Ghost 6 magazine theme
Well-documentedEnova
A premium Ghost CMS magazine theme for lifestyle, business, and paid-membership publications.
Run a real magazine on Ghost. Four homepage layouts, a dedicated newsletter archive with five views, video stories that keep playing as readers scroll, a built-in paywall with Ghost Portal, sidebar or top-bar navigation you switch in settings, and reader-first defaults. All editable from Ghost Admin. Listed on the Official Ghost Themes Marketplace and built by a Certified Ghost Expert.
Reviewed & verified by Ghost.org
Step-by-step setup guides for editors
Lifetime updates
14-day money-back guarantee
Loved by independent publishers, journalists, and creators worldwide. “Quite simply, brilliant. Exactly what I’d been searching for.” Read their stories
Current release
v1.16.0
Updated July 26, 2026
Requires Ghost 6.27+
Localization
60+ languages
RTL-ready for Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, and Urdu
The Ghost CMS magazine theme for lifestyle, business, and paid-membership publications.
Enova is a Ghost CMS theme for publishers who need more than a pretty homepage: a real magazine homepage, deep archives, a paywall, multi-author bylines, a dedicated newsletter archive, and client-ready builds that hold up in production.
Lifestyle magazines
Editorial publications across food, travel, fashion, beauty, wellness, and culture. The demo's tone fits.
Paid memberships
Use Ghost Portal, paywall, member-only content, and tier-aware CTAs from one theme. No revenue share, no plugin stack.
Business & entrepreneurship
Polished editorial for thought-leadership publications, founder newsletters, and business magazines in the Forbes or Time-style tradition.
Independent publishers
Solo and small-team magazines that publish on a calendar, organize by section, and need a serious editorial surface.
Newsletter publications
Ship a dedicated newsletter archive at /newsletters/ with five layouts, a native RSS feed, and per-issue bookmarks. Plus newsletter-first hero layouts and a signup band at the end of every post, so the ask reaches phone readers too. A real Substack or Beehiiv alternative on your own domain.
Probably not for: one-page brochure sites or bare-minimal personal blogs that don't need publishing depth. Enova expects sections, archives, authors, and a publishing calendar.
Navigation
Sidebar or top bar. Your readers, your call.
Enova ships two ways for readers to move around your publication, and you pick between them in your Ghost settings. Keep the vertical sidebar when your archive runs deep and readers browse by section. Switch to a horizontal bar across the header when you want the page itself to lead. Same menu, same content, no rebuild. Phones and tablets keep the slide-out menu either way.
Sidebar (default)
A vertical menu sits beside your content, with room for sections, sub-sections, and icons. Best for publications with deep archives, where readers browse by topic. The header keeps a wide search bar.
Top bar
Menu items run across the header and the sidebar steps aside, so stories get the full width of the screen. Best for publications that want the page to lead, and for readers who would rather not look at a sidebar. On desktop the feed grows from two columns to three.
Long menus never break
Run out of room in the header and the extra items tuck themselves into a tidy More menu. Resize the window and they move back out. Nothing wraps, nothing overlaps.
Drop-downs, both ways
Sub-items you set up in Ghost become drop-down panels in the top bar and expandable groups in the sidebar. One menu, two shapes, no code.
Phones keep the drawer
Whichever style you pick, phones and tablets get the same slide-out menu, with the full nested navigation inside.
Icons beside your links
Add an icon to any menu item, from the built-in set or your own artwork. Icons show up in the sidebar, the top bar, and the mobile menu, and uploaded artwork is cleaned before it goes live.
Reading controls stay in reach
With the top bar, a small gear in the header opens the same reader controls the sidebar usually holds: light or dark, reading size, and saved articles.
Switch any time
Change your mind next month. Pick the other style, save, and your menu, links, and content are untouched.
Choose the magazine homepage layout that matches your publishing model.
Four homepage directions, all controlled from Ghost Admin. Tap any layout to inspect the screenshot full-size.
Featured Posts
Best for magazines and editorial publications that want to lead with their strongest stories.
Email Subscription
Best for newsletter-first publishers who want the signup offer to sit above the feed.
Call to Action
Best for creators promoting paid products, courses, services, or membership offers.
Personal Bio
Best for expert-led publications and independent writers where the person is the brand.
Newsletter archive
A premium newsletter archive at /newsletters/.
Every past issue, browsable in one elegant place. Five layouts to choose from, a year jump-rail on the right edge, sticky month chips that stay in view as readers scroll, a native RSS feed, and per-issue bookmarks. Switch layouts any time without losing content.
Editorial cover hero
Ledger card showing total issues, the latest issue, an RSS link, and an inline subscribe form, right at the top of the archive.
Five archive layouts. Switch any time.
List
Single-column reading list with featured-image thumbnails. Use for: editorial newsrooms that want a focused, paper-feel archive.
Magazine
Multi-column editorial grid with large cover art. Use for: visually-led newsletters and image-rich issues.
Compact
Dense headline rows with minimal chrome. Use for: long archives where readers want to scan many issues quickly.
Timeline
Vertical timeline with alternating cards. Use for: publications that want the archive to feel like a story across years.
Timeline Compact
Timeline rail with tight rows. Use for: high-cadence newsletters with many short issues. Timeline storytelling without the height.
Year jump-rail
Leap to any year on the right edge, including years not yet on screen.
