beehiiv vs Ghost (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, beehiiv grades higher than Ghost: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
beehiiv grades higher on the free plan and features. Ghost grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
beehiiv
Newsletter platform with paid subscriptions, ads, website and podcast
Ghost
Open source publishing with newsletters and paid memberships
Which one is for you
Pick beehiiv if
- Fits if you want to charge for your newsletter, with beehiiv taking 0% and Stripe its fee
- Works for writers who want the newsletter, a website, a podcast and an ad network in one place
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you only need a paid plan for automations, at $49 a month to start
- Tight if you want your own branding, as removing beehiiv's needs the $95 Pro plan
- Skip it if your list will pass 2,500 before you're ready to pay, as the free plan stops there
- Watch out: Lite caps you at 10 automations and 100,000 subscribers, and webinars and the Send API need Pro
- Watch out: the free plan keeps only 30 days of analytics and has 1 seat
Pick Ghost if
- Fits if you want your own site, a newsletter and paid memberships in one place
- Works for solo writers who want to avoid platform fees on payments
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you want paid subscriptions: they need Publisher at $29 a month
- Watch out: Starter and Publisher stop at 1,000 members, and you are asked to upgrade after that
- Watch out: Stripe's own fees still apply on payments
- Pricey if you want a team: 3 staff users on Publisher, 15 on Business at $199
- Skip it if you want a desktop or phone app, since only a browser admin is listed
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAbeehiivFair | 2.2GPAGhostFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DLite is $49 a month for 1,000 subscribers on yearly billing, or $59 monthly. That's in the dearest tenth of email tools, nearly four times the middle. Taking the beehiiv branding off needs Pro at $95. | C$15 a month on yearly billing ($18 monthly) for 1,000 members is the middle of this category. Publisher, with paid subscriptions, is $29. |
| Free plan and trial | BUp to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends, a website, a podcast and a welcome email, free for good. One writer could live on that for a while. The wall is money: no paid subscriptions, no ad network and no custom automations. | CA 14-day free trial. The listing does not say whether a card is needed, and there is no free plan. |
| Features | BA block editor, paid tiers and paywalls, an ad network, recommendations, a website, a podcast and digital products, plus automations from Lite. It covers the newsletter job end to end. Lite caps you at 10 live automations, though; Pro lifts the cap. | CNewsletters, memberships, a website and analytics. Starter has no paid subscriptions, custom themes or custom fields, and the pages read show no marketing automation. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record. It's a web app where you build the newsletter, the site and the automations yourself, so there's some setting up before your first send. | CA web admin with no rating on record. You pick a theme and set up a site as well as a newsletter. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with Stripe, Zapier, Make, Shopify and Luma connections and an API. No desktop or phone app is listed. | BWeb only, with Stripe, Zapier, Slack, Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign, Google Analytics, Discord and Plausible. |
| Best for | newsletters you plan to make money from | publishers who want a site and newsletter in one |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: beehiiv and Ghost. How we grade
Price against what you get
beehiiv starts at $49 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Ghost starts at $15 a month and scores 2.3.
beehiiv scores higher, and starts $34 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other email marketing and newsletter tools on the chart, 3 score higher than beehiiv for less, and 14 score higher than Ghost for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Ghost is open source, according to its own site.
- beehiiv also covers marketing automation and forms.
At a glance
| beehiiv | Ghost | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $49 per month for up to 1,000 subscribers, billed yearly ($59 monthly) | $15 per month for up to 1,000 members, billed yearly ($18 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | Up to 2,500 subscribers with unlimited sends, 1 seat, 1 publication, a website, a podcast and 30 days of analytics. No paid subscriptions or automations. | None |
| Free trial | Free trial of Lite and Pro, no credit card required | 14-day free trial of Ghost(Pro) |
| Web | ||
| Made by | beehiiv | Ghost Foundation |
| Price read from | beehiiv.com | ghost.org |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
beehiiv
- The Free plan stops at 2,500 subscribers and has no paid subscriptions, ad network or custom automations.
- Removing beehiiv branding, dynamic content, webinars and the Send API all need Pro.
- Lite tops out at 100,000 subscribers and Pro at 250,000; larger lists go to Enterprise through sales.
