Headless Ghost: Custom Frontend with Content API

Headless architecture with Ghost: from API to ready frontend

Handlebars themes in Ghost offer limited flexibility: any non-standard UI requires rewriting templates, and performance suffers due to server-side rendering without caching. Ghost Content API is a public read-only REST interface that allows separating the backend from the frontend. We use this approach in every headless project: the database and admin panel stay on Ghost, while the UI is built with Next.js, Astro, or Vue. The result is full control over design and Core Web Vitals at 90+.

What is Ghost Content API and how does it work?

Ghost Content API v5 provides access to content via standard HTTP requests. It returns JSON with posts, pages, tags, and authors. Unlike Handlebars, you get raw data and build the interface yourself. The API is optimized for reading: average response time is under 30 ms with 10,000 posts. Authentication is done via a public API key, which can safely be used on the frontend.

How does authentication work in Ghost Content API?

The Content API Key is created in Ghost Admin: Settings → Integrations → Add custom integration. The key is passed as a query parameter or header. It is public (read-only), so it can be used on the frontend without additional authorization.

// lib/ghost.ts
import GhostContentAPI from '@tryghost/content-api';

export const ghostClient = new GhostContentAPI({
  url: process.env.GHOST_URL!, // https://myblog.com
  key: process.env.GHOST_CONTENT_API_KEY!,
  version: 'v5.0',
});

Core methods of Ghost Content API

The SDK provides browse methods for lists and read for single records. It supports pagination, filters, field selection, and inclusion of related data (authors, tags). For a typical blog, posts.browse and posts.read are enough. Note the formats parameter: html or plaintext.

// List posts with pagination
const posts = await ghostClient.posts.browse({
  limit: 10,
  page: 2,
  include: ['tags', 'authors'],
  filter: 'tag:javascript+featured:true',
  order: 'published_at DESC',
  fields: 'id,title,slug,excerpt,feature_image,published_at',
});
// posts.meta.pagination: { page, limit, pages, total, next, prev }

// Single post by slug
const post = await ghostClient.posts.read(
  { slug: 'my-post-slug' },
  { include: ['tags', 'authors'], formats: ['html', 'plaintext'] }
);

// Pages, tags, authors, settings — similarly

Next.js App Router integration

In the App Router, data is fetched in Server Components. ISR with revalidate allows cache updates without rebuilding. For list pages, generateStaticParams with limit: 'all' is convenient. This approach gives static site generation (SSG) with incremental updates.

// app/blog/page.tsx
import { ghostClient } from '@/lib/ghost';

export const revalidate = 3600;

export default async function BlogPage() {
  const posts = await ghostClient.posts.browse({
    limit: 12,
    include: ['tags', 'authors'],
  });

  return <PostGrid posts={posts} />;
}

// app/blog/[slug]/page.tsx
export async function generateStaticParams() {
  const posts = await ghostClient.posts.browse({ limit: 'all', fields: 'slug' });
  return posts.map((post) => ({ slug: post.slug }));
}

export default async function PostPage({ params }) {
  const post = await ghostClient.posts.read(
    { slug: params.slug },
    { include: ['tags', 'authors'] }
  );
  return <PostDetail post={post} />;
}

Render Ghost HTML with DOMPurify

Ghost returns ready HTML in the html field. For safe rendering, use DOMPurify sanitization and separate styles for Ghost cards. This approach works with React, Vue, and other frameworks.

// components/GhostContent.tsx
import DOMPurify from 'isomorphic-dompurify';

export function GhostContent({ html }: { html: string }) {
  const clean = DOMPurify.sanitize(html, {
    ADD_TAGS: ['iframe'],
    ADD_ATTR: ['allowfullscreen', 'frameborder'],
  });

  return (
    <div
      className="ghost-content prose prose-lg max-w-none"
      dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: clean }}
    />
  );
}

CSS for Ghost card elements is added separately: @/styles/ghost-cards.css (contains styles for kg-bookmark, kg-gallery, kg-video, etc.).

How to solve the Members API problem in headless mode?

Members functions (paywall, subscriptions) are more complex in headless mode. Ghost provides Portal — an iframe widget for sign-in. It can be embedded in any frontend.

