What to Check Before Buying a Ghost Theme

By Ahmad Ajmi October 12, 2026

Before buying a Ghost theme, confirm that you can install it on your site. Then check its layouts, setup requirements and support. The examples below use Aspire Themes’ Siwa demo.

Hosting and Ghost Compatibility

On Ghost(Pro), you need a hosting plan that permits custom themes. Starter does not; check the current plan comparison before buying a third-party theme.

If you host Ghost yourself, check that the theme supports your installed Ghost version. Ask the developer if the product page does not specify this.

Ask whether the current release passes Ghost’s GScan checker, which checks theme files for errors and compatibility issues. It does not assess the design or loading speed.

Homepage Layout

Open the live demo and check how visitors reach the writing. A complete-post homepage lets them begin reading immediately; story cards let them choose an article first. An introduction gives them context about the writer before either step.

Siwa demo homepage with an introduction beside a portrait and a Read Stories link — Siwa begins with an introduction before leading visitors into stories and subscription choices.

Look for demo posts similar to yours, including long titles or posts without images. If an important format is missing, ask the developer to show an example. For a new site with few posts, ask which homepage sections you can leave out.

The Sinai and Hakone comparison shows the difference between story cards and a complete-post reading feed.

Article Pages

Read a full demo article on your phone and desktop. Check text size, long headings, image crops and captions. If you publish video or audio, find a post that includes it and try the player.

Siwa demo article opening with its title, summary and feature image — Siwa’s article opening shows the title, summary and feature image.

Try search and subscription links if you plan to use them. Check that search returns matching posts and that the subscription link reaches the intended signup form.

Setup Work

Read the setup documentation before buying. Check which sections need pages, tags or selected posts, and which changes need code. Ask about a specific change you want to make, such as moving the signup form or changing the homepage order.

The Siwa setup guide explains how to create its homepage and newsletter section. Check whether sample writing and images are included or whether you must supply your own.

Ghost controls newsletter email templates separately from the website theme. The website and email guide explains where each design is configured.

Support, Updates and the License

Check how many sites the license covers, how updates are delivered and which work support includes. Read the changelog to see recent fixes and compatibility updates.

Aspire Themes’ single-theme license covers one Ghost website and permits a separate test installation. Six months of support covers theme functionality, configuration and bugs in the original theme. Customization, manual update installation and Ghost server setup are excluded. Available theme updates continue after support expires. See the terms and FAQ for the full conditions.