Ghost vs Kirby
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted content management systems options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Ghost | Kirby |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 100 · Excellent | 84 · Excellent |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | Proprietary |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 55,413 | ★ 1,531 |
| First released | 2013 | 2012 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Substack, Medium | WordPress, Squarespace |
What are Ghost and Kirby?
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
Kirby
Kirby is a flexible file-based content management system that stores content in plain text files and gives developers full control over markup. It is popular for portfolios and custom-designed websites.
- File-based content storage
- Flexible panel for editors
- No database required
- Developer-friendly templating
Ghost vs Kirby: key differences
Ghost is written in TypeScript, while Kirby is built with PHP. Licensing differs — MIT for Ghost versus Proprietary for Kirby. Kirby is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Ghost. Ghost has the considerably larger community, at 55,413 GitHub stars versus 1,531.
Why pick each one
Choose Ghost if…
- Excellent for newsletters and memberships
- Clean, fast publishing experience
Watch out for
- Plugin ecosystem smaller than WordPress
- MySQL recommended for production
Choose Kirby if…
- Easy backups and version control
- Highly customizable
Watch out for
- Commercial license required for production
- Free only for personal use
Frequently asked questions
Is Ghost or Kirby better?
Neither is universally better. Ghost has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Ghost and Kirby free and open-source?
Yes. Ghost is licensed under MIT and Kirby under Proprietary. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ghost and Kirby with Docker?
Ghost: yes. Kirby: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Ghost or Kirby?
Kirby has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Ghost. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.