Ghost
CMS
HSTS
SecurityGhost vs HSTS (2026): Which Is Better?
Ghost and HSTS are both popular choices, but they serve different needs. Ghost is a CMS with a traditional, manual approach to building, while HSTS is a Security that prioritises developer or designer control.
Below you'll find a side-by-side breakdown of detection signals, AI scores, and technical fingerprints — plus our honest take on which builder wins for different use cases.
How we detect Ghost vs HSTS — see our methodology: AI Influence Score calculation, evidence tiers, and fingerprint signal types.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | CMS | Security |
| AI Score | 20/100 — Traditional | 10/100 — Unknown |
| Detection Signals | 7 patterns | 1 patterns |
| Script Detection | 2 patterns | — |
| CDN Detection | — | — |
| Header Detection | 2 headers | 1 headers |
| Sites Detected | 4,674 scans | 273 scans |
| Best For | Blogs & content-heavy sitesTry Ghost → | Professional websitesTry HSTS → |
| Official Website | Visit | Visit |
Example Websites
Ghost
CMS
Ghost is a cms with an AI Score of 20/100 (Traditional). Our detection engine uses 7 signal patterns to identify Ghost-built sites.
HSTS
Security
HSTS is a security with an AI Score of 10/100 (Unknown). Our detection engine uses 1 signal patterns to identify HSTS-built sites.
Platform Overviews
Ghost
Ghost is an open-source Node.js-based content management system designed primarily for professional publishers, bloggers, and media organizations seeking a streamlined platform for subscription-based content and newsletters. AIWebsiteDetector.com identifies Ghost-powered sites using a combination of 2 script patterns, 2 HTML patterns, 2 HTTP headers, and 1 meta tag pattern, providing multiple redundant signals that make detection highly reliable even when sites use custom themes or third-party CDNs. Common detection signals include Ghost-specific script references embedded in page source, characteristic HTML structural attributes injected by the Ghost rendering engine, and HTTP response headers that expose version or platform metadata. The meta tag pattern typically surfaces a generator tag pointing explicitly to Ghost, which remains present across most default and custom theme configurations and serves as one of the most definitive single-signal identifiers. Ghost is available both as a self-hosted open-source installation and as a managed cloud service through Ghost(Pro), meaning detection patterns must account for both infrastructure environments — a distinction reflected in the diversity of header-based signals our engine tracks. The platform's consistent use of standardized theme APIs and its tightly controlled front-end architecture make it one of the more reliably detectable CMS platforms in the publishing category.
HSTS
HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) is a security header standard that instructs browsers to only ever connect to a site over HTTPS, protecting against protocol-downgrade and cookie-hijacking attacks on the first request. Our engine detects it through 1 HTTP header check for the `Strict-Transport-Security` response header. Like CSP, this is a security-configuration signal we surface alongside builder/technology detection, not a vendor or platform identification. Reference: MDN's HSTS documentation.
Key Differences
- Ghost is a CMS while HSTS is a Security — they serve different primary use cases and aren't always direct alternatives.
- Ghost scores higher on AI involvement (20/100 vs 10/100 for HSTS), meaning it relies more heavily on AI for site generation and content creation.
- Our detection engine identifies Ghost using 7 fingerprint patterns and HSTS using 1 pattern — more signals generally means more reliable detection.
Which Should You Choose?
Choose Ghost if…
- You prefer a cms solution
- You want more manual control over the final output
- Ghost's detection fingerprint of 7 signals means your site is reliably identifiable
Choose HSTS if…
- You need a security approach
- You prefer traditional building tools with predictable output
- HSTS's ecosystem and community better match your team's existing workflow
Our Pick — Based on 4,947+ detections
Ghost
Detected 17× more often than HSTS across our database of scanned sites.
Was this helpful?
Check Which Builder Powers a Site
Curious if a website uses Ghost or HSTS? Scan it now — free.
Ghost vs WordPress
Ghost vs Drupal
Ghost vs Joomla
Ghost vs Notion Sites
Ghost vs HubSpot CMS
Ghost vs Webflow CMS