Luxe Themes
Tribune
$89
Ghost: A Modern Blogging & Publishing Platform
Updated June 2026
Ghost is an open-source publishing platform for blogs, newsletters, and membership sites. Unlike a generic CMS, it ships with a built-in email newsletter, native paid subscriptions, and strong SEO — so one Ghost site can be your blog, your newsletter, and your paid membership at once, with 0% revenue share. Here's how it works, how it compares to the alternatives, and how to make it yours.
What makes Ghost different
Built-in newsletter
Email your subscribers every time you publish — no Mailchimp or ConvertKit needed.
Native memberships
Free and paid tiers with Stripe, and 0% revenue share — your blog can be a business.
Fast & SEO-ready
Clean markup, structured data, and speed are built in — no SEO plugins to bolt on.
Open-source & owned
Self-host it or use Ghost(Pro). Either way, you own your content, your audience, and your data.
Coming from another platform? Compare Ghost vs WordPress, Ghost vs Medium, and Ghost vs Substack — or explore running a newsletter or membership website on Ghost.
Premium themes for your Ghost blog
A theme defines how your Ghost site looks and works. Every Luxe theme includes multiple post layouts, dark mode, membership pages, and no-code customization.
Ghost Platform FAQ
What is Ghost?
Ghost is an open-source publishing platform for blogs, newsletters, and membership sites. It combines a fast, SEO-friendly website with a built-in email newsletter and native paid subscriptions — so a single Ghost site can be your blog, your newsletter, and your membership business at once. It's used by publishers, creators, and companies, and takes 0% of subscription revenue.
Is Ghost better than WordPress for blogging?
For a focused blog or publication, many people find Ghost simpler and faster. Ghost includes newsletters, memberships, and SEO out of the box with no plugins to install, update, or secure, and it's built for speed. WordPress is more flexible for arbitrary websites and has a larger plugin ecosystem, but that flexibility comes with more setup and maintenance. See our full Ghost vs WordPress comparison.
Is Ghost free?
Ghost is open-source software you can self-host for the cost of a server (from a few dollars a month). The official managed service, Ghost(Pro), starts at $15/month (annual) or $18/month (monthly). Either way, Ghost takes 0% of your subscription revenue — you only pay Stripe's processing fee on paid memberships.
Can I change how my Ghost blog looks?
Yes. Ghost uses themes built on Handlebars templates, and you can install a premium theme in seconds via Settings → Design → Upload a theme. A good theme gives you multiple post layouts, dark mode, membership pages, and customization through Ghost Admin without touching code. All Luxe themes are built this way.