Freedom251 › Blogging Platforms
Masthead
What Masthead is
Masthead is a publishing platform where a theme controls both a website’s appearance and its editing interface. Site owners write posts and pages in Markdown or HTML and publish them on a Masthead subdomain or custom domain. Every site receives HTTPS, while paid plans add custom domains, automatically provisioned TLS certificates, collaborators, and visitor statistics counted without cookies or a tracking script. The free plan costs €0 forever and includes unlimited posts and pages, themes, image and file uploads, tags, drafts, and Hugo import. Themes define the settings, fields, and page types available in the administration area, so Masthead is not a general page builder. Themes run in a sandbox that blocks database queries, server code, and filesystem access. Masthead supports importing Hugo sites or individual Markdown and HTML files, GitHub sign-up, and self-hosting as a Docker container or Phoenix application.
Who it suits
Masthead suits agencies, independent developers, theme developers, and site owners who prefer theme-defined publishing. It also fits users wanting hosted publishing or documented self-hosting options.
What it does well
- Free plan includes unlimited posts and pages
- Markdown and HTML publishing
- Custom domains on paid plan
- Cookie-free visitor statistics
- Hugo import support
What to know first
- Not a general page builder
- No plugin directory
- Self-hosting has no pre-built Docker images
- Paid plan starts at €5 per month
Plans
| Plan | Billed and limits | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Free | €0 forever · Unlimited posts and pages · Markdown or HTML · Marketplace themes or upload your own · masthead.site address · Automatic HTTPS · Image and file uploads · Tags and drafts · Hugo import | Free |
| Paid | or €50 billed yearly. Cancel any time. · Everything in Free · Custom domain · Automatic TLS certificates · Collaborators · Visitor statistics | €5 a month |
As masthead.site lists them, read 11 Oct 2026. The maker's own page has the final word.
Verdict
Masthead centers publishing around theme-defined fields and page types rather than visual page building. Its free hosted tier covers core publishing, while paid features add domains, collaboration, and statistics.
Facts from Masthead's own pages
- Audience
- Masthead describes agencies, independent developers, theme developers and site owners as intended users. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Collaboration
- The paid plan lets site owners invite collaborators to a site. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Custom domain
- Yes · masthead.site, 22 Sept 2026
- Custom domains
- The paid plan includes a custom domain, and Masthead provisions TLS certificates automatically. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Free plan
- Yes · masthead.site, 22 Sept 2026
- Hosting
- Each site is available on its own Masthead subdomain and served over HTTPS. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Imports
- Masthead supports importing a Hugo site or individual Markdown and HTML files. · docs.masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- Masthead supports signing up with GitHub and importing content from Hugo; its docs describe self-hosting with Docker or Phoenix. · docs.masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Limits
- Masthead is not a page builder and has no plugin directory; owners edit the fields defined by each theme. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Product
- Masthead is a publishing platform where a website's theme defines both its appearance and the editing experience. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Publishing
- Site owners can write posts and pages in Markdown or HTML and publish them on a Masthead subdomain or custom domain. · docs.masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Security
- Themes render in a sandbox and cannot query the database, run server code or access the filesystem. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Self-hosting
- Masthead can be self-hosted as a Docker container or Phoenix application, but pre-built Docker images are not currently provided. · docs.masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Statistics
- The paid plan includes visitor statistics counted without cookies or a tracking script. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
- Theme customization
- custom code · masthead.site, 22 Sept 2026
- Theme editor
- Themes declare site settings, post and page fields, and page types that Masthead uses to build the site's admin. · masthead.site, 11 Oct 2026
Where Masthead stands on Freedom251
- Blogging Platforms#80 of 125