Drupal vs Ghost
Drupal is an open-source traditional CMS that you host yourself. Ghost is an open-source traditional CMS that you can host yourself or run on the vendor's cloud. The table below sets them side by side on 28 features. They get a different status on 19.
- Drupal Traditional · Open source · 16 of 28 built in
- Ghost Traditional · Open source · 10 of 28 built in
Sources checked: Drupal on 29 Sept 2026, Ghost on 29 Sept 2026. Plans and releases can change after those dates.
WAYF is an official Payload partner and top contributor. Every platform in the table is classified by the same published definitions, and each answer lists the vendor page it came from.
Feature comparison
Built inPaid tierPlugin or add-onLimitedNot available
| Platform |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| What it is | Open-source PHP CMS with fieldable content types, core JSON:API and multilingual modules. Teams self-host it or use Drupal hosting platforms. | Open-source Node.js publishing platform with built-in newsletters, memberships and paid subscriptions. Self-hosted or run on Ghost(Pro). |
| Edition compared The product and release each column describes. | Drupal 11 core. Drupal CMS 2 bundles core with selected contrib modules. Version 11.4.8, released 26 Sept 2026 | Ghost 6, self-hosted open source and Ghost(Pro) Version 6.65.0, released 22 Sept 2026 |
| Vendor | Drupal community, supported by the Drupal Association drupal.org | Ghost Foundation (non-profit) ghost.org |
| Licence | Open source GPL-2.0-or-later | Open source MIT |
| Hosting | Self-hosting No vendor cloud Acquia, Pantheon and other companies sell managed Drupal hosting. | Self-hosting Vendor cloud Ghost(Pro) Starter allows only the default theme and no custom integrations. |
| Built with | PHP, Symfony, Twig | Node.js, JavaScript, Handlebars themes |
| Database | MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, SQLite | MySQL |
| Pricing Public list prices only. Hosting and implementation are extra everywhere. | Free to start Free and open source. Hosting, support and contrib services cost extra. | Free to start Free to self-host. Ghost(Pro) Starter $18, Publisher $29, Business $199 per month, billed yearly. |
| Content modelling | ||
| Content model in code You define content types in files in your repository, review them like any other code and apply them from there. Imperative migration scripts alone count as limited. | Built in Content types and fields export to YAML config files. | Not available Fixed model of posts, pages, tags and members. |
| Content model in the UI Admins can create and change content types and fields in the admin interface without writing code. | Built in Field UI in core. | Not available |
| Reusable blocks Editors compose pages from reusable, typed components or blocks, and can reorder them. | Built in Layout Builder in core. Paragraphs and Drupal Canvas are contrib. 910 | Built in Fixed set of editor cards plus reusable snippets. 10 |
| Localization Editors translate content per locale inside the CMS, by field or by entry, without a separate site for each language. | Built in Field-level content translation in core. 7 | Not available One content language per site. |
| Image transformations The CMS resizes, crops or converts images on request, through URL parameters or generated sizes, with no external service. | Built in Image styles scale, crop and convert images. 8 | Built in Ghost generates theme-defined image sizes automatically. 5 |
| APIs and delivery | ||
| REST API A documented REST or JSON HTTP API returns content. | Built in JSON:API and REST modules in core. 3 | Built in Content API and Admin API. 12 |
| GraphQL API The vendor or an official module provides a GraphQL API for content. | Plugin or add-on GraphQL contrib module. Developers build the schema. 4 | Not available |
| Webhooks The CMS can call an external URL when content is created, changed or published. | Plugin or add-on Webhooks contrib module. Core has no outgoing webhooks. 18 | Built in Via custom integrations. Not available on Ghost(Pro) Starter. 42 |
| Renders the website The CMS itself renders and serves the public pages through themes or templates. Headless-only products answer no. | Built in Twig themes. | Built in Handlebars themes. |
| Editorial workflow | ||
| Drafts Editors save changes as a draft and publish them later. The live version stays untouched until then. | Built in Drafts of published content need the core Content Moderation module. 5 | Limited Edits to a published post go live on Update. No pending draft. 13 |
| Scheduled publishing An editor can set a future date and time for content to publish or unpublish. | Plugin or add-on Scheduler contrib module. 11 | Built in Scheduled publishing only. |
| Version history The CMS keeps earlier versions of an entry, and editors can compare or restore them. | Built in Revert in core. Side-by-side compare needs the Diff contrib module. | Built in Post history with one-click restore. 6 |
| Preview Editors can see unpublished content rendered as it will appear on the site before publishing. | Built in Preview button on the edit form. | Built in |
| Visual editing Editors can click on the rendered page and edit content in place or in a side panel next to it. | Limited Layout Builder edits blocks on a rendered preview. Drupal Canvas is contrib. 910 | Not available The admin toolbar on the live site links to the editor. 9 |
| Approval workflows Content moves through review stages you configure, such as draft, review and approved, with permissions per stage. | Built in Workflows and Content Moderation modules in core. 5 | Limited Contributors draft and Editors publish. No configurable stages. 7 |
| Content releases Editors group changes across several entries and publish them together as one release. | Built in Workspaces module, stable in core since 10.3. 6 | Not available |
| Real-time co-editing Two or more editors can work on the same entry at once and see each other's changes live. | Not available | Not available |
| Access and governance | ||
| Custom roles Admins define their own roles with granular permissions instead of picking from a fixed set. | Built in | Not available Fixed staff roles. 7 |
