Self-hosted alternatives to Ghost
Looking for a different self-hosted blogging platform than Ghost? These 13 apps publish blogs on your own server.
About Ghost: Open-source publishing platform for blogs and newsletters.
| App | Health | Stars | License | Docker | RAM (est.) | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WriteFreely | Active | 5.3k | AGPL-3.0 | – | 512 MB | $3.5/mo |
| Ech0 | Active | 2.1k | AGPL-3.0 | ✓ | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Haven | Active | 817 | MIT | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Chyrp Lite | Active | 500 | BSD-3-Clause | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Mataroa | Active | 375 | MIT | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| bloglite | Active | 337 | MIT | ✓ | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| HTMLy | Maintained | 1.4k | GPL-2.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Known | Maintained | 1.1k | Apache-2.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Serendipity | Active | 229 | BSD-3-Clause | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| FlatPress | Active | 218 | GPL-2.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Antville | Active | 90 | Apache-2.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| PluXml | Maintained | 233 | GPL-3.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Dotclear | Unknown | – | GPL-2.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
The options in detail
1. WriteFreely
Writing software for starting a minimalist, federated blog — or an entire community.
Active Last commit 2026-11-09. Latest release v0.17.3 (2026-11-09). Needs roughly 512 MB RAM. How to run it →
2. Ech0
Lightweight federated publishing platform focused on personal idea sharing (documentation in Chinese).
Active Last commit 2026-11-09. 10+ releases in the past year. Latest release v5.9.8 (2026-11-08). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
3. Haven
Private blogging system with markdown editing and built in RSS reader.
Active Last commit 2026-10-03. Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
4. Chyrp Lite
Extra-awesome, extra-lightweight blog engine.
Active Last commit 2026-10-31. Latest release v2026.03 (2026-11-01). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
5. Mataroa
Naked blogging platform for minimalists.
Active Last commit 2026-11-02. 2 releases in the past year. Latest release v1.5 (2026-01-03). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
6. bloglite
Micro-blog tool offering built-in syntax highlighting, mobile publishing and more (alternative to Twitter, Bluesky).
Active Last commit 2026-10-31. Latest release v3.1.0 (2026-10-24). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
7. HTMLy
Databaseless PHP blogging platform. A flat-file CMS that allows you to create a fast, secure, and powerful website or blog in seconds.
Maintained Last commit 2026-01-25. 1 release in the past year. Latest release v3.1.1 (2025-11-03). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
8. Known
Collaborative social publishing platform.
Maintained Last commit 2026-04-12. 2 releases in the past year. Latest release 1.6.4 (2026-03-01). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
9. Serendipity
Highly extensible and customizable PHP blog engine using Smarty templating (s9y).
Active Last commit 2026-09-12. Latest release 2.6.1 (2026-07-22). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
10. FlatPress
Lightweight, easy-to-set-up flat-file blogging engine.
Active Last commit 2026-11-03. 4 releases in the past year. Latest release 1.5.1 (2026-03-24). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
11. Antville
Feature-rich blog hosting software which can host tens of thousands of blogs.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. Latest release 1.6.0 (2025-03-01). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
12. PluXml
XML-based blog/CMS platform.
Maintained Last commit 2026-08-03. Latest release v5.10.0.rc4 (2026-09-12). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
13. Dotclear
Take control over your blog.
Unknown Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
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