Ghost Pro is the official managed hosting service for the open-source Ghost platform, launched in 2013. It offers a hassle-free way to run a Ghost site, handling all hosting, updates, and maintenance for creators and publishers.
Ghost Pro Alternatives
For many, Ghost’s fully managed hosting service, Ghost Pro↗︎, is a great option. It offers the convenience of built-in maintenance, security, and support, but its cost can be a bit steep for individuals and small publishers who are just starting out.
Thankfully, the open-source nature of Ghost has led to a variety of alternative hosting solutions. These options, which range from self-managed setups to managed services provided by various companies and individuals, offer similar functionality at a fraction of the cost. Whether you’re a blogger, newsletter writer, or indie publisher, there are more affordable ways to run a Ghost site without compromising on performance or features.
DigitalPress
Price Guide: €1 / €25 – Visit Website
DigitalPress is a free hosting platform for Ghost that makes it easy to launch a blog or newsletter with minimal setup. The free tier includes 200 newsletter emails per month, unlimited members and admin users, plus access to a range of free Ghost themes. While the €1 plan is ad-supported, no ads appear to be shown on the actual sites – at least for now.
FirePress
Price Guide: $19 / $190 – Visit Website
FirePress is a fully managed Ghost hosting provider that offers a simple, all-in-one solution for running a Ghost site. While the exact limit for newsletter emails isn’t specified, both plans include unlimited members, unlimited staff users, and allow up to 500 image uploads per month. Pricing is straightforward, with just two options, $19 per month or $190 per year.
Gloat
Price Guide: $189 – Visit Website
Gloat is a boutique Ghost hosting service operated by Dan Rowden, a respected figure in the Ghost community and creator of the popular Ghost commenting platform, Cove.
Offering a straightforward pricing model, Gloat provides a single plan at $189 per year. This plan includes 20,000 newsletter emails per month, unlimited members, and unlimited staff users, making it a solid choice for creators seeking a reliable, community-trusted Ghost host.
Midnight
Price Guide: $12 / $60 – Visit Website
Midnight is a Ghost hosting platform that takes a different approach with its plans. The Standard plan, priced at $12 per month, offers unlimited members and staff but does not include newsletter emails. To access newsletter capabilities, users can upgrade to the Midnight Plus plan, which includes 10,000 newsletter emails per month.
Magic Pages
Price Guide: $4.50 / $11 – Visit Website
Magic Pages provides convenient Ghost hosting with a flexible pricing model that includes monthly, yearly, and occasional lifetime plans. The plans include features such as unlimited team members, a generous monthly email allowance, unlimited storage, custom integrations, daily backups, regular Ghost updates, and free SSL certificates.
Synaps Media
Price Guide: €48 / year – Visit Website
Synaps Media offers Netherlands-based Ghost hosting for €48 a year, with unlimited members and staff, custom themes, a custom domain, global CDN with SSL, daily backups, and Ghost 6.0 readiness. New features include social web integration and web analytics, making it a straightforward, fully managed solution for creators and publishers.
FastComet
Price Guide: $9.95 – Visit Website
FastComet is one of the few mainstream web hosting providers that supports Ghost. As a cPanel-based host, it offers plans starting at $9.95 per month. Unlike dedicated Ghost hosting platforms, FastComet doesn’t include built-in newsletter functionality. To send newsletters, you’ll need to set up Mailgun manually within your Ghost installation. It’s a more hands-on option, but potentially more flexible for those comfortable with server management.
Other Ghost Pro Alternatives
If you’re comfortable managing your own server, there are more technical alternatives to Ghost Pro that offer greater flexibility and lower costs. A2 Hosting, for example, provides unmanaged virtual private servers starting at $6.99 per month. However, these plans require sysadmin experience, as you’ll be responsible for everything from installation to maintenance.
For those willing to self-host, platforms like DigitalOcean and Amazon Lightsail offer one-click Ghost installations, while Vultr and Linode provide detailed setup guides. Keep in mind that self-hosting means managing server updates, backups, email configuration, and security on your own – ideal for tech-savvy users, but potentially overwhelming for beginners.
Frequently Asked Questions
Still have questions about Ghost Pro hosting? Here are some quick answers to the most common ones.
Can I migrate my existing Ghost Pro site to a different host?
Yes, migrating from Ghost Pro to another host is possible, but it may require some technical steps. You can export your content via Ghost’s built-in export tool and import it into your new setup. However, you’ll also need to manually transfer your theme, configure your domain, set up email delivery (e.g. via Mailgun), and ensure your server meets Ghost’s requirements.
Do Ghost alternatives support custom domains and HTTPS?
Most Ghost hosting alternatives, including self-hosted options, allow you to use a custom domain and support HTTPS via free SSL certificates. Services like DigitalPress, Gloat, and Magic Pages include HTTPS out of the box, while self-hosting typically requires configuring SSL manually using Let’s Encrypt or your chosen certificate provider.
What’s the difference between using a Ghost-specific host and a general web host?
Ghost-specific hosts (like Gloat, FirePress, or Midnight) are optimised for Ghost and handle things like updates, performance tuning, and email integration. General web hosts (like A2 Hosting or DigitalOcean) give you more control but require manual setup and maintenance. The trade-off is usually between convenience and flexibility – Ghost -specific hosts cost more but save time, while general hosts are cheaper but require more technical know-how.
Image was generated using Google’s Nano Banana.