| Field-level permissions Admins can restrict access to single fields, on top of content types and entries. | Plugin or add-on Field Permissions contrib module. 12 | Not available |
| Single sign-on Editors can sign in through SAML or OpenID Connect against a company identity provider. | Plugin or add-on OpenID Connect or SAML Authentication contrib modules. 13 | Paid tier Ghost(Pro) Custom plan only. Not in self-hosted Ghost. 2 |
| Audit log The CMS logs who changed what and when across the whole installation, and admins can review the log. | Limited Database Logging records content events by user. It caps and prunes entries. 20 | Built in History log of staff actions. 8 |
| Platform and extensibility | ||
| Multiple sites One installation or account can manage several separate websites or brands with shared users. | Plugin or add-on Domain contrib module. Core multisite shares only the codebase. 14 | Not available |
| Extensible admin UI Developers can add their own components, views or fields to the editing interface. | Built in Custom field widgets, forms and admin routes. | Not available The admin app has no extension points. |
| Plugin marketplace The vendor runs an official directory or marketplace of installable extensions. | Built in drupal.org module directory. | Limited Theme marketplace only. Ghost has no plugin system. 2 |
| Form builder Editors can build and publish forms and collect submissions without code. | Plugin or add-on Webform contrib module. Core Contact is deprecated in 11.4. 152 | Not available Member signup forms only. |
| Site member accounts The platform handles sign-up and login for public site users or members, separate from editors. | Built in | Built in Members with free and paid tiers. 3 |
| AI writing assistant A first-party AI feature in the editing interface generates, rewrites or translates content. | Plugin or add-on AI module from the Drupal AI Initiative, bundled with Drupal CMS. 1619 | Not available |
| Official MCP server The vendor publishes a Model Context Protocol server so AI agents can read or write content. | Not available Community contrib only, e.g. the MCP Server module by Lullabot and Omedia. 17 | Not available Community MCP servers only. 11 |
Drupal sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Drupal 11 core. Drupal CMS 2 bundles core with selected contrib modules..
- drupal 11.4.8 release
- drupal 11.4.0 release notes
- JSON:API module documentation
- GraphQL module
- Content Moderation module documentation
- Mark Workspaces as a stable core module (#3088643)
- Multilingual guide: translating content
- Image module: working with images
- Layout Builder module documentation
- Drupal Canvas
- Scheduler module
- Field Permissions module
- OpenID Connect / OAuth client module
- Domain module
- Webform module
- AI (Artificial Intelligence) module
- MCP Server module
- Webhooks module
- Drupal CMS 2.0 is here
- Database Logging module documentation
Ghost sources
Checked 29 Sept 2026. Ghost 6, self-hosted open source and Ghost(Pro).
- Ghost releases on GitHub
- Ghost(Pro) pricing
- Ghost 6.0 changelog
- Webhooks (Ghost docs)
- Theme assets and responsive images (Ghost docs)
- Post history (changelog)
- Staff users (Ghost docs)
- History log (Ghost help)
- Your new admin toolbar (changelog)
- Intro to the editor (Ghost help)
- MFYDev/ghost-mcp on GitHub
- A new Ghost Admin API (changelog)
- Add option to save changes in published posts (Ghost Forum)
Considering more platforms? Compare Drupal and Ghost with the rest of your shortlist in the CMS comparison tool.
Where they differ
Drupal and Ghost get a different status on 19 of the 28 features and the same status on 9. Drupal has 16 built in on its baseline edition, Ghost has 10. Two matching statuses can still name different paid tiers or limits, so read the notes in the table before treating a row as equal.
- Vendor cloud
- Drupal has no vendor-run cloud. Ghost has a vendor-run cloud.
Built in on Drupal, a different answer on Ghost 9
- Content model in code Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Not available.
- Content model in the UI Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Not available.
- Localization Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Not available.
- Drafts Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Limited.
- Approval workflows Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Limited.
- Content releases Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Not available.
- Custom roles Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Not available.
- Extensible admin UI Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Not available.
- Plugin marketplace Drupal: Built in. Ghost: Limited.
Built in on Ghost, a different answer on Drupal 3
- Webhooks Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Ghost: Built in.
- Scheduled publishing Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Ghost: Built in.
- Audit log Drupal: Limited. Ghost: Built in.
Built in on neither, with different answers 7
- GraphQL API Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Ghost: Not available.
- Visual editing Drupal: Limited. Ghost: Not available.
- Field-level permissions Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Ghost: Not available.
- Single sign-on Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Ghost: Paid tier.
- Multiple sites Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Ghost: Not available.
- Form builder Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Ghost: Not available.
- AI writing assistant Drupal: Plugin or add-on. Ghost: Not available.
More comparisons
Full write-ups with worked examples and costs: Drupal vs Payload.
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Ghost against other platforms
- Adobe Experience Manager vs Ghost
- Contentful vs Ghost
- Contentstack vs Ghost
- CoreMedia Content Cloud vs Ghost
- Craft CMS vs Ghost
- DatoCMS vs Ghost
- Decap CMS vs Ghost
- Directus vs Ghost
- EmDash vs Ghost
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- Ghost vs Kirby
- Ghost vs Liferay DXP
- Ghost vs Optimizely CMS
- Ghost vs Payload
- Ghost vs Prismic
- Ghost vs Progress Sitefinity
- Ghost vs Sanity
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- Ghost vs Squarespace
- Ghost vs Statamic
- Ghost vs Storyblok
- Ghost vs Strapi
- Ghost vs TYPO3
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