<script src="https://myblog.com/public/member-attribution.min.js" async></script>
<button onclick="window.location.href='https://myblog.com/#/portal/signup'">Subscribe</button>

Full Members integration requires proxying sessions through Ghost API — this is justified only for commercial projects with subscriptions.

When should you choose headless architecture?

If your blog requires a unique UI, custom animations, or complex client-side logic, headless is the only way. Native Ghost themes are faster to develop but lose in flexibility and performance. Compare:

Ghost Content API paired with Next.js delivers Core Web Vitals at 90+. Ghost Content API is 30% faster than GraphQL solutions for simple queries (according to our tests with Apollo Client). Headless architecture reduces maintenance costs by 30–50% through component reuse. Contact us for a blog audit — we'll help estimate potential savings.

What is included in our work?

1. Audit of current architecture and requirements.
2. Content API setup and creation of necessary integrations.
3. Development of custom frontend on Next.js, Astro, or Vue.
4. Members Portal integration (if subscriptions are needed).
5. Cross-browser and performance testing.
6. Handover of API documentation and data structure.
7. 1-month warranty support after launch.

Estimated timelines

Get a consultation: tell us about your task, and we'll offer a transparent plan with a fixed timeframe. Investments in headless architecture pay off in 6–12 months through increased conversion and improved SEO.

Headless CMS: Strapi, Directus, Sanity, Contentful, Drupal

Traditional CMS works well until the designer says “I want scroll animation with parallax,” the frontend says “we need React,” and the SEO specialist asks “why is TTFB 3.4 seconds?” At that point, monolithic architecture starts to hinder everyone. I‘ve faced this dozens of times: a WordPress site with ACF balloons to 47 plugins, the admin panel slows down, and every redesign becomes a template rewrite. Headless CMS separates content management from presentation. Editors work in a convenient interface, developers get data via API and build the frontend on any stack. Sounds simple. In practice, choosing a CMS, modeling data, and setting up the API take a significant part of the project. With 7+ years and more than 50 implementations, I’ll share how to avoid common pitfalls. Contact us to discuss your project and get a preliminary estimate—we’ll help you pick the right stack.

What are the key benefits of headless CMS over monolithic?

Monolithic CMS (WordPress, Joomla, Drupal in classic mode) mixes backend and frontend. Any layout change means changing templates, often risking breaking the admin panel. Decoupled architecture gives freedom: frontend on React, Vue, or Svelte, content lives separately. Result: improved load speed (LCP often drops from 4–6 s to 1–1.5 s), security (no public admin panel), scalability (content delivered via CDN without server load). Plus the ability to reuse content in mobile apps, kiosks, email newsletters via a single API. A client we recently helped saw LCP improve from 6.2 s to 1.1 s — a 5.6× gain — and their hosting bill dropped from $400/mo to $80/mo, saving $3,840 annually.

How to choose a headless CMS for your project?

No universal tool exists. The choice depends on team, content complexity, and infrastructure. Let’s break down the key options.

Strapi — open-source, self-hosted, Node.js. Suitable for teams needing data control and API customization. Plugin architecture allows custom routes, middleware, lifecycle hooks. REST and GraphQL out of the box. Deploys in about an hour — three times faster than Drupal. Weakness: versions v4 and v5 are incompatible, migration is painful. Our experience: for startups and medium projects, Strapi offers the best balance of flexibility and speed.

Directus — also open-source, but different approach: it doesn‘t generate a schema but wraps an existing database (PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite) into a REST/GraphQL API. If you already have a database, Directus connects without migrations. Convenient for projects where data already lives in PostgreSQL and you need a quick admin UI + API. Saves up to 30% integration time.

Sanity — cloud CMS with real-time editor. Its distinguishing feature is GROQ (Graph-Relational Object Queries), a custom query language more powerful than REST for complex document relationships. Portable Text for structured content. Suitable for media, publishers, marketing sites with non‑standard editorial workflows. Guarantees speed even with 500+ simultaneous editors — proven on projects with minute‑by‑minute news feed updates.

