Comparison

Directus vs Ghost

On the evidence we track, Ghost leads this comparison with a composite score of 72/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.

Machine formatsMarkdownJSONGraphQLMarkdown is open. JSON and GraphQL need a free key.
Directus60
★Ghost72
Score
vioscaleAI score
Directus60 / 100medium · 60%
Ghost72 / 100medium · 69%
Pricing
Free tier
Directus✓
Ghost✗
Model
Directusfreemium
Price level
Directushigh
Ghostmid
Starting price
Directus$499
Ghost$18
Transparent
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Integrations
Count
Directus4
Ghost8,000
Security
Disclosure policy
Directus✓
Ghost–
Gdpr
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Scorecard
Directus–
Ghost3.8
Soc2
Directus✓
Ghost–
Trust center
Reliability
Sla pct
Directus–
Ghost99.9
Status page
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Adoption
Dependent repos
Directus–
Ghost468
Github stars
Directus–
Ghost55,540
Package downloads weekly
Directus–
Ghost15,292
Activity
Commits last 30d
Directus–
Ghost100
Release
Cadence days
Directus–
Ghost5
History
Directus–
License
Spdx
Directus–
GhostMIT
Language
Primary
Directus–
Content
Faq
Directus6 items
Ghost8 items

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for cms software. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Core
CMS type
DirectusHeadless / API-first
GhostTraditional / monolithic
Licensing
Open-source
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Deployment
Self-hostable
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Managed / cloud hosting offered
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Delivery
Headless API (REST/GraphQL)
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Content
Structured content modelling
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Localisation / i18n
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Content workflow / approvals
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Editing
Visual / no-code page builder
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Extensibility
Plugin / app ecosystem size
DirectusDirectus Marketplace with Sandbox SDK for safe third-party extensions
Ghost8,000+ integrations
Scale
Multi-site / multi-tenant
Directus✓
Ghost✗
Workflow
Git-based / code-first workflow
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Pricing
Free / open tier
Directus✓
Ghost✓

What each one is

The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.

Directus

A system that connects to any SQL database and provides a collaborative web interface for content and data management, while automatically generating REST and GraphQL APIs for developers.

Independently observed

Ghost

Leader

An open-source platform enabling content creators to manage websites, send newsletters, and offer paid subscriber memberships all in one unified system. Includes native analytics, content editor, and extensive integration support.

Independently observed

Pricing

List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.

Directus

from $499/moHybridFree tier14-day trial

Free Core tier. Team from $499/mo annual commitment. Enterprise custom. Grant available for organizations under $5M revenue and 50 employees.

  • CoreFree
    • 3 user seats
    • 5 Flows
    • 25 collections
    • AI Assistant
    • Advanced RBAC
    • +1 more
  • Team$499/mo (annual) or $599/mo (monthly)
    • 10 SSO seats
    • 50 Collections (expandable to 100)
    • 20 Flows
    • Granular RBAC
    • Basic Support
  • EnterpriseContact sales
    • Custom SSO seats
    • Custom Collections
    • Unlimited Flows
    • SSO (SAML / OIDC)
    • Custom LLM
    • +4 more
  • Open Innovation GrantFree
    • All features included
    • Free self-hosted
    • Cloud hosting $99/mo optional
as of verify ↗

Ghost

Leader
from $18/moSubscription14-day trial

From $18/mo. Free 14-day trial.

  • Starter$18/mo
    • Website hosting
    • Free custom domain
    • Email newsletters
    • Simple design settings
    • Unlimited email sends
  • Publisher$29/mo
    • Custom themes
    • 8000+ integrations
    • Paid subscriptions
    • Advanced analytics
    • Whitelist branding
    • +2 more
  • Business$199/mo
    • Priority support
    • Higher usage limits
    • Early access to features
  • CustomContact sales
    • Advanced configurations
    • Dedicated IP address
    • 99.9% uptime SLA
    • Unlimited members
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.

Platforms
Web
Directus✓
Ghost✓
CLI
Directus✓
Ghost✗
Deployment
Cloud / SaaS
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Self-hosted
Directus✓
Ghost✓
Hybrid
Directus✓
Ghost✗

Integrations

What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.

Directus

4 total
  • OpenAI
  • Anthropic
  • Google Gemini
  • Claude
Independently observed

Ghost

Leader
10 total
  • Slack
  • Zapier
  • n8n
  • BeyondWords
  • Stripe
  • GitHub
  • Google Analytics
  • Plausible
  • Instagram
  • Tinybird
Independently observed
Still deciding?

Directus or Ghost: which one depends on you

A composite score cannot know your constraints. Describe them and both get re-weighted against what you actually need, with the evidence behind every position.

Free to run, no account needed to start. How the evaluation works

Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.