creatorUpdated September 2026 · prices from vendor's pricing page
Ghost pricing
Ghost has 4 plans: Starter, Publisher, Business, Enterprise. There is no free plan. Paid plans start at $18/mo billed yearly (Starter). Fees: No payment fees / 0% transaction fees on paid subscriptions (Publisher and above); payment processor (Stripe) fees still apply separately
Starter
$18/mo billed yearly
- 1,000 members, no paid subscriptions
- 1 staff user, 5MB file upload cap
- No tips/donations, no marketplace/custom themes
Publisher
$29/mo billed yearly
- 1,000 members (scales with audience growth)
- Paid subscriptions enabled, 0% transaction fees
- 3 staff users, custom themes, 8,000+ integrations
- Advanced analytics, 100MB uploads
Business
$199/mo billed yearly
- 10,000 members
- 15 staff users, priority support
- Early feature access, 250MB uploads
Enterprise
Custom
- Unlimited members
- Fees
- No payment fees / 0% transaction fees on paid subscriptions (Publisher and above); payment processor (Stripe) fees still apply separately
Ghost(Pro) has no free tier (Starter at $18/mo is entry price); self-hosted open-source Ghost is separately free. Monthly (non-annual-billed) prices could not be verified from the fetched page (JS toggle rendered only the annual-billing state). Annual discount percentage not explicitly stated. Prices scale with member count via a slider up to 100k+; exact price at higher tiers could not be verified.
Full Ghost review →Ghost alternatives →Official pricing page ↗
Alternatives with a free plan
Substack
FreeNewsletters · Monetization
Newsletter publishing platform letting writers monetize via paid subscriptions with a built-in discovery network.
beehiiv
Free · $49+Newsletters · Monetization
Newsletter platform built by ex-Morning Brew staff, offering a website builder, ad network, and 0% cut on paid subscriptions.
Kit
Free · $25+Newsletters · Monetization
Email marketing and automation platform for creators to grow lists and monetize via newsletters and digital products.
Questions people ask
+Is Ghost free?
No, Ghost has no free plan. It offers a free trial.
+How much is Ghost Starter?
Ghost Starter costs $18/mo billed yearly.
+How much is Ghost Publisher?
Ghost Publisher costs $29/mo billed yearly.
+How much is Ghost Business?
Ghost Business costs $199/mo billed yearly.
+Does Ghost charge fees?
No payment fees / 0% transaction fees on paid subscriptions (Publisher and above); payment processor (Stripe) fees still apply separately
Sources: ghost.org