Ameba Blog vs Ghost

Ameba Blog is a blogging service within Ameba, a media service that also includes entertainment news, manga, and fortune-telling content. It lets users schedule posts, run built-in memberships, and view blog analytics. Writing tools offer more than 240 types of decoration, and the official blog genres span more than 150 categories, from everyday interests and hobbies to work and fan blogs. Ameba Pick lets bloggers feature items in articles and earn rewards; listed options include Amazon, Rakuten Market, and Hot Pepper Beauty. Free accounts can upload GIF, JPG, or PNG images up to 3MB each and have a 1TB image folder. App submissions allow up to 15 images per article, selected from the posting device. The service runs on web, Android, and iOS, with custom-code theme customization. Registration and posting are free. Plus costs ¥980 a month; Light costs ¥1,490 a month and removes ads, adds customization features, and includes online lesson archive videos. First-time users can try paid plans for 30 days.

Ghost is an open-source blog and newsletter platform for professional publishers, with tools for publishing, memberships, analytics, and editorial workflows. It runs on the web and supports custom domains, theme customization, SEO tools, multilingual content, and CSV export. Publishers can send multiple email newsletters and offer free or paid memberships with monthly or yearly billing. The editor supports galleries, GIFs, video, audio, products, files, and bookmarks. Integrations include Stripe, Zapier, Slack, YouTube, Google Analytics, and GitHub. Paid plans start at $18/mo (annual), with a 14-day trial and no permanent free plan. Starter costs $18 a month, billed yearly, and includes 1,000 members, one staff user, and a 5 MB file upload limit. Ghost charges a 0% fee on publication revenue; payment processor fees still apply. Ghost(Pro) includes security protections, while all plans include device verification and email-based two-factor authentication.