Cowyo 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.
Not the right match-up?
Cowyo
Feature-rich wiki webserver for minimalists
VS
Ghost
Professional publishing platform for blogs and newsletters
| Feature | Cowyo | Ghost |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Go | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 50 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 968 | ★ 54,707 |
| First released | 2023 | 2013 |
| Replaces | — | WordPress, Substack, Medium |
Why pick each one
Choose Cowyo if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Choose Ghost if…
- Excellent for newsletters and memberships
- Clean, fast publishing experience
Frequently asked questions
Is Cowyo or Ghost better?
Neither is universally better. Ghost has the larger community, while Cowyo is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Cowyo and Ghost free and open-source?
Yes. Cowyo is licensed under MIT and Ghost under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Cowyo and Ghost with Docker?
Cowyo: check the project docs for container support. Ghost: yes.