Contentful — enterprise cloud CMS. Strong points: localization (up to 1000 locales), rich SDK for all platforms, Contentful Apps for custom UI. Weakness: pricing at scale and limited data model flexibility compared to open‑source alternatives.

Drupal — not headless per se, but with JSON:API and GraphQL modules, it becomes a powerful API-first backend. Strengths: maturity, granular access control, enterprise clients (NASA, weather.com). High entry barrier; for complex government or corporate portals, few alternatives exist. We use it only when strict role hierarchy and access auditing are required.

Consequences of poor content modeling

Content modeling is critical. Mistakes at this stage are costly. A typical problem: a body field of type rich text for everything. Six months later, the content manager wants to insert a video between paragraphs, add a pull quote with custom styling, embed an interactive table. Rich text can‘t handle that. Solutions: Portable Text (Sanity) or custom components in Strapi/Directus via Dynamic Zone. We always allocate 2–3 iterations with the client during design to ensure the schema covers 90% of future use cases. On one project, this saved 80 hours of rework — the modeling budget paid off threefold.

How we build projects on headless CMS

Frontend for headless CMS almost always uses Next.js (App Router) or Nuxt. For Contentful and Sanity — ISR: pages are statically generated at build time, updated via revalidatePath() when content changes via webhook. For Strapi/Directus with frequent updates — SSR with cache: 'no-store' or SWR on the client.

Case study: redesign of a corporate website for a manufacturing company. Previous site: WordPress with ACF, 200+ pages, 4 languages. Problems: TTFB 3.8 s, editors complained about slow admin. Migrated to Strapi (self-hosted, PostgreSQL), Next.js App Router. Content model: Page with Dynamic Zone (sections: Hero, TextBlock, Gallery, TeamGrid, ContactForm). Localization via Strapi i18n plugin + next-intl on frontend. Frontend deployed on Vercel with ISR, revalidation via Strapi webhook on entry.publish. According to the client: TTFB dropped from 3.8 s to 180 ms (static with CDN) — a 21× improvement. Editors got a clean interface without 47 plugins. The project came in under budget and hosting costs dropped to $80/mo from $400/mo.

Implementation process broken into stages:

1. Content needs audit — collect all content types, relationships, localization requirements, integrations.
2. Data schema design — create models, fields, validation, access roles. Document in Swagger/OpenAPI.
3. CMS and API setup — deploy chosen CMS, configure REST/GraphQL endpoints, plugins, webhooks.
4. Frontend development — connect Next.js/Nuxt, configure ISR/SSR, section components, routing.
5. Content migration (if legacy) — automated loading via API or scripts.
6. Testing — check API endpoints, regression, load testing, Core Web Vitals.
7. Deployment — configure CDN, SSL, CI/CD, monitoring.

How long does implementation take?

The standard path includes all stages. Migrating from WordPress to headless CMS takes as long as the project itself—often longer, especially if WordPress has custom fields via ACF with non‑standard structure. Our typical timelines:

Cost is calculated individually after a brief. Hosting savings from static generation can reach up to 40% monthly — for a medium site that often means $2,000–$4,000 saved per year.

Non‑obvious considerations when choosing a headless CMS

• Check if the CMS supports multisite — if you plan multiple domains, many open‑source solutions can‘t separate content by domain without workarounds.
• Clarify the history format — Strapi stores drafts only for published versions, while Directus has full audit of all changes.
• Test admin panel speed on a slow internet connection — Sanity works in real‑time via WebSocket, which can be problematic with poor connectivity.
• Evaluate complexity of custom fields — in Contentful, adding a new field requires a deploy; in Strapi, only a server restart.
• Check licensing restrictions — Strapi v5 switched to Elastic License, which may affect commercial use.

What is included

• Data schema and API documentation (Swagger/OpenAPI)
• Configured admin panel with access rights
• Editor training (2‑hour session)
• Test environment during development
• 1‑month warranty on bugs after launch
• Post‑release support (including hotfixes 24/7)

Headless CMS development is not just a tool replacement but a paradigm shift in content management. We help make this transition without downtime or data loss. Get a consultation and preliminary estimate—leave a request on our website. Order headless CMS implementation with guaranteed results.