Luxe Themes
Best Ghost Themes in 2026
The best premium and free Ghost themes for blogs, newsletters, and magazines. Compare providers, features, and pricing across the Ghost ecosystem.
The Ghost Theme Landscape in 2026
Ghost themes define your publication’s visual identity. Unlike Substack (uniform layout for everyone) or Medium (identical design, no customization), Ghost’s Handlebars-based theme system gives you complete control over how your site looks and functions.
The ecosystem has matured significantly. In 2026, premium Ghost themes include dark mode, membership pages, multiple post layouts, internationalization, and PWA support as standard features. Free themes cover the basics but leave significant gaps in customization and functionality.
This guide covers the best options across the ecosystem — free and premium, from Ghost’s official marketplace and third-party developers.
What Makes a Good Ghost Theme in 2026
Before the recommendations, here is what separates a functional theme from an excellent one:
Essentials (every theme should have these):
- Responsive design that works on all devices
- Ghost membership support (signup, signin, account pages)
- Newsletter signup integration
- Clean semantic HTML and fast load times
- Regular updates for Ghost version compatibility
Premium differentiators (what you are paying for):
- Dark mode with system preference detection
- Multiple post header layouts (not one-size-fits-all)
- Custom search functionality (Ghost has no built-in search)
- Internationalization with language file translations
- RTL support for Arabic, Hebrew, and Persian audiences
- Table of contents for long-form content
- PWA support for app-like installation
- Custom membership and pricing pages
- No-code customization via Ghost Admin settings
Best Premium Ghost Theme Providers
Luxe Themes
Six themes built for content-first publishers with a focus on design craft.
| Theme | Price | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Shiro | $149 | 7 color schemes, 9 post layouts, custom search, comments |
| Luno | $89 | 6 hero layouts, table of contents, membership pages |
| Flow | $89 | Sidebar nav, highlights carousel, PWA, 46 languages, RTL |
| Rune | $89 | Visitor-controlled theme switcher, featured posts, PWA |
| Homa | $69 | Dropdown nav, featured posts, photo galleries |
| Nio | $69 | 5 hero alignments, dropdown nav, galleries |
All themes include dark mode, membership support, and Vite/Tailwind/TypeScript architecture. Flow ships with 46 language translations and RTL support — the most comprehensive i18n of any Ghost theme.
Bright Themes
The largest premium Ghost theme developer. 18+ themes serving 3,000+ customers.
| Notable Themes | Price | Category |
|---|---|---|
| Auden | $149 | Blog with 3 homepage layouts |
| Basho | $149 | Magazine with 3 header layouts |
| Shoji | $149 | Newsletter with reading progress |
- Pricing: $149 per theme, $239/year for all themes, or $499 lifetime bundle
- Known for: performance optimization, table of contents, custom theme settings
- Covers niches: podcasts, photography, news, changelogs, job boards, community forums
Aspire Themes
13 premium themes used by 3,500+ publishers including Harvard and Quillette.
- Pricing: $149 per theme, $499 for all 13 (saves $1,400+)
- Multi-language support: German, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian, Finnish, Dutch, Turkish, Danish
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Bundle license: unlimited Ghost websites
Notable themes: Flavor (food blog), Tripoli (RTL support), Skyline (magazine).
ElectronThemes
10+ themes with a focus on speed and clean code. Based in Bangladesh, serving blogs across 50+ countries.
- Pricing: $59 per theme (flat pricing, no bundles)
- Loading speeds under 1.5 seconds
- RTL and multilingual support built in
- Custom Ghost theme development services available
Notable themes: Flavor (blog), Flavor Dark, Flavor Developer (code-focused), Flavor Dev (alternative code-focused).
Other Providers Worth Noting
| Provider | Themes | Price Range | Notable Feature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fueko | 13 | $49-89 | ThemeForest bestsellers |
| Visioun | 9 | $39-74 | $99/yr or $399 lifetime |
| Iris Themes | 6 | ~$99 | One free theme (Verdin) |
| Layered Craft | 7 | $49-69 | 7+ years Ghost experience |
| Super Themes Co. | Multiple | $19-149 | Built Ali Abdaal’s site theme |
| Themex Studio | Multiple | $69-89 | Portfolios, newsletters, blogs |
Best Free Ghost Themes
Ghost includes 19+ free official themes. These are maintained by the Ghost team and receive regular updates.
