Free, open-source alternatives to Medium
Blogging platform with a paywall. 3 apps you can run yourself instead of Medium, sorted by how well they replace it. Each one is open source, so your data stays with you.
WriteFreely
Writing software for starting a minimalist, federated blog — or an entire community.
Side by side
| App | Stars | License | Activity | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ghost | 55,524 | MIT | Node.js | |
| WriteFreely | 5,269 | AGPL-3.0 | Go | |
| WordPress | 21,473 | GPL-2.0 | PHP |
Why replace Medium?
Medium works, but your data lives in someone else's account, the price can change at any time, and features can disappear. An open-source app you run yourself is yours: you choose where it runs, who can see the data, and when to update.
Questions
What is the best free alternative to Medium?
Ghost is the closest open-source replacement for Medium in our list. WriteFreely and WordPress are worth a look too, depending on what you need.
Can I self-host an alternative to Medium?
Yes. All 3 apps on this page are open source and can run on your own server, usually with Docker, or on a managed host that installs them for you.