Formwork 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?
Formwork
Flat-file CMS for personal sites and blogs
VS
Ghost
Professional publishing platform for blogs and newsletters
| Feature | Formwork | Ghost |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | PHP | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 76 | ★ 54,707 |
| First released | 2018 | 2013 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Ghost | WordPress, Substack, Medium |
Why pick each one
Choose Formwork if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in PHP
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose Ghost if…
- Excellent for newsletters and memberships
- Clean, fast publishing experience
Frequently asked questions
Is Formwork or Ghost better?
Neither is universally better. Ghost has the larger community, while Formwork is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Formwork and Ghost free and open-source?
Yes. Formwork is licensed under MIT and Ghost under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Formwork and Ghost with Docker?
Formwork: check the project docs for container support. Ghost: yes.