Everything you need, nothing you don't
Creating an online course doesn't require Teachable ($39-199/month), Thinkific ($49-199/month), or a custom WordPress + LearnDash setup. With Ghost CMS and the right theme, you can launch a professional course platform for under $15/month total.
Step 1: Set up Ghost
You have two options:
- Ghost(Pro) — Managed hosting starting at $9/month. Zero maintenance, automatic updates, built-in CDN.
- Self-hosted — $5-10/month on any VPS (DigitalOcean, Hetzner, Vultr). More control, slightly more work.
Step 2: Install a course theme
Upload a course-optimized Ghost theme (like Academy) via Ghost Admin > Settings > Design > Upload Theme. The theme handles the course structure, progress tracking, and membership integration.
Step 3: Plan your curriculum
Before writing content, outline your courses:
- Beginner course (free) — 3-5 lessons, builds trust
- Intermediate course (members-only) — 5-8 lessons, delivers value
- Advanced course (paid) — 7-10 lessons, justifies the subscription
Step 4: Create courses as tags
In Ghost Admin, create a tag for each course. Add a description (appears as the course summary) and a feature image (becomes the course thumbnail). That's it — no custom database, no plugin configuration.
Step 5: Write lessons as posts
Each lesson is a regular Ghost post tagged with its course. Order is determined by publish date — publish lessons in sequence. Use Ghost's editor cards for rich content: images, code blocks, toggles, embeds.
Step 6: Configure memberships
Ghost Admin > Settings > Membership. Connect Stripe, set your pricing tiers, and choose which courses are free vs. paid. Ghost handles the entire payment flow — signup, billing, cancellation, and access control.
Step 7: Launch and grow
Start with your free course to build an email list. Use Ghost's built-in newsletter to nurture subscribers. Convert engaged readers to paid members with strategically gated advanced content.
Total cost comparison
| Platform | Monthly cost | Transaction fee | Annual total (1000 students) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ghost + Academy | $9-15 | 2.9% (Stripe only) | $108-180 |
| Teachable Basic | $39 | 5% | $468 + fees |
| Thinkific Basic | $49 | 0% | $588 |
| WordPress + LearnDash | $30-50 | varies | $360-600 + plugins |
