Ghost alternatives

Ranked alternatives

Free-plan tools first, then ascending by entry price, then alphabetical. Tags are derived from each tool's verified plan data; no editorial verdict claims.

1. 01
   beehiiv

   Newsletter platform with built-in monetization.

   • Cheaper entry
   • Has free plan
   • Primarily email marketing
   From

   Free

   Plans

   4
   beehiiv profile Ghost vs beehiiv
2. 02
   Buttondown

   Privacy-first newsletter tool for creators with à la carte add-on pricing instead of stacked tiers.

   • Cheaper entry
   • Has free plan
   • Primarily email marketing
   From

   Free

   Plans

   4
   Buttondown profile Ghost vs Buttondown
3. 03
   Kit

   Email marketing built for creators.

   • Cheaper entry
   • Has free plan
   • Primarily email marketing
   From

   Free

   Plans

   3
   Kit profile Ghost vs Kit
4. 04
   MailerLite

   Email marketing with a generous free tier and clean editor.

   • Cheaper entry
   • Has free plan
   • Primarily email marketing
   From

   Free

   Plans

   4
   MailerLite profile Ghost vs MailerLite
5. 05
   Substack

   Newsletter publishing with a 10% revenue share, no flat fee.

   • Cheaper entry
   • Has free plan
   • Primarily email marketing
   From

   Free

   Plans

   1
   Substack profile Ghost vs Substack

How we ranked these

• Candidates. Every tool we hand-flagged as a Ghost alternative, plus every tool sharing its primary category (content marketing). Tools we don't yet track are not listed; we never link out to a tool we haven't verified.
• Order. Free-plan tools first, then ascending by entry monthly price (the headline anchor we capture from each vendor). Custom-priced tools sort last. Ties broken alphabetically.
• Tags. Each row's tags are computed against Ghost's data: cheaper entry, free plan present, more plan tiers, enterprise tier present. No editorial "better than" claims.
• Freshness. Pricing is captured weekly from each vendor's pricing page, listed in the source citation below. Confirm at the vendor's page before buying.

Common questions

What's the cheapest alternative to Ghost?

beehiiv starts at Free, the lowest entry price among 5 alternatives we track to Ghost (which starts at $18/mo). Pricing scales differently above the entry tier; check each plan grid before buying.

Which Ghost alternative has a free plan?

beehiiv, Buttondown, Kit, MailerLite, Substack all offer permanent free plans. Free-tier limits vary, so the right pick depends on your contact count and send volume.

Are these all in the same category as Ghost?

No. Ghost is primarily a content marketing tool. The alternatives listed here are adjacent tools that overlap on use case but sit in different primary categories.

Where can I compare Ghost side-by-side with these alternatives?

Each Ghost-vs-alternative pair has a dedicated head-to-head page on TierGauge with verified plan data, side-by-side feature mapping, and limit comparison at the entry paid tier. Pairs are linked from each row in the ranked list above; the canonical URL is /compare/<a>-vs-<b> alphabetical.