Ghost
Independent publishing for the open web
About Ghost
Ghost is the open-source publishing platform for independent creators, journalists, and media companies. A nonprofit-backed alternative to Substack, Ghost gives writers full ownership of their audience with native email newsletters, memberships, paywalls, and SEO. Hosts over 3 million subscribers and $200M+ in creator revenue annually.
Pitch deck breakdown
How Ghost would pitch themselves.
Target customer
The open web — the core audience Ghost's product is built around.
Problem they solve
Ghost is the open-source publishing platform for independent creators, journalists, and media companies. A nonprofit-backed alternative to Substack, Ghost gives writers full ownership of their audience with native email… The category has historically been served by tools that miss the modern workflow this product is built around.
Key differentiator
Ghost differentiates on independent publishing for the open web — and on being bootstrapped. The team prioritises profitability + customer-led growth over VC-fuelled scale. Founded by John O'Nolan + team.
Go-to-market strategy
Bootstrapped go-to-market — content-led growth, founder-community presence, and product-led adoption via free or freemium tiers. Profitability + customer-funded expansion over VC capital efficiency.
Ghost website preview
Company facts
- Category
- SaaS
- Funding stage
- Bootstrapped
- Total raised
- Bootstrapped
- Founded
- 2013
- Team size
- 50–100
- HQ
- Singapore
- Country
- Singapore
- Website
- ghost.org
Founders of Ghost
- John O'Nolan
- Hannah Wolfe
Frequently asked questions
What does Ghost do?
Ghost is the open-source publishing platform for independent creators, journalists, and media companies. A nonprofit-backed alternative to Substack, Ghost gives writers full ownership of their audience with native email newsletters, memberships, paywalls, and SEO. Hosts over 3 million subscribers and $200M+ in creator revenue annually.
Where is Ghost based?
Ghost is based in Singapore, Singapore.
When was Ghost founded?
Ghost was founded in 2013.
How much has Ghost raised?
Ghost has raised Bootstrapped.
Who founded Ghost?
Ghost was founded by John O'Nolan, Hannah Wolfe.