Ghost vs SPIP
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?
Ghost
Professional publishing platform for blogs and newsletters
VS
SPIP
CMS with a focus on collaborative edition and multilingualism
| Feature | Ghost | SPIP |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0-or-later |
| Language | JavaScript | |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 50 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 54,707 | — |
| First released | 2013 | 2023 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Substack, Medium | Blogger, Coldfusion, Wix |
Why pick each one
Choose Ghost if…
- Excellent for newsletters and memberships
- Clean, fast publishing experience
Choose SPIP if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0-or-later license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Tiny footprint — runs in 50 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Ghost or SPIP better?
Neither is universally better. Ghost has the larger community, while SPIP is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Ghost and SPIP free and open-source?
Yes. Ghost is licensed under MIT and SPIP under GPL-3.0-or-later. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ghost and SPIP with Docker?
Ghost: yes. SPIP: check the project docs for container support.