Compare / Ghost vs Payload
Ghost vs Payload
Pick Ghost if the site is the publication. Pick Payload if you want collections next to a Next.js app (the preferred headless path on the Contentful stack).
Facts checked 17 Oct 2026. License, language, and GitHub activity come from the catalog or the project's own repo. "Not in the catalog row" means the public catalog dump does not store that number.
Ghost in the catalog Payload in the catalogStart on Railway
How they compare
| Ghost | Payload | |
|---|---|---|
| License | MIT License (catalog) source | MIT License (catalog) source |
| Language | TypeScript (catalog) | TypeScript (catalog) |
| GitHub activity | 55,549 stars in the catalog | 45,291 stars in the catalog |
| Self-host | Site + members + newsletter. | Headless CMS next to Next.js. Not a publisher UI. |
| Best for | A site that is also the publication. | Collections next to a Next.js app. |
Self-hosting and resource needs
Ghost is the published site combo. Payload is MIT TypeScript — a headless CMS and admin, not a membership newsletter. Directus is on /stacks/directus-cms with a license caveat (MSCL-1.0-GPL, not OSI).
FAQ
- Publisher or headless?
- Ghost publishes. Payload is an API and admin. If you need both, start with the job that pays the rent.
- Why not Directus as the default headless?
- Useful, and not OSI open source (MSCL-1.0-GPL). Payload and Strapi Community are MIT today — that is the CMS stack FAQ.
- Strapi instead?
- See /compare/payload-vs-strapi.
- Are these free?
- Both catalog rows are MIT. You pay hosting.
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