Our verdict
These two tools solve different problems. beehiiv is a hosted newsletter platform with growth and ad income built in: a recommendation network, paid recommendations, and an Ad Network that pays per open or click. Ghost is open-source publishing software from a non-profit; Ghost(Pro) hosts it for you, or you run it yourself. [1] [4]
If your plan depends on ad income or paid cross-promotion, beehiiv has those tools built in. If you care most about owning the software, a custom-themed site, and the option to self-host later, Ghost is the closer fit. Both take 0% of subscription revenue, so fees alone should not decide this. [1] [2]
Price at the starting tier
Prices below are what each pricing page showed on October 30, 2026, billed yearly. beehiiv's page shows the starting tier (up to 1,000 subscribers for the paid plans) and shows Lite at $59 and Pro at $109 a month on monthly billing, so yearly billing saves about 17% on Lite and 13% on Pro. Ghost's page shows yearly prices for 1,000 members and a monthly/yearly toggle; we did not capture monthly prices for Ghost. Both scale up as your list grows, so request a quote at your real size. [1] [2]
Ghost's page is inconsistent on the Business plan: its feature list says 1,000 members and its comparison table says 10,000. Confirm the member count before you pay. [2]
| Plan | Price shown (billed yearly) | Subscriber or member limit | Paid subscriptions | Team seats |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| beehiiv Free | $0 | Up to 2,500 | No | 1 |
| beehiiv Lite | $49/mo ($588/year) | Up to 100,000 | Yes, 0% take rate | 2 |
| beehiiv Pro | $95/mo ($1,140/year) | Up to 250,000 | Yes, 0% take rate | 10 |
| Ghost(Pro) Starter | $18/mo | 1,000 | No | 1 staff user |
| Ghost(Pro) Publisher | $29/mo | 1,000 | Yes, 0% transaction fee | 3 staff users |
| Ghost(Pro) Business | $199/mo | Page shows both 1,000 and 10,000 | Yes, 0% transaction fee | 15 staff users |
Paid subscriptions and what you actually keep
beehiiv's FAQ says it takes 0% of your paid subscription revenue and you keep what you earn minus Stripe's standard processing fee of 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. Ghost says it charges no transaction fees, that payment processor fees still apply, and that members pay through its Stripe integration on Publisher and above. [1] [2]
Worked example using the Stripe rate beehiiv quotes: 200 paid subscribers at $8 a month bring in $1,600. Processing is 200 x ($0.232 + $0.30) = $106.40, so about $1,493.60 reaches you before the plan cost. On beehiiv Lite billed yearly that leaves about $1,444.60; on Ghost(Pro) Publisher, about $1,464.60, assuming you still fit within the 1,000-member tier. Your Stripe account's actual rate, currency conversion and taxes can change these figures.
Monetization beyond subscriptions
beehiiv's Ad Network requires a paid plan, active sending on beehiiv, and a country supported by Stripe Express, because payouts go through Stripe Express. Advertisers set CPM or CPC rates: a $5 CPM pays $5 per 1,000 unique opens of a send, and a $2 CPC with 100 payable clicks pays $200. Reports arrive 96 hours after the send, and payouts land on the 20th of each month for the prior month. beehiiv says projected earnings are estimates based on past email performance, not guaranteed amounts. [5]
beehiiv renamed Boosts to paid recommendations. Paid recommendations need a paid plan; free recommendations are on every plan. Email Boosts and Direct Links were retired, and subscribers who arrive through paid recommendations are tagged by verification status. [6]
Ghost(Pro) lists recommendations of other publications on all plans and says any advertising network can be integrated on Publisher and above. The Ghost pages we read do not describe a built-in ad marketplace or paid recommendation network, so ad income on Ghost means selling sponsorships yourself or connecting a third-party network. [2]
| Income source | beehiiv | Ghost(Pro) |
|---|---|---|
| Paid subscriptions | Lite and up, 0% take rate [1] | Publisher and up, 0% transaction fee [2] |
| Built-in ad marketplace | Ad Network on paid plans, CPM or CPC [5] | Not described; any ad network can be integrated on Publisher and up [2] |
| Paid cross-promotion | Paid recommendations on paid plans [6] | Not described [2] |
| Free recommendations | All plans [6] | All plans [2] |
Self-hosting and open source
Ghost describes itself as a non-profit building open-source publishing software, founded in April 2013, funded by Ghost(Pro) rather than investors or donations, and structured so the company can never be sold. [4]
