Move from Ghost to Next.js for more customization, better performance, and lower costs.
You can migrate from Ghost to Next.js for free using LeaveWP. Enter your site URL, choose Next.js as the destination, and download your content — posts, pages, and media — in minutes. No API keys, passwords, or CLI tools required. Difficulty: Easy. Estimated time: 10-20 minutes.
Official docs: Ghost Documentation · Next.js Documentation
Modern publishing platform built for professional content creators. Professional writers, journalists, and newsletter creators who want to monetize content, but these limitations push teams toward modern alternatives.
Limited to blogs and newsletters — not a general CMS
This is the most common reason teams migrate away from Ghost. Next.js eliminates this issue entirely.
Small theme ecosystem compared to WordPress
With Next.js, hybrid rendering — ssg, ssr, isr, and client-side in one app.
Self-hosting requires Node.js server expertise
Modern architectures like Next.js are designed to avoid this from the ground up.
Managed hosting (Ghost Pro) is relatively expensive
After migrating, you'll no longer need to worry about this — Next.js takes a fundamentally different approach.
React framework for production with SSR, SSG, and API routes. Built with JavaScript/TypeScript (React), it's production web apps and content sites needing flexible rendering strategies.
Hybrid rendering — SSG, SSR, ISR, and client-side in one app
Most popular React framework with massive community
Built-in image optimization, API routes, and middleware
Optimized for Vercel but deploys anywhere (Node.js, Docker)
Next.js is open-source and free to use. You own your code and data with no vendor lock-in. Deploy to any host that supports JavaScript/TypeScript, or use managed platforms like Vercel and Netlify for zero-config deployments.
Side-by-side comparison based on real platform characteristics
| Metric | Ghost | Next.js |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 | ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5 |
| Performance | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 |
| Flexibility | ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 |
| Cost | ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 |
| Scalability | ⭐⭐⭐ 3/5 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 |
| Ecosystem | ⭐⭐ 2/5 | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5 |
| Language | Node.js | JavaScript/TypeScript (React) |
| Pricing | Free (self-hosted) / $9-199/month (managed) | Free (open-source) |
| Open Source | Yes | Yes |
Ratings are based on publicly available data, documentation, and community consensus as of 2026. Individual experience may vary.
A detailed breakdown of how your Ghost content maps to Next.js
What may need manual attention
Custom server-side logic, third-party integrations, and platform-specific plugins will need equivalent solutions in Next.js. The core content (text, images, metadata) transfers cleanly.
Migrate your content in three simple steps
Enter your Ghost site URL — LeaveWP connects automatically.
Select Next.js as destination and choose content options.
Download your migrated content or preview it in your browser.
Migrating from Ghost to Next.js makes the most sense if you're experiencing limited to blogs and newsletters — not a general cms or outgrowing Ghost's architecture. Next.js is best for production web apps and content sites needing flexible rendering strategies.
You should migrate if: your Ghost site is slow, your hosting costs are climbing, you need developer flexibility, or you want to adopt a modern JAMstack architecture.
You might want to stay if: your Ghost site benefits from beautiful, focused writing experience (markdown + rich editor) and you don't have JavaScript/TypeScript developers on your team. Ghost is genuinely easy to use, and that simplicity has value.
The migration itself is straightforward with LeaveWP — enter your Ghost URL, select Next.js, and download your content. The more important question is whether Next.js's architecture fits your team's skills and your project's long-term needs.
Explore more migration paths from Ghost or to Next.js
In-depth guides and tutorials to help with your migration
Everything you need to know about migrating from WordPress to Next.js. From planning to deployment, this guide covers the entire migration process.
18 min readtutorialsLearn how to migrate your WordPress site to Next.js step-by-step. This comprehensive guide covers everything from content export to deployment.
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