Ghost vs Mailgun: Complete Comparison (2026)
An in-depth comparison of Ghost and Mailgun to help you choose the right tool for your business.
Last updated: November 2026
Ghost
6.9/10
Open-source publishing platform that combines a website, newsletters, and paid memberships for independent publishers, creators, and media businesses.
Mailgun
6.8/10
Mailgun is a developer-focused email API and SMTP relay service that apps and businesses use to send, receive, track and validate transactional and bulk email.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 6.9/10 | 6.8/10 |
| Scalability | 7/10 | 8/10 |
| Ease of Use | 7/10 | 5/10 |
| Customization | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Security | 7/10 | 8/10 |
| Support | 5/10 | 6/10 |
| Cost | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Integration | 7/10 | 8/10 |
| Analytics | 6/10 | 7/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Cheapest paid plan | Contact for pricing | $15/mo Basic |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | Contact for pricing | $15/mo Basic |
| Features | ||
| Email Marketing | ||
| A/B Testing | Not listed | |
| Landing Pages | Not listed | |
| Segmentation | Not listed | |
Ghost vs Mailgun cost by team size
| Team size | Ghost | Mailgun |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | Contact for pricing | FreeFree |
| 5 users | Contact for pricing | $15/moBasic |
| 10 users | Contact for pricing | $15/moBasic |
| 25 users | Contact for pricing | $15/moBasic |
| 50 users | Contact for pricing | $15/moBasic |
The plan that fits each team size, billed monthly, before add-ons and usage charges. Each cost opens that tool's pricing calculator for the team size.
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose Ghost
- Higher Ease of Use score (7/10 vs 5/10)
- Higher Customization score (8/10 vs 7/10)
- Better fit for freelancers (8/10 vs 4/10)
- Better fit for small business (7/10 vs 4/10)
Why choose Mailgun
- Has a free plan (Ghost does not)
- Higher Scalability score (8/10 vs 7/10)
- Higher Security score (8/10 vs 7/10)
- Better fit for developers (9/10 vs 6/10)
- Better fit for agencies (6/10 vs 4/10)
Pros & Cons
Ghost
Pros
- Ghost takes no percentage of membership revenue, unlike Substack's 10% fee, so publishers pay only the plan price and Stripe fees.
- Website, newsletter, and paid memberships work together without plugins.
- The open-source core can be self-hosted for free, and APIs and webhooks support custom builds.
- More than 100 listed integrations, including Zapier, Stripe, Mailchimp, and privacy-focused analytics tools.
Cons
- Email features are basic: segmentation is limited and there is no built-in A/B testing or SMS.
- Email delivery depends on Mailgun, which users say can be costly or unreliable when self-hosting.
- Lower plans get email-only support with no weekend coverage, and Trustpilot reviews complain about billing and refunds.
- The Starter plan excludes paid subscriptions, custom themes, and integrations.
Mailgun
Pros
- Reviewers repeatedly praise the REST API and documentation as quick for developers to integrate.
- Deliverability and detailed per-domain searchable logs get strong marks from users.
- SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 certification, with 2FA, SAML SSO and AES-256 encryption at rest.
- A low entry price and a free tier of 100 emails a day for testing.
Cons
- It is API-first and complicated for non-technical users, with a dated dashboard where settings and logs can be hard to find.
- Several 2025 reviews report automated account suspensions with little warning.
- Short log retention on lower plans (1 day on Free and Basic).
- Reviewers call it costlier than rivals once volume grows, and inbox placement tools are a separate product.
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Ghost scores higher on our Marketing criteria: 6.9/10 against 6.8/10 for Mailgun. The largest gap is in Ease of Use: 7/10 for Ghost and 5/10 for Mailgun.
Mailgun has a free plan; Ghost does not list one.
Ghost is the better fit for freelancers: we rate it 8/10 for them, against 4/10 for Mailgun.
