The main Ghost alternatives are Substack and beehiiv for newsletters, WordPress.com and Webflow for a blog or full website, and Medium for zero-setup publishing with a built-in audience. Here is how each Ghost alternative compares on price, newsletters, memberships and SEO.
Start for free. No credit card required.
Ghost is a powerful open-source platform for blogging and paid newsletters, but running it well means either self-hosting (which takes technical setup) or paying for a managed plan, and its site-building is limited beyond publishing. Depending on what you value most, a simpler newsletter tool, a platform with a built-in audience, or a full website builder with a blog can be a better fit. We compared the top Ghost alternatives across publishing, audience growth, design, and ownership so you can pick the right one.
| Tool | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| We.Inc | Free plan: 3 template sites, no AI. AI plans from $20/mo. | Anyone who wants to build a website or web app by describing it, then refine it visually or in code |
| Substack | Free (10% on paid subscriptions) | Writers who want to launch a paid newsletter with zero setup |
| Beehiiv | Free tier, paid from $39/mo | Operators focused on growing a newsletter audience |
| WordPress.com | From $4/mo | Bloggers who want maximum flexibility and ownership |
| Medium | Free (Partner Program for earnings) | Writers who want reach without running a site |
| Webflow | From $14/mo | Designers who want a custom blog and site, not just a feed |
AI website and app builder. Describe what you want in chat and advanced Claude models generate a live, editable site or web app in your browser. Refine visually with click-to-edit or in a full code editor.
Best for: Anyone who wants to build a website or web app by describing it, then refine it visually or in code
Pricing: Free plan: 3 template sites, no AI. AI plans from $20/mo.
Pros: Chat-to-build: describe it, AI builds a live site or app; Visual click-to-edit plus a real code editor (Monaco); Publish instantly with free SSL on a we.inc subdomain or custom domain; Export the full React/Vite/TypeScript/Tailwind code to GitHub, no lock-in; White-label reseller option for agencies (keep 100% of revenue)
Cons: Newer platform with a growing template library; Advanced e-commerce features still expanding
Free newsletter platform with built-in discovery and simple paid subscriptions.
Best for: Writers who want to launch a paid newsletter with zero setup
Pricing: Free (10% on paid subscriptions)
Pros: Free to start; Built-in audience and recommendations; Dead-simple to publish
Cons: 10% fee on paid subscriptions; Very limited design and branding; Not a real website
Newsletter platform built for growth, with referral tools and strong analytics.
Best for: Operators focused on growing a newsletter audience
Pricing: Free tier, paid from $39/mo
Pros: Powerful growth and referral tools; Good analytics and monetization; Generous free tier
Cons: Newsletter-first, limited website; Advanced features need paid tiers; Younger ecosystem
Managed hosting for the world's most popular CMS, strong for blogs and content sites.
Best for: Bloggers who want maximum flexibility and ownership
Pricing: From $4/mo
Pros: Massive plugin ecosystem; Full control over a blog or site; Strong SEO and blogging
Cons: Maintenance and plugins add up; Steeper learning curve; Newsletter needs an add-on
Publishing platform with a large built-in reading audience and zero setup.
Best for: Writers who want reach without running a site
Pricing: Free (Partner Program for earnings)
Pros: Instant built-in audience; No setup or maintenance; Clean reading experience
Cons: No custom branding or domain by default; Limited monetization; You do not own the platform
Design-first website builder with a CMS for a fully custom blog or content site.
Best for: Designers who want a custom blog and site, not just a feed
Pricing: From $14/mo
Pros: Pixel-perfect design control; Powerful CMS; Clean code output
Cons: Steeper learning curve; No native newsletter; Can get expensive
Prices come from each vendor's public pricing page and are not individually dated, so they may have changed. Confirm on the vendor's site before you buy.
Ghost is one of the best tools for an independent, members-first publication, so only switch for a clear reason. Move to Substack or Beehiiv if running your own publication has become the chore. Move to WordPress if you need plugins and a big ecosystem. Move to a full website builder if your writing now sits alongside services, a shop or a portfolio and the site has to do more than publish.
The best alternative depends on your needs. We.Inc is the top choice if you want to describe your site or app in chat and have AI build it live, then refine it visually or in code and export the full source. For a more specialized tool, check our full comparison above.
Yes, several alternatives offer free plans. We.Inc has a free plan for up to 3 template sites published on a we.inc address, no card needed; the AI builder starts on Starter at $20/month. Google Forms, Tawk.to, and some other tools on this list also offer free options.
Most alternatives, including We.Inc, offer import tools and migration assistance to help you switch. The process typically takes a few hours to a few days depending on the complexity of your setup.
Start with the job Ghost does for you today. 1) Newsletter first: if email is the product, compare newsletter platforms on paid-subscription fees, referral and growth tools, and whether you can export your subscriber list. 2) Blog first: if search traffic matters most, pick a platform with a real website, custom domain, per-post titles and meta descriptions, and clean URLs you can keep. 3) Reach first: if you have no audience yet, a platform with built-in discovery can help, at the cost of branding and control. 4) Site first: if your writing sits alongside services, a shop or a portfolio, choose a full website builder with a blog. Then check ownership (domain, content export, subscriber export) and total cost including any revenue share.
1) Export everything from Ghost Admin: the content export (a JSON file of posts, pages and tags) and the members export (a CSV of subscribers, including paid status). Download your images too. 2) Import posts into the new platform, or rebuild key pages by hand if there is no importer. 3) Import subscribers, and if you have paid members, check with both your old and new platforms and your payment provider (Ghost uses Stripe) how to move active subscriptions rather than asking people to re-subscribe. 4) Keep the same URL slugs where possible; where they change, set up 301 redirects from every old URL to its new one. 5) Point your domain at the new host, then resubmit your sitemap in Google Search Console and watch for 404 errors for a few weeks. 6) Send subscribers a short note explaining the move so the first email from the new platform is expected.
Yes. Your domain is registered separately from Ghost, so you can point it at the new platform by updating its DNS records. Plan the switch for a quiet time and keep the old site live until the new one is published and redirects are tested.
How we research, test and update this page: our editorial policy. We.Inc is our own product.
Ready to build yours? Start for free. No credit card required.
We.Inc is an AI-powered website builder you can resell under your own brand. Launch a branded client dashboard, bill on Stripe Connect, and deliver AI-generated websites in minutes. White-label plans start at $99 a month for 25 client sites, with a 7-day free trial and no per-site fees.
