Ghost vs Medium
Ghost
Headless CMS platform designed for blogs, newsletters, and content-driven publications
Professional publishers, niche communities, creators wanting ownership, multi-revenue publications
Medium
Hosted writing platform with built-in audience discovery and community engagement
Individual writers, thought leaders, new creators seeking audience, practitioners prioritizing reach over control
Short Answer
Ghost is a self-hosted, open-source publishing platform offering complete control and customization for $199/year, while Medium is a hosted community platform with built-in audience discovery but limited customization, costing $168/year for membership. Ghost suits creators wanting full ownership; Medium suits those prioritizing reach and simplicity.
Our Verdict
AI-assistedChoose Ghost if you want complete ownership, full customization, and multiple monetization paths—ideal for professional publications and niche communities. Choose Medium if you prioritize immediate audience reach, zero technical setup, and a content-first community environment—ideal for individual writers and thought leaders.
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Choose Ghost if
Professional publishers, niche communities, creators wanting ownership, multi-revenue publications
Choose Medium if
Individual writers, thought leaders, new creators seeking audience, practitioners prioritizing reach over control
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Key Differences at a Glance
Key Facts & Figures
| Metric | Ghost | Medium | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly Platform Cost(USD) | $99/month | — | — |
| Revenue Retention Rate(%) | 100% | — | — |
| Setup Time for Beginners(hours) | 8-40+ hours | — | — |
| Starting Monthly Cost(USD) | $18 (starter plan) | — | — |
| Average Monthly Cost (Managed)(USD) | $99 | — | — |
| Available Plugins/Extensions(count) | 200+ | — | — |
| Global Market Share(percent) | 1.5% | — | — |
| Setup Time for Beginners(minutes) | 0.5-1 hour | — | — |
| SEO Plugin Options(count) | 2-3 limited options | — | — |
| Page Speed (Average)(ms) | 1200-1800 | — | — |
| Built-in Community Features(count) | Newsletter, comments, member walls | — | — |
| Payment Payout Speed(days) | 2-5 days (processor dependent) | — | — |
| Base Annual Cost(USD) | $199/year (Ghost Pro) | $168/year (Premium membership) | +18% |
| Time to First Publish(minutes) | 30-60 minutes (with setup) | 2-5 minutes (sign up and publish) | +1400% |
| Available Integrations(count) | 400+ (through open-source ecosystem) | 50+ (official partnerships) | +700% |
| Content Ownership(percentage of rights) | 100% (creator owns all) | Shared (Medium retains platform rights) | +67% |
| Average Writer Earnings (Partner Program)(USD per month) | Variable (unlimited potential) | $50-500 (Medium Partner Program) | — |
| SEO Customization(scale 1-10) | 10/10 (full control) | 5/10 (limited meta controls) | +100% |
| Base Monthly Price(USD) | $29 (Ghost Pro) / Free (self-hosted) | — | — |
| Payment Processing Fee(%) | No additional fees | — | — |
| Built-in Templates(count) | 15-20 professional themes | — | — |
| Free Trial Length(days) | 14 days for Ghost(Pro) | — | — |
| Starting Monthly Price(USD) | $29 | — | — |
| Mid-Tier Plan Price(USD/month) | $79 | — | — |
| Newsletter Subscriber Limit (Mid-Tier)(subscribers) | 10,000 | — | — |
| Design Template Library(templates) | 100+ | — | — |
| CMS Collection Items (Performance Drop)(items) | Scales to 1,000,000+ | — | — |
| Creator Revenue Retention(percentage) | 50% (pool-based) | 50% (pool-based) | — |
| Content Monetization Speed(days to first sale) | 30-90 (eligibility required) | 30-90 (eligibility required) | — |
| Content Format Flexibility(format count) | Articles, audio, multimedia (3) | Articles, audio, multimedia (3) | — |
| Estimated Monthly Readers(millions) | 100M+ | 100M+ | — |
| Starting Cost(USD/year) | Free ($0) | Free ($0) | — |
| Monthly Active Users (Platform Reach)(millions) | 100+ million | 100+ million | — |
| Setup Time to First Publish(minutes) | 5-10 minutes | 5-10 minutes | — |
| Maximum Revenue Potential (Monthly)(USD) | $5,000+ (top writers) | $5,000+ (top writers) | — |
| Cost per 10,000 Subscribers/Year(USD) | $0 | $0 | — |
| Annual Hosting Cost(USD) | Free (or $5-12/month premium) | Free (or $5-12/month premium) | — |
| Design Templates Available(count) | 15-20 official templates | 15-20 official templates | — |
| Revenue Share on Ad Revenue(percent) | 50% (Medium takes 50%) | 50% (Medium takes 50%) | — |
| Content Export Difficulty(ease score (1-10)) | Very difficult (2/10) | Very difficult (2/10) | — |
| Technical Maintenance Required(hours per month) | 0 hours (fully managed) | 0 hours (fully managed) | — |
| Monthly Active Readers(millions) | 100+ | 100+ | — |
| Creator Revenue Share(USD per 1,000 views) | 50% (Member program) | 50% (Member program) | — |
| Custom Domain Cost(USD/month) | $5-12 (Pro required) | $5-12 (Pro required) | — |
| Platform Founded(year) | 2012 | 2012 | — |
All figures sourced from publicly available data. Last updated Jun 2026.