- beehiiv takes no cut of paid subscriptions, but Stripe charges 2.9% plus $0.30 per transaction.
Ghost
- Paid subscriptions, custom themes and custom fields need the Publisher plan; Starter has none of them.
- Starter and Publisher cap out at 1,000 members, and the page says you are notified to upgrade as members grow.
- Ghost takes no transaction fee on payments, but Stripe's payment processor fees still apply.
- Only a browser-based admin is listed; no desktop or mobile apps appear on the pages read.
Key features
beehiiv
- Newsletter editor
- A custom block editor with templates and unlimited sends on every plan. Lite adds A/B tests, polls, custom HTML and publishing to segments.
- Paid subscriptions and ads
- From Lite: paid tiers, metered paywalls, coupons and the beehiiv ad network. beehiiv takes 0% of subscription revenue; Stripe's fees still apply.
- Website, podcast and community
- Every plan hosts a website, a podcast feed and a member community. Custom pages, shows and private podcast feeds grow with the plan.
- Digital products
- Sell downloads and other one-time products from every plan; Lite raises the product limit to 3 and Pro removes it and adds webinars and coaching.
- Growth tools
- A recommendation network on all plans, plus a referral program, surveys and paid recommendations from Lite.
- Automations
- Welcome emails on Free. Lite allows 10 live automations triggered by sign-ups, tags, segments or purchases; Pro has no limit and adds click triggers.
Ghost
- Newsletters built in
- Posts can go out as email newsletters. The pricing page lists multiple newsletters, email templates and editable links after sending.
- Paid memberships
- Members sign up free or pay through Stripe. Publisher and above include paid subscriptions, tips, premium tiers and special offers.
- Own website and themes
- Every plan includes a website with a custom domain. Marketplace and custom themes start on the Publisher plan.
- Member analytics
- Shows who is signing up, who is paying and what members read, with advanced analytics on Publisher and higher.
- Open source software
- The foundation describes Ghost as open source, and its developer docs include a hosting guide for running it yourself.
Plans
beehiiv
Free$0
Up to 2,500 subscribers, unlimited sends, 1 seat, 1 publication, website and podcast, beehiiv branding.
Lite$49
per month for up to 1,000 subscribers, billed yearly ($59 monthly)
Paid subscriptions, ad network, 10 automations, 2 seats, 3 publications, up to 100,000 subscribers. $119 a month at 10,000 subscribers, billed yearly.
Pro$95
per month for up to 1,000 subscribers, billed yearly ($109 monthly)
No beehiiv branding, unlimited automations, webinars, dynamic content, Send API, 10 seats, up to 250,000 subscribers. $199 a month at 10,000, billed yearly.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom subscriber volume, SSO and SAML, dedicated IPs, concierge onboarding and a customer success manager, through sales.
Ghost
Starter$15
per month for up to 1,000 members, billed yearly ($18 billed monthly)
1 staff user, a default theme with design settings, and email newsletters. Price rises with the member count.
Publisher$29
per month for up to 1,000 members, billed yearly
3 staff users, custom themes, paid subscriptions, advanced analytics and custom fields. Price rises with members.
Business$199
per month for up to 10,000 members, billed yearly
15 staff users, priority support, higher usage limits and early access to features.
CustomCustom
Unlimited members and staff users, a dedicated IP address and a 99.9% uptime SLA. Sold through sales.
Ways to pay less
beehiiv
- Annual discount
Save up to 20% with yearly billing
beehiiv's pricing page says yearly billing saves up to 20%: at 1,000 subscribers Lite is $49 a month billed yearly against $59 monthly.
Ghost
- Annual discount
Lower price when billed yearly
The Starter plan is $15 a month billed yearly against $18 billed monthly. Yearly and monthly billing toggle on the pricing page.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, beehiiv or Ghost?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Ghost is cheaper to start with: $15 a month, against $49 a month for beehiiv. beehiiv starts at $49 per month for up to 1,000 subscribers, billed yearly ($59 monthly), and Ghost starts at $15 per month for up to 1,000 members, billed yearly ($18 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, beehiiv or Ghost?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only beehiiv has a free plan. Ghost does not, though it has a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.