CataleoSoftware
Get Your Software Listed Get Listed

Email Marketing Comparison

Ghost vs. Iterable

At a glance

At a glance

Ghost

Best for

Best for independent publishers and creators who want a website, newsletter and paid subscriptions in one platform they can host themselves.

  • Freelancers
  • Small and mid-sized

Iterable

Best for

Best for enterprise marketing teams running email together with mobile channels such as in-app, Mobile Inbox and embedded messages.

  • Enterprise

Cataleo does not name a winner. Both statements come from the vendors themselves.

Full Comparison

Criterion Ghost Iterable
Starting price Free version if self-hosted; Ghost(Pro) from $18 / month Ghost(Pro) Starter is $18 per month billed yearly for up to 1,000 members. Self-hosting the open source application carries no licence cost, but the server and email delivery are your own. Not stated
API Yes, REST APIs for reading and writing content, documented for headless use Yes, a REST API for lists, events, user data, revenue tracking and campaign triggers, with native SDKs for Android, iOS and React Native
Hosting Cloud (Ghost Pro) or self-hosted; open source under the MIT licence Cloud (SaaS)
Made in Not stated United States
Campaign types Newsletters published to a website and sent by email in the same step, with free and paid membership tiers Yes, email, SMS, push notifications, web push, in-app messages, Mobile Inbox and embedded messages
Automation and journeys Yes, in public beta since June 2026. An Automations tab opens a drag-and-drop canvas with two flows ready to go, one for new free members and one for new paid ones, built from two actions: send an email and wait a set amount of time. Existing welcome emails move into it automatically, and more triggers and actions are announced as coming Yes, cross-channel journeys and workflows with milestones synchronised across touchpoints, plus Nova Agents for journey optimisation
Segmentation and personalisation Yes, audience segmentation so different newsletters go to different groups of readers Yes, real-time audience segmentation on behavioural, product and engagement data, with Nova Decisioning for next best action
Templates and editor Yes, an editor built for long-form work with galleries, video, audio and dynamic content cards; custom themes from the Publisher plan Yes, five template types covering email, in-app, push, SMS and web push, with an optional WYSIWYG editor alongside the standard editors
Deliverability and testing Preview shows the post as it will look on the web, on mobile, in an email and on social, and a test email can be sent to your own inbox with a custom subject line before publishing. On Ghost(Pro) email delivery is included and configured for you; a self-hosted install has to supply Mailgun API keys, which is the only supported bulk email provider Yes, spam reports to test whether messages land in the inbox, plus A/B and multivariate experimentation
Ecommerce and CRM data Yes, native paid subscriptions through Stripe on monthly and yearly tiers, with signup forms and promotional offers. Ghost takes 0% of subscription revenue on Publisher and above, though payment processor fees still apply Yes, unifies behavioural, product and engagement data into customer profiles
Integrations and API Yes, REST APIs for content in and out, plus more than 8,000 integrations through Zapier and similar from the Publisher plan Yes, a REST API for lists, event data, user updates, revenue tracking and campaign triggers, with native SDKs for Android, iOS and React Native
AI features No stated Yes
Deployment more entries Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based, On-premise Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based
Support Community forum Not stated
Onboarding Documentation and knowledge base Documentation and knowledge base
Company size more entries Freelancers, Small and mid-sized Enterprise
Integrations Stripe, Slack, Google Analytics, Zapier Not stated

Compare more tools

Row where the values differ The small markers point at the lower number, the longer list or the stated feature. They describe the data, they are not a verdict.

The short version

Key Differences

  • Deployment Ghost Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based, On-premise Iterable Cloud (SaaS), Browser-based
  • Company size Ghost Freelancers, Small and mid-sized Iterable Enterprise
  • Hosting Ghost Cloud (Ghost Pro) or self-hosted; open source under the MIT licence Iterable Cloud (SaaS)
  • AI features Ghost No Iterable Yes
  • API Ghost Yes, REST APIs for reading and writing content, documented for headless use Iterable Yes, a REST API for lists, events, user data, revenue tracking and campaign triggers, with native SDKs for Android, iOS and React Native

Every line is one datapoint from the table above, picked automatically. Nothing here is written text.

The trade-offs

Strengths and Limitations

Ghost

Strengths

  • Open source under the MIT licence and self-hostable, so the whole platform can run on your own infrastructure
  • Ghost takes 0% of paid subscription revenue on Publisher and above; only payment processor fees apply
  • Website, newsletter and paid memberships in one product, with no separate email tool to wire up
  • Run by a non-profit foundation funded by its users, with no outside investors
  • Unlimited email sends on every Ghost(Pro) tier

Limitations

  • The Starter plan has no paid subscriptions, no custom themes and only limited integrations
  • Member count drives the price: Starter and Publisher both stop at 1,000 members, Business at 10,000
  • Self-hosting means providing and maintaining your own server and email delivery
  • Built for publishing rather than campaign marketing, so there is no multi-channel journey builder

Iterable

Strengths

  • Mobile Inbox and embedded messages sit alongside email, SMS, push and web push
  • Real-time segmentation with A/B and multivariate experimentation
  • Nova agents automate audience building and journey optimisation
  • REST API plus native SDKs for Android, iOS and React Native

Limitations

  • No published pricing, every tier is quoted by sales
  • Positioned for enterprise scale rather than small lists
  • The WYSIWYG editor is a project setting rather than the default

Plans

Pricing

Ghost

  • Self-hosted $0 The open source Ghost application under the MIT licence. No licence cost; you provide the server and email delivery.
  • Starter $18 Per month, billed yearly. Up to 1,000 members, one staff user, website, newsletter, free custom domain and unlimited email sends. No paid subscriptions or custom themes.
  • Publisher $29 Per month, billed yearly. Up to 1,000 members, three staff users, custom themes, paid subscriptions, advanced analytics and more than 8,000 integrations.
  • Business $199 Per month, billed yearly. Up to 10,000 members, 15 staff users, priority support, higher usage limits and early access to new features.
  • Custom Not stated Unlimited members and staff users, advanced configuration, dedicated IP and a 99.9% uptime SLA.
Visit site

What users say

Review Scores · opens after launch

Ghost

Ease of use
Not rated yet
User interface
Not rated yet
Onboarding
Not rated yet
Support and service
Not rated yet
Value for money
Not rated yet
Features
Not rated yet

No reviews yet. Be the first to review this tool. Every review is checked for fairness before it appears, and the vendor cannot have one removed.

Iterable

Ease of use
Not rated yet
User interface
Not rated yet
Onboarding
Not rated yet
Support and service
Not rated yet
Value for money
Not rated yet
Features
Not rated yet

No reviews yet. Be the first to review this tool. Every review is checked for fairness before it appears, and the vendor cannot have one removed.

Where this comes from

Where this comes from

Ghost https://ghost.org · checked against the official source on 2026-09-07

Iterable https://iterable.com · checked against the official source on 2026-09-03

This table lists factual criteria taken from information the vendors publish themselves. For how we put it together, see the methodology.