Key Differences
Ghost
Self-hosted or managed hosting required
Medium
Fully hosted by Medium🏆
Ghost
Complete control with HTML/CSS editing🏆
Medium
Limited to built-in themes and settings
Ghost
Full ownership of all data and content🏆
Medium
Medium retains platform rights; content portable
Ghost
Relies on SEO and social sharing
Medium
Built-in discovery algorithm reaches 100M+ monthly users🏆
Ghost
Ads, memberships, sponsored content, affiliate links🏆
Medium
Medium Partner Program (revenue share) or paywalls
Ghost
Moderate to high (hosting, domain, maintenance)
Medium
Minimal (publish and go)🏆
Ghost
$199 (Ghost Pro entry plan)
Medium
$168 (Medium membership for full features)
Full Comparison
| Attribute |  Ghost | Medium |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly Platform Cost(USD) | $99/month | — |
| Starting Monthly Cost(USD) | $18 (starter plan) | — |
| Average Monthly Cost (Managed)(USD) | $99 | — |
| Platform Fee(%) | $9-$199/month or $0 self-hosted | — |
| Base Annual Cost(USD) | $199/year (Ghost Pro) | $168/year (Premium membership) |
Show 7 more attributesBase Monthly Price(USD) $29 (Ghost Pro) / Free (self-hosted) — Payment Processing Fee(%) No additional fees — Starting Monthly Price(USD) $29 — Mid-Tier Plan Price(USD/month) $79 — Starting Cost(USD/year) Free ($0) — Annual Hosting Cost(USD) Free (or $5-12/month premium) — Custom Domain Cost(USD/month) $5-12 (Pro required) — | ||
| Revenue Retention Rate(%) | 100% | — |
| Average Subscriber Payment(USD/month) | Variable by creator | — |
| Native Membership Features | Built-in (native feature) | — |
| Average Writer Earnings (Partner Program)(USD per month) | Variable (unlimited potential) | $50-500 (Medium Partner Program) |
| Creator Revenue Retention(percentage) | 50% (pool-based) | — |
Show 4 more attributesContent Monetization Speed(days to first sale) 30-90 (eligibility required) — Maximum Revenue Potential (Monthly)(USD) $5,000+ (top writers) — Revenue Share on Ad Revenue(percent) 50% (Medium takes 50%) — Creator Revenue Share(USD per 1,000 views) 50% (Member program) — | ||
| Setup Time for Beginners(hours) | 8-40+ hours | — |
| SEO Capabilities | Advanced (meta tags, sitemaps, structured data) | — |
| Monetization Methods | Subscriptions, memberships, ads, sponsorships | — |
| Available Plugins/Extensions(count) | 200+ | — |
| Data Ownership | Full creator ownership (self-hosted) | — |
| Built-in Community Features(count) | Newsletter, comments, member walls | — |
Show 10 more attributesCustomization Level(scale 1-10) Complete; full white-label — Customization Options(scale 1-10) 9/10 (full code access) 3/10 (template-based) Built-in Templates(count) 15-20 professional themes — SEO Tools Included Basic XML sitemaps, structured data, redirects — Newsletter Subscriber Limit (Mid-Tier)(subscribers) 10,000 — Custom Domain Support(domains) Unlimited — Content Format Flexibility(format count) Articles, audio, multimedia (3) — Design Templates Available(count) 15-20 official templates — Web3/NFT Features None — Free Tier Custom Domain No (requires paid membership) — | ||
| Design Customization(Collections/Year) | Full custom themes and CSS control | — |
| Design Template Library(templates) | 100+ | — |
| Audience Discovery Strength | Minimal, relies on external traffic | — |
| Audience Discovery for New Writers(ease rating) | High (algorithmic reach) | — |
| Global Market Share(percent) | 1.5% | — |
| Setup Time for Beginners(minutes) | 0.5-1 hour | — |
| Time to First Publish(minutes) | 30-60 minutes (with setup) | 2-5 minutes (sign up and publish) |
| Setup Time to First Publish(minutes) | 5-10 minutes | — |
| Technical Maintenance Required(hours per month) | 0 hours (fully managed) | — |
| SEO Plugin Options(count) | 2-3 limited options | — |
| SEO Customization(scale 1-10) | 10/10 (full control) | 5/10 (limited meta controls) |
| Page Speed (Average)(ms) | 1200-1800 | — |
| Bandwidth Allowance (Starter Plan)(GB/month) | Unlimited | — |