To self-host, Ghost's docs ask for a server with at least 1GB of memory and list the officially supported stack: Ubuntu 22.04, 24.04 or 26.04 LTS, Node.js 22 LTS, MySQL 8.0 or 8.4, NGINX and systemd. Self-hosters pay separately for email delivery, analytics and a CDN, which the docs list from $15, $10 and $20 a month respectively; Ghost(Pro) includes email delivery. Ghost's pricing page also warns that self-hosting puts attacks and outages on you. [3] [2]
Do the math before assuming self-hosting is cheaper. Those three services alone come to at least $45 a month before the server, against $29 a month for Ghost(Pro) Publisher billed yearly at 1,000 members. Self-hosting starts to make sense when you need control the managed plans do not offer, or when your list is large enough that managed pricing climbs. beehiiv's pricing page lists only hosted plans. [1] [2] [3]
Data ownership and switching later
Ghost(Pro) says you can import an existing list or export member data at any time on all plans, and unlimited email sends are included on all plans. [2]
beehiiv exports posts and subscribers as CSV from Settings, Export Data on every plan. The full subscriber export adds custom fields and statistics, and download links expire after 24 hours. Exporting subscribers through the API requires a paid plan. [7]
Moving from Ghost to beehiiv is documented. You export subscribed members from Ghost's Members tab and import the CSV. For paying members, you transfer Stripe customers to beehiiv's Stripe account and map Ghost prices to beehiiv tiers. Then pause the Ghost subscriptions in Stripe, or beehiiv warns subscribers will be charged twice. [8]
- Export a full member or subscriber CSV now and store it outside the platform.
- Note which Stripe account holds your paying members; that account moves with you.
- Keep your own sending domain so a later move does not reset your sender reputation.
Who fits each, and who should skip
Ghost fits writers and small media teams who want a full website with custom themes, members and paid subscriptions without a revenue share, and who value the option to self-host. Skip Ghost if you want a built-in ad marketplace or paid growth network, or if you are not willing to sell sponsorships yourself. [2]
beehiiv fits newsletter-first creators who want growth tools and ad income in one dashboard and are comfortable with a hosted-only platform. Skip beehiiv if owning the software matters to you, or if you need custom site themes more than monetization tools. [1] [6]
- Under 2,500 subscribers, no paid tier yet: beehiiv Free costs $0; Ghost(Pro) Starter is $18 a month billed yearly.
- Launching paid subscriptions at about 1,000 members: Ghost(Pro) Publisher at $29 a month vs beehiiv Lite at $49 a month, both billed yearly.
- Planning to earn from ads without selling them yourself: beehiiv on a paid plan, if you live in a Stripe Express country.
- Want to self-host now or later: Ghost.
Questions before you decide
Does beehiiv or Ghost take a cut of paid subscriptions?
Neither, per their pricing pages. beehiiv says it takes 0% of paid subscription revenue, minus Stripe's standard 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction. Ghost says it charges no transaction fees, though payment processor fees still apply.
Can I self-host beehiiv?
beehiiv's pricing page lists only hosted plans: Free, Lite, Pro and Enterprise. Ghost is open-source software that can run on your own server with at least 1GB of memory, and Ghost(Pro) is its managed hosting.
Which plan do I need to charge for subscriptions?
On beehiiv, paid subscriptions start on Lite; the Free plan does not include them. On Ghost(Pro), paid subscriptions and the Stripe integration start on Publisher; Starter does not include them.
Can I take my subscribers with me if I leave?
Yes on both. Ghost says you can import or export member data at any time on all plans. beehiiv lets any plan export subscribers and posts as CSV from Settings, and download links stay valid for 24 hours.
Sources & verification
Product details and prices can change. Check the linked provider before buying.
- beehiiv: Pricing Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Ghost: Ghost(Pro) pricing Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Ghost Docs: Hosting Ghost Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- Ghost: About Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- beehiiv Support: Ad Network FAQ Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- beehiiv Support: Boosts to paid recommendations, what changed Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- beehiiv Support: Exporting post content or subscriber data from beehiiv Accessed 30 Oct 2026
- beehiiv Support: How to migrate from Ghost to beehiiv Accessed 30 Oct 2026
Sources link directly to providers. Product buttons may use separately labeled affiliate links. Read our disclosure.