Anchor CMS vs Ghost
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted content management systems options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Anchor CMS | Ghost |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 15 · At risk | 100 · Excellent |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, docker, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,293 | ★ 55,413 |
| First released | 2012 | 2013 |
| Replaces | WordPress | WordPress, Substack, Medium |
What are Anchor CMS and Ghost?
Anchor CMS
Anchor CMS is a super-simple, lightweight open-source blogging platform and CMS written in PHP. It focuses on minimalism and getting out of the writer's way.
- Minimal and lightweight
- Markdown editing
- Simple theming
- Quick setup
Ghost
Ghost is a powerful open-source publishing platform built on Node.js, designed for professional bloggers, publications, and creators. It includes native membership, subscription, and email newsletter features alongside a fast, modern editor.
- Built-in membership and paid subscriptions
- Native email newsletters
- Fast modern editor
- SEO-optimized by default
Anchor CMS vs Ghost: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Anchor CMS's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Ghost is actively maintained. Anchor CMS is written in PHP, while Ghost is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Anchor CMS versus MIT for Ghost. Anchor CMS is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Ghost. Ghost has the considerably larger community, at 55,413 GitHub stars versus 3,293.
Why pick each one
Choose Anchor CMS if…
- Very lightweight
- Easy installation
Watch out for
- Limited features
- Development inactive
Choose Ghost if…
- Excellent for newsletters and memberships
- Clean, fast publishing experience
Watch out for
- Plugin ecosystem smaller than WordPress
- MySQL recommended for production
Frequently asked questions
Is Anchor CMS or Ghost better?
Neither is universally better. Ghost has the larger community, while Anchor CMS is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Anchor CMS and Ghost free and open-source?
Yes. Anchor CMS is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Ghost under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Anchor CMS and Ghost with Docker?
Anchor CMS: yes. Ghost: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Anchor CMS or Ghost?
Anchor CMS has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Ghost. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.