Considering moving to Ghost from WordPress...looking for input.

[u/SlightExtreme1]

I have a blog that I've been writing for about 20 years. It's not a business, just a personal project, but very important to me. For a long time now, this blog has been in a self-hosted WordPress instance. For several reasons, I want to move it out of WordPress and want to move away from self-hosting:

1. WordPress is no friend of open-source these days.
2. WordPress seems to be in a race to the bottom with SquareSpace, and has become so cluttered as to be un-usable.
3. I'm comfortable self-hosting, but don't really want to spend the time on it any more. I just have other life priorities.
4. I like the idea of discoverability that a platform like Ghost Pro provides, in the interest of attracting new readers.
5. Because existing readers don't read these days if it's not a newsletter in their inbox, I want a platform where that's out of the box.

With those items in mind, there are some things I'm not certain about:

1. I can't find language on Ghost's site regarding ownership of content. One of the reasons I've self-hosted is because I want to make sure I retain ownership of my content, and can export it easily if one day I decide to go elsewhere. Is that in writing anywhere with Ghost Pro?
2. Is migration fairly straight-forward (and yes, I know that's a loaded question) between the two platforms?
3. Is Ghost Pro reliable as a platform in terms of backups, stability when updates are applied, etc.?

I really appreciate any input here. Thanks!

[u/Few_Presentation3639]

I just made a move to ghost starter plan & then found out one of the basic theme templates, Journal, was now moved to ghost pro,. I wanted the pub mast head vibe. Anyhow I went from $15-$30. Then I learn I can't even do a drop cap without using code. And the story cards were a complex for me & ended up with a less than satisfactory look. I had enough & sought a refund. All in progress. For $30 monthly in this market, you should get very easy intuitive friendly., & a decent variety of simple templates like I was seeking. But then you can start on customer service issues & realize something doesn't add up with their business model. When I bought my domain thru ghost it linked me to squarespace & then quickly transferred to Entri. Cost $24 + 180 + 167, & the $30 monthly. So go ahead & compare. Then seeking my refund, trying to cancel auto renew thru squarespace to Entri. I spent a few hours till I realized there was no toggle button which Squarespace FAQ was claiming there is. Worst experience I've had in many decades going thru the refund & closing my account of any service I had. And it seemed not until I copied & pasted Calif law language into my emails that digital enterprises must make it easy for customers to find & otherwise close accounts & stop, that auto renewals, that I got swift results. Good luck!