Ghost vs Kit (2026): which should you pick?

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

Pick Kit if

• Fits if you're a writer, podcaster or musician building a list and not ready to pay yet
• Works for big lists that only ever get broadcasts, or for selling an ebook or paid newsletter to subscribers

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you need a welcome series on the free plan, as automations start at $33 a month
• Pricey if you sell a lot, since every sale costs 3.5% plus 30 cents
• Tight if two of you share the free account, which allows 1 user and keeps Kit branding
• Watch out: earnings from Paid Recommendations carry a 23.5% Kit fee
• Watch out: Pro's $50 first-year offer ends November 30, 2026, then it renews at $790 a year for 1,000 subscribers

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.

Kit

• The Free plan has no automations or email sequences, allows 1 user and keeps Kit branding.
• Product and subscription sales cost 3.5% plus 30 cents each on every plan, card processing included.
• Earnings from Paid Recommendations carry a 23.5% Kit fee.
• The Pro first-year discount ends November 30, 2026; the plan then renews at $790 a year for 1,000 subscribers.

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.

Kit

Visual automations and sequences

Creator and Pro include unlimited visual automations and email sequences for welcome series, launches and nurture campaigns. The Free plan has neither.

Landing pages, forms and newsletter site

Unlimited landing pages and opt-in forms, a newsletter feed and website, and automatic delivery of opt-in freebies on every plan.

Commerce

Sell digital products, paid newsletters, recurring subscriptions and tips on any plan, for 3.5% plus 30 cents per sale including card processing.

Recommendations and sponsorships

Free creator-to-creator recommendations on every plan. Paid recommendations (Kit keeps 23.5%) and newsletter sponsorships start at Creator.

Tags, segments and conditional content

Tag subscribers by entry point or interest, group tags into segments, and use Liquid to show different content to different subscribers.

Pro audience analytics

Pro adds engagement scoring, Subscriber Signals audience research, deliverability reporting, an insights dashboard and a SparkLoop referral program.

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.

Kit

• Free$0

  Up to 10,000 subscribers, 1 user, unlimited landing pages, forms and broadcasts. No automations or sequences; Kit branding stays.

• Creator$33

  per month for up to 1,000 subscribers, billed yearly ($39 monthly)

  2 users, unlimited visual automations and sequences, no Kit branding, SMS, RSS campaigns and 100+ apps. $1,390 a year at 10,000 subscribers.

• Pro$66

  per month for up to 1,000 subscribers, billed yearly ($79 monthly)

  Unlimited users, engagement scoring, Subscriber Signals, deliverability reports. First year $50 a month under an offer ending Nov 30, 2026. $1,890 a year at 10,000.

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.

Kit

• Annual discount

  Save 17% with yearly billing

  Yearly billing costs the same as 10 months: Creator at 1,000 subscribers is $390 a year instead of $468 paid monthly, and Pro is $790 instead of $948.

• Other savings

  25% off the first year of annual Pro

  Annual Pro is 25% off its first year for lists up to 75,000 ($593 at 1,000 subscribers) and 10% off up to 500,000. Ends November 30, 2026; renews at the standard rate.