Top Free Picks
Casper — The default Ghost theme. Clean magazine layout, well-maintained, and the most battle-tested Ghost theme. Good starting point but shared by thousands of sites.
Source — News and magazine layout with a modern design. Handles content-heavy publications well.
Dawn — Newsletter-focused with a minimal aesthetic. Good for publications where the content is the entire point.
Edition — Blog theme with a reading progress bar. One of the few free themes with this feature.
Solo — Personal blog theme. Minimal, single-author focused.
Episode and Wave — Podcast themes for audio-focused publications.
Free Third-Party Themes
Liebling (by Eduardo Gomez) — A standout free theme. Includes RTL support, internationalization, membership tier support, image lightbox, and a custom subscription form. More feature-rich than most free themes.
Mapache — Open-source with multiple homepage layouts, sidebars, 6 languages, light and dark modes, and membership support.
Attila — Minimal, Medium-like design with a reading progress bar.
Free vs Premium: What You Give Up
The gap between free and premium Ghost themes is significant:
| Feature | Free Themes | Premium Themes |
|---|---|---|
| Post layouts | 1 (fixed) | 3-9 options |
| Color schemes | 1 | 2-7 |
| Dark mode | Rarely | Standard |
| Custom search | No | Often included |
| Table of contents | No | Available |
| PWA support | No | Some themes |
| i18n / translations | English-only (mostly) | 9-46 languages |
| RTL support | Rare | Available |
| Membership pages | Basic | Custom sign-in, pricing, account |
| Support | Community only | Dedicated developer |
| Updates | Variable | Regular |
Free themes work for getting started or experimentation. Premium themes are worth the investment when brand identity, SEO performance, and reader experience matter.
For a deeper analysis, see our free vs premium Ghost themes comparison.
How to Choose the Right Theme
For Newsletters
Prioritize: signup form placement, clean reading experience, email design consistency.
Recommendations: Dawn (free), Rune ($89), Flow ($89).
For Magazines and News
Prioritize: multiple post layouts, category navigation, featured post sections, search.
Recommendations: Source (free), Shiro ($149), Basho (Bright Themes, $149).
For Personal Blogs
Prioritize: typography, reading experience, minimal design, author bio sections.
Recommendations: Solo (free), Nio ($69), Homa ($69).
For Membership Publications
Prioritize: membership pages (sign-in, pricing, account), tier display, content gating design.
Recommendations: Luno ($89), Shiro ($149), Auden (Bright Themes, $149).
For Multilingual Publications
Prioritize: i18n support, RTL layout, language file coverage.
Recommendations: Flow ($89, 46 languages + RTL), Tripoli (Aspire Themes, $149), Liebling (free, RTL + i18n).
How Ghost Themes Work
Ghost themes use Handlebars (.hbs) templates. The only required files are index.hbs (homepage) and post.hbs (post page). Everything else is optional but adds functionality.
Themes are uploaded as .zip files through Ghost Admin: Settings → Design → Upload a theme. Ghost validates the theme automatically using GScan before activation.
Key technical points:
- Handlebars templating separates content from presentation
- Context system determines which template renders each page type
- Custom slug templates (e.g.,
page-about.hbs) enable one-off designs - Partials and helpers allow reusable components
- Ghost(Pro) Starter limits you to official free themes; Publisher+ required for custom themes
Pricing Summary
| Option | Cost | What You Get |
|---|---|---|
| Official free themes | $0 | 19+ themes maintained by Ghost team |
| Budget premium | $39-69 | Simpler designs, fewer features |
| Mid-range premium | $69-99 | Full feature sets, dark mode, membership pages |
| Top-tier premium | $109-149 | Maximum layouts, color schemes, advanced features |
| All-theme bundles | $199-499 | Every theme from a provider |
| Custom development | $2,000-10,000 | Bespoke design from scratch |
The sweet spot for most publishers is the $69-99 range: enough features to differentiate your brand without the cost of custom development. A one-time theme purchase at $69-149 delivers 93-97% of the value of custom development at a fraction of the cost.
Start with the Right Foundation
Your Ghost theme is the most visible part of your publication. Readers judge your credibility in seconds. A professional theme signals serious publishing.
Our themes are built for publishers who take their brand seriously, starting at $69. Every theme includes dark mode, membership pages, and the design flexibility to make your publication distinctly yours.
Recommended Themes
These themes excel at the features discussed in this article.
