Ghost
Publishing and newsletter platform with built-in paid subscriptions and no commission on your revenue. The software is free (MIT); the hosted Ghost(Pro) offer starts at $18 a month for 1,000 members, billed yearly.
Ghost is itself open source: replacing it means hosting it yourself. A VPS costing a few euros, Docker and an email delivery service are enough to publish, manage subscribers and collect payments through Stripe. What you lose: managed hosting, backups, updates and above all email deliverability, which requires careful sending setup. For a blog or a small newsletter, it is an evening of work.
What you lose
- Managed hosting, updates and backups
- Email deliverability handled by the vendor
- Support and scaling without having to think about it
Existing alternatives to Ghost
- Ghost (auto-hébergé)Open source
The same software (MIT), installed on your server: publishing, newsletters and paid subscriptions.
The prompt to build it yourself
Set up self-hosted Ghost to replace Ghost(Pro) for my blog and newsletter. Do not build a platform: deploy the open-source Ghost software. To do: - A docker-compose.yml with Ghost and MySQL, volumes in ./data, automatic restart. - Caddy in front, automatic HTTPS on my domain. - Email sending through a transactional service that I will give you (keys in .env, never in the repository), with SPF, DKIM and DMARC checked. - Stripe connected for paid subscriptions, in test mode first. - A nightly encrypted backup of the database and content, copied off the server; write restore.sh and have me run a restore test. - Migration of my content and subscribers from Ghost(Pro) by export/import. Out of scope: custom theme, advanced analytics. README: launch, update, restore, and a reminder that I am responsible for security updates and deliverability.
Frequently asked questions
- Can Ghost be replaced by a custom-built tool?
- casevibecode verdict: Replaceable. Ghost is itself open source: replacing it means hosting it yourself. A VPS costing a few euros, Docker and an email delivery service are enough to publish, manage subscribers and collect payments through Stripe. What you lose: managed hosting, backups, updates and above all email deliverability, which requires careful sending setup. For a blog or a small newsletter, it is an evening of work.
- What is Ghost used for?
- Publishing and newsletter platform with built-in paid subscriptions and no commission on your revenue. The software is free (MIT); the hosted Ghost(Pro) offer starts at $18 a month for 1,000 members, billed yearly.
- What alternatives to Ghost already exist?
- Ghost (auto-hébergé) (open source). Options to compare before committing to a custom build.
Community feedback
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