Ghost
Fiercely independent, open source publishing
Payload
Developer-first TypeScript & React headless CMS
Updated February 2026
| Ghost | Payload | |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.3★ | 5.0★ |
| Reviews | 18 | 11 |
| Pros | 11 | 10 |
| FactScore™ | 55.4 | 54 |
FactScore™ Comparison
FactScore™ weighs both quality (rating) and popularity (reviews) for a fairer ranking than stars alone.
Pros & Cons
Only in Ghost — Pros
Easy to use Newsletter integration Docker support Email campaign capabilities Headless CMS Integrated membership TemplatesBoth tools — Pros
Community support Excellent documentation Fast performance Open sourceOnly in Payload — Pros
Developer friendly Customization capabilities Rich text editor Configurable admin panel Extendable admin UI REST and GraphQL supportOnly in Ghost — Cons
Mailgun dependency Difficult theming Limited admin API Limited design options No version control No WordPress import tool Slow frontendBoth tools — Cons
—Only in Payload — Cons
Limited features Limited integrationsDetails
| Ghost | Payload | |
|---|---|---|
| Categories | Content Management Systems, Email marketing, News | Content Management Systems, Headless CMS software, Databases and backend frameworks |
| Platforms | Web · Android | Web |
| Became Popular | January 14, 2014 | May 12, 2021 |
| Website | ghost.org | payloadcms.com |
Who Should Pick Which?
Choose Ghost if...
- Easy to use
- Newsletter integration
- Docker support
Choose Payload if...
- Developer friendly
- Customization capabilities
- Rich text editor
With a FactScore™ of 55.4 vs 54, Ghost leads in community reception. Ghost uniquely offers Easy to use and Newsletter integration, while Payload stands out for Developer friendly and Customization capabilities.
What Users Say
Ghost
Our favourite newsletter tool now powers out whole headless 'newsroom' feature
Ghost makes publishing content incredibly easy and comes with solid tooling, open source and truly enterprise grade, you can run a real news website on Ghost and it shows, also it's very pretty, st...
Great platform for creating blogs. Easy to learn and use.
Payload
I've been using Payload CMS for more than a month now. It hard to appreciate the simplicity and performance without trying it. I encourage everyone to try it. All you need is to create a model (Typ...
hey @jamesmikrut! congrats on your launch! I'm using Payload CMS for a while now, started to do so when the version number started with a 0 and I already liked it even then. great documentation, re...
We started using payload recently for making full-stack web applications. CMS is their core but you can go above and beyond with their excellent support. Tapping into the new ecosystem and loving it.
Related Comparisons
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, Ghost or Payload?
Based on FactScore™, Ghost leads with a score of 55.4 vs 54. Ghost has a higher rating of 4.3★ compared to 5.0★.
What are the pros of Ghost compared to Payload?
Ghost uniquely offers: Easy to use, Newsletter integration, Docker support, Email campaign capabilities, Headless CMS.
What are the pros of Payload compared to Ghost?
Payload uniquely offers: Developer friendly, Customization capabilities, Rich text editor, Configurable admin panel, Extendable admin UI.
Is Ghost better rated than Payload?
Ghost is rated 4.3★ from 18 reviews. Payload is rated 5.0★ from 11 reviews.
What is the FactScore™ of Ghost and Payload?
FactScore™ weighs rating and review volume together. Ghost scores 55.4 and Payload scores 54.
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