entirely. The managed Ghost(Pro) service has reasonable terms but premium pricing.
Key Concerns
- Premium Pricing: Ghost(Pro) managed hosting is significantly more expensive than competitors, especially at scale.
- Technical Complexity: Self-hosting requires technical knowledge, and managed hosting costs are substantial.
- Stripe Dependency: Paid memberships require Stripe integration, adding another terms layer.
- Limited Discovery: Unlike Substack, Ghost offers no built-in network or recommendation features.
- Standard Liability Limits: Ghost(Pro) includes standard liability limitations in their terms.
Positive Aspects
- Open Source: Core platform is open source (MIT license), allowing complete transparency and self-hosting.
- Full Content Ownership: You retain complete ownership of all content with no platform licensing claims.
- Complete Data Export: Full export of content, subscribers, and all data in standard formats.
- No Revenue Share: Zero transaction fees or revenue share on paid memberships.
- Non-Profit Foundation: Ghost is run by a non-profit foundation, not VC-funded growth pressure.
Data Collection Summary
Ghost(Pro) collects publication content, member/subscriber data, payment information (via Stripe), and usage analytics. Self-hosted Ghost gives you complete control over data. Ghost Foundation does not sell data and has minimal advertising-related data collection.