| CMS Collection Items (Performance Drop)(items) | Scales to 1,000,000+ | — |
| Setup Time(hours) | 30-120 minutes (self-hosted) | 5 minutes |
| Free Trial Length(days) | 14 days for Ghost(Pro) | — |
| Payment Payout Speed(days) | 2-5 days (processor dependent) | — |
| Monthly Subscriber Management Limit(subscribers) | Unlimited (self-hosted limits by server) | — |
| Native Mobile App | Web-only; no native apps | — |
| Monthly Active Users(millions) | Not disclosed (smaller ecosystem) | 100+ million |
| Available Integrations(count) | 400+ (through open-source ecosystem) | 50+ (official partnerships) |
| Content Ownership(percentage of rights) | 100% (creator owns all) | Shared (Medium retains platform rights) |
| E-commerce Transaction Limit(Annual USD) | No built-in limit; integrates Stripe/PayPal | — |
| Email Newsletter Features | Native segmentation, automation, design builder | — |
| Membership Management | Built-in tiers, gating, paywalls, analytics | — |
| Platform Content Diversity Trend (2026)(growth/decline) | Declining (Category counts down 20-38%) | — |
| REST API Availability(plan availability) | All plans | — |
| Subscriber List Ownership(yes/no) | No | — |
| Estimated Monthly Readers(millions) | 100M+ | — |
| Algorithm Dependency Risk(risk level) | High (platform-dependent) | — |
| Monthly Active Users (Platform Reach)(millions) | 100+ million | — |
| Audience Ownership(percentage) | 0% (platform owned) | — |
| Email Marketing Capability(feature availability) | None; platform follows only | — |
| Subscriber List Export(availability) | Limited/not available | — |
| Cost per 10,000 Subscribers/Year(USD) | $0 | — |
| Plugin/Extension Ecosystem(plugins available) | Limited to native features | — |
| Content Export Difficulty(ease score (1-10)) | Very difficult (2/10) | — |
| Monthly Active Readers(millions) | 100+ | — |
| Platform Founded(year) | 2012 | — |
| Content Ownership Rights | Medium retains rights (creators license) | — |
| Primary Target Audience | General interest + business + tech | — |
GhostShow 7 more attributes
Show 4 more attributes
Show 10 more attributes
Visual Comparison
Side-by-side comparison of numeric attributes
Pros & Cons
Ghost
Pros
- Complete data and content ownership with export capabilities
- Full customization via HTML/CSS and extensive theme library (1000+ themes available)
- Multiple revenue streams: membership, ads, affiliate links, and sponsorships all supported
- Open-source codebase with active developer community for custom features
- No algorithmic content suppression—you control distribution
Cons
- Requires technical setup knowledge or managed hosting costs starting at $199/year
- No built-in audience discovery mechanism; relies entirely on external traffic
- Smaller ecosystem means fewer integrations compared to Medium's partnerships
Medium
Pros
- 100M+ monthly active users with algorithmic content discovery and recommendations
- Zero technical setup—publish immediately without hosting or domain management
- Built-in audience of readers actively searching for content in your niche
- Medium Partner Program shares revenue with top-performing writers (earnings reported up to $500+/month for active creators)
- Mobile app with 20M+ downloads ensures reader engagement across devices
Cons
- Limited customization—confined to Medium's template designs with minimal branding control
- Platform dependency risk: Medium controls algorithm, pricing, and feature changes
- Monetization requires membership ($168/year) or Partner Program enrollment; no direct ad revenue for most writers
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, both platforms support content export. Ghost provides full data exports in standard formats, and you retain 100% ownership. Medium allows you to download your story data and export to other platforms, though you don't own the original publication history on Medium's domain. Ghost is significantly better for long-term ownership security.
Resources & Learn More
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