Ghost
Entry plan
Flat price, whole team$15.00
× 12 months$180.00
Per year
$1.50 per person / mo
$180
Ghost vs Buttondown
Compare with for .
Ghost
58%
match · $180/yr
Buttondown
71%
match · $108/yr
What matters most?
Fine-tune
What you'd pay
Entry plan for 10 people, billed yearly where offered. Prices checked Oct 2026.
Buttondown
Entry plan
Flat price, whole team$9.00
× 12 months$108.00
Per year
$0.90 per person / mo
$108
Starting price; rises with usage
Ghost
From $15Free plan
G2 4.0 · 40 reviewsPublishers who want a real website and full control of their brand, with no revenue share, and who either pay for Ghost(Pro) or can run their own server.
vs
Buttondown
From $9Free plan
Independent writers and technical users who want a simple, low-cost paid newsletter with no revenue share and an API, and don't need a big website or discovery network.
Side by side
| Ghost | Buttondown | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Self-hosted free; Ghost(Pro) from $15/month (billed yearly, 1,000 members); paid subscriptions from $29/month (Publisher, billed yearly) | Free up to 100 subscribers; paid from $9/month (1,000 subscribers) plus add-ons |
| G2 Rating | 4.0 (40 reviews) | Not yet verified |
| Best For | Publishers who want a real website and full control of their brand, with no revenue share, and who either pay for Ghost(Pro) or can run their own server. | Independent writers and technical users who want a simple, low-cost paid newsletter with no revenue share and an API, and don't need a big website or discovery network. |
Pros and cons
Ghost
Pros
- 0% platform fee on paid subscriptions
- Strong website and theme control, free custom domain on Ghost(Pro)
- Open source, run by a non-profit foundation
- Documented migration path from Substack and beehiiv
Cons
- No free hosted plan, and Starter cannot take payments
- Smaller built-in discovery than Substack
- Self-hosting means you handle the server, updates and email delivery
Buttondown
Pros
- Low base price and no revenue share
- You only pay for the features you add
- Good API and Markdown support
- Paid subscribers live in your own Stripe and can move
Cons
- Add-ons stack up, so the real price is base plus extras
- No built-in discovery network
- Annual billing and trial terms are not shown on the pricing page
Marcus Williams