Ghost vs Simplenote
A source-aware comparison of pricing, documented capabilities and workflow fit.
Short answer
- Price: not directly comparable — Ghost is from $9/user/mo, Simplenote is pricing not verified.
- How to start: Ghost is from $9/user/mo, Simplenote is pricing not verified.
- Where they differ: only Simplenote has mobile app; both offer public api.
These lines are generated from the pricing we track, not from a paid placement. How we score tools.
What Ghost is
Ghost is the world's cleanest and most focused blog platform for independent creators and professional publishers. Eschewing WordPress's complexity, it focuses on speed and the writing experience. Its greatest strength is the built-in 'Memberships' system, allowing you to monetize your content through paid subscriptions. It also doubles as a newsletter tool, automatically emailing your posts to your subscribers.
What Simplenote is
Simplenote is free, fast, plain-text note taking that syncs everywhere and does nothing else.
Side by side
| Ghost | Simplenote | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Productivity | Productivity |
| How to start | $9/user/moverified | Not verifiednot a monthly price |
| Public API | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | No | Yes |
| Open source / self-hostable | Yes | not checked |
| SSO (SAML) | No | not checked |
| Visit | Ghost ↗ | Simplenote ↗ |
What Ghost is built to do
- Memberships & Tiers
- Create free and multiple paid subscription levels for your readers.
- Email Newsletters
- Send your posts as stylish email newsletters to subscribers the moment they publish.
- Deep Integrations
- Works directly with Stripe, Zapier, and standard analytics tools.
- Rich Editor
- Easily craft rich content including images, videos, and code blocks.
Choose Ghost if
- Independent Writers, Newsletter Publishers, and Modern Media Firms.
Choose Simplenote if
- People who want notes to open instantly and stay out of the way.
Evidence and freshness
Where a claim on this page comes from a vendor page, it is linked here.
Simplenote
Sources have not been attached to this record yet.
Ghost: pros & cons
- Flawless Writing: A minimalist editor that keeps your focus strictly on the content.
- Incredible Speed: Node.js-based, resulting in very low page load times.
- Native Subscriptions: Collect paid memberships and donations without harici plugins.
- SEO Ready: Automatically handles meta tags, XML sitemaps, and more.
- Hosting Cost: If not self-hosted, the monthly cost of Ghost(Pro) is high.
- Plugin Limits: Far fewer plugins than WordPress; customization is mostly via themes.
- Technical Setup: Self-hosting requires command-line knowledge.
Simplenote: pros & cons
- Genuinely free with no tier
- Instant sync and search
- Available on every platform
- Plain text only, no attachments
- No organisation beyond tags
- No collaboration to speak of
Our verdict on Ghost
The most elite publishing platform for those looking to earn from their writing.
Our verdict on Simplenote
Does one thing perfectly. Anyone needing structure will outgrow it in a week.