CMS & Websites
Ghost
A CMS for serious creators — publishing, newsletters and subscriptions in a clean interface.
About Ghost
Ghost is an open-source CMS designed specifically for content publishing: articles, newsletters and paid subscriptions. Its interface is intentionally minimalist — no superfluous features, just the essentials for writing and publishing. Performance is excellent: Ghost is written in Node.js and generates cached static pages.
On your VPS, Ghost lets you use its full feature set (unlimited newsletters, members, subscriptions) without paying Ghost Pro's $29/month. You control your data, your subscribers and your content.
What gets installed
Ready when the VPS starts
- Compatible OS
- Ubuntu 24.04
- Application
- Ghost
- Tech stack
- Node.jsNginxMySQLGhost-CLI
- Minimum RAM
- 1 GB
- Minimum CPU
- 1 vCPU
- Access
- root over SSH
Key features
- Rich content editor (cards, embeds, long-form)
- Built-in newsletters — send directly from Ghost
- Membership and paid subscription system (Stripe)
- Static page generation — the HTML is produced once, not on every visit
- Content API for headless CMS
- Customizable themes in Handlebars
When to use this solution?
Professional newsletter
Create a paid or free newsletter without depending on Substack or Mailchimp — your subscribers belong to you.
Technical blog
Ghost handles markdown, syntax highlighting and code embeds — perfect for developer blogs.
Online media
Regular publishing with author, category, tag management and article scheduling.
Guide
Deploy Ghost on your VPS
Prepare the VPS
VPS with 1 GB RAM minimum, Ubuntu 24.04. Node.js LTS and Nginx are required.
Install Ghost-CLI
Install ghost-cli globally:
npm install ghost-cli@latest -g.Create the Ghost site
In your site folder:
ghost install --url https://your-domain.com --no-setup-nginx --no-setup-ssl. The nginx vhost and the TLS certificate are set up by ServOrbit as soon as the domain is attached to the app from your client area; Ghost-CLI only handles the database.Configure email
In Ghost settings, configure an SMTP server (Mailgun, Postmark) for newsletters and confirmation emails.
Connect Stripe
For paid subscriptions, connect your Stripe account in Settings > Subscriptions.
Embed the deploy button
Maintaining a project that uses Ghost? This button lets your readers deploy it on a VPS in one click, without reading Docker documentation.
[](https://servorbit.com/vps-cloud?template=ghost&utm_source=deploy-badge&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ghost)<a href="https://servorbit.com/vps-cloud?template=ghost&utm_source=deploy-badge&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ghost"><img src="https://servorbit.com/brand/deploy/button.svg" alt="Deploy Ghost on ServOrbit" height="40"></a>The button points to a VPS order with the template preselected. The image is served from servorbit.com — nothing to host on your side.
Need help?
Browse our help center and FAQ, or reach our team — callback, WhatsApp or email.
Message us on WhatsAppopens in a new tab