Buttondown vs Ghost pricing: which is cheaper for your team?
Buttondown's cheapest paid tier (Standard add-ons) lists at $9/month, which beats the other on entry pricing. Mid-tier and enterprise math can flip the answer — use the per-tier table below to see the real cost for your team size at each tier.
Calculate the cost for your team
Buttondown pricing tiers
| Tier | Monthly | Annual (eq) | Unit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | month | Up to 100 subscribers, rich text and markdown editor, custom domain sending, archives. |
| Standard add-ons | $9 | $9 | month | Tagging, segmentation, paid subscriptions, comments, surveys, analytics, RSS-to-email. |
| Pro add-ons | $29 | $29 | month | Custom domain archives, multiple newsletters, automations. |
| Team add-ons | $79 | $79 | month | Whitelabeling and team seats on top of base. |
Ghost pricing tiers
| Tier | Monthly | Annual (eq) | Unit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $18 | $18 | month | 1,000 members, 1 staff user, 5mb file uploads, billed yearly only. |
| Publisher | $29 | $29 | month | 1,000 members, 3 staff users, 100mb file uploads, paid subscriptions enabled. |
| Business | $199 | $199 | month | 10,000 members, 15 staff users, 250mb file uploads, 10 newsletters and tiers. |
Feature by feature
The non-pricing differences that drive the real decision.
| Capability | Buttondown | Ghost |
|---|---|---|
| Billing model | month | month |
| Pricing model | À la carte add-ons with subscriber base | Member-tiered hosted publishing |
| Cheapest paid tier | Standard add-ons at $9/month | Starter at $18/month |
| Mid-tier benchmark | Pro add-ons at $29/month | Publisher at $29/month |
| Total paid tiers published | 3 | 3 |
| Last verified | 2026-05-17 | 2026-05-17 |
Best for…
Hand-picked use cases mapped to the winner.
| Use case | Winner |
|---|---|
| Lowest entry price (10-person team) | Buttondown Standard add-ons |
| Most pricing tiers (room to grow) | Buttondown (3 tiers) |
| Predictable per-seat billing | Neither (both flat/usage) |
| Most recently verified pricing | Buttondown |
Choose Buttondown when
- Buttondown is a small-team newsletter platform with a free tier up to 100 subscribers and à la carte add-ons starting at $9 per month for power features.
- Entry tier (Standard add-ons) at $9/month is your budget ceiling.
- No formal enterprise plan; 501(c)(3) nonprofits receive a 50% discount on any plan.
Choose Ghost when
- Ghost(Pro) offers hosted publishing starting at $18 per month billed yearly for 1,000 members, scaling to Business at $199 per month for 10,000 members.
- Entry tier (Starter) at $18/month is your budget ceiling.
- Custom plan unlocks unlimited members, staff users, newsletters, and 1gb file uploads under a sales-quoted rate.
Switching considerations
Watch the hidden fees on both sides. Buttondown: Each add-on bundle stacks on top of the base subscriber fee Ghost: Custom SSL certificate add-on costs $50 per month on Business and up Always confirm with the vendor before purchase.
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper for a 10-person team, Buttondown or Ghost?
At entry tier and 10 seats on annual billing: Buttondown Standard add-ons comes to $9/mo; Ghost Starter comes to $18/mo. Buttondown is the cheaper entry-tier choice at this team size.
Does Buttondown have more pricing tiers than Ghost?
Both publish 3 paid tiers. The mid-tier benchmark is Pro add-ons for Buttondown and Publisher for Ghost.
Which pricing was verified more recently?
Buttondown's pricing was last verified 2026-05-17; Ghost's on 2026-05-17. Both pages link to the vendor's official pricing source so you can re-check before committing.