Sticky month chips
Month labels travel with the reader, showing issue count and total reading time per month.
Native RSS feed
Every issue auto-published at /newsletters/rss/ for newsletter readers and aggregators.
Bookmark issues
Every archive card has a save toggle. Bookmarked issues appear in the masthead bookmarks menu.
Load older issues
Button reveals older newsletters, then auto-loads as readers scroll deeper into the archive.
"First issue brewing"
Friendly empty state with an inline subscribe form for sites that haven't shipped an issue yet.
Video posts
Video stories that travel with the reader.
Publish a video and Enova hands it the spotlight. It opens as a full-width hero above the headline, then tucks into a small corner player as readers scroll into the article, so they can listen along while they read. Across the homepage and every feed, video stories pick up a play badge that visitors spot in a glance. YouTube, Vimeo, or video uploaded straight to Ghost, all handled. Nothing autoplays, nothing eats a reader's data until they press play.
Click-to-play hero
Your feature image becomes the cover, and a single play badge invites readers in. The video only loads once they choose to watch.
Three moments, one feature.
A corner player that follows the reader
Scroll into the story and the video slips into a small player in the corner, so readers can keep watching while they read. Press Escape to send it on its way.
Play badges on every feed
Video stories carry a small play icon on their card across the homepage, archives, and tag feeds. Readers spot them in a glance, on every layout, in every language.
A two-minute editor flow
Drop in a video, pick a feature image, mark the post as a video story. That's the whole setup. No custom code, no theme settings to touch.
Three ways to add video
YouTube, Vimeo, or video uploaded straight to Ghost. Enova hands all three the same treatment.
Fast on every network
Videos sit lightly on the page until a reader presses play. Pages stay quick on phones, on hotel Wi-Fi, on the train.
Polite on mobile
The corner player steps aside when the mobile menu opens, then slides back when it closes. Audio keeps playing throughout.
Plays nicely with the paywall
The corner player and Ghost's Portal account button never overlap, on any layout, on any sidebar setting.
Keyboard friendly
Press Escape and the corner player goes away. No mouse needed.
Kind to motion-sensitive readers
Visitors who prefer reduced motion see a calm fade in place of the slide-in animation. Quiet by default, considerate by design.
Monetize
Every way to monetize, built right in.
Sponsors, house ads, reader tips, and paid memberships. However you choose to earn from your publication, Enova gives it a tasteful home in the sidebar. Each one is quick to set up, stays out of sight until you are ready, and looks right in both light and dark mode, so growing your income never costs you your design.
A logo wall that links out
Show your sponsors as a tidy grid of logos, each one linking to their site. The logos stay crisp on any background, and you choose how many sit in a row.
A house ad for anything you promote
Promote your own product, a course, an event, or a partner. Add a banner, a button, or a small product card, whatever fits, and it appears in your sidebar when you are ready.
A tip jar for your readers
Invite readers to chip in with a warm, simple card: a few familiar faces, a short note on what their support pays for, and a button. Send them to Ghost's own tips and donations, or to Buy Me a Coffee, Ko-fi, PayPal, or wherever you already collect support. The choice is yours.
Quick to set up
Add your content, publish, and it appears. There are no fiddly options to wrestle with.
Hidden until you need it
No empty boxes in your sidebar. Each one appears only once you set it up.
Part of the page, not bolted on
Each one inherits your fonts and colors, so it looks like part of the page.
Run as many as you like
Use them all together, or just the one that suits your publication.
Control where sidebars appear, page by page.
Set sitewide defaults in your Ghost settings, then override a single post or page when a story needs the full width.
The theme keeps getting better.
Enova is maintained and refined over time, and every update is included free for the life of your license. Buy once, and improvements keep arriving at no extra cost.
A newsletter signup at the end of every post
Publish one page and every article closes with a designed signup band, right where an engaged reader finishes. It reaches the phone readers a sidebar signup never can, and each signup is labelled in Ghost so you can see exactly what it brings in.
A membership page that builds itself
Point Enova at your Ghost tiers and it lays out a full pricing page for you, with live prices, monthly and yearly billing, and any free trials you offer, all read straight from your Ghost settings.
An immersive hero for feature stories
Give a standout post a full-width, edge-to-edge hero image with the headline set over it, so your best stories open with real impact.
Accessibility
Built for everyone.
Enova reaches a near-perfect 95% accessibility score, so your publication is easy to read, ranks better on Google, and stays welcoming to every reader. Keyboard navigation, screen-reader landmarks, visible focus states, strong contrast, and reduced-motion support all come standard.
See it on the live demo95%
AccessibilityChecker.org score on the live demo
From the builder
Built by a Certified Ghost Expert.
"Enova started as the toolkit I kept rebuilding for client projects. Now it's verified on the Ghost Marketplace, so anyone can ship a serious publication."Kasun Jayarathna · Builder · Certified Ghost Expert
Enova is built by Kasun, a Certified Ghost Expert who works on Ghost CMS setup, migration, customization, and production publishing workflows. When you need help with the theme, you are dealing with someone who works in Ghost every day.
Installation help is available on request. Product issues and setup questions are handled by email.
Everything in the box.
One theme, the whole publishing toolkit. Not a pile of isolated tricks, but parts built to work together for a real publication.
Publishing experience
- A table of contents that tracks the section being read
- Reading-progress ring with one-tap scroll to top
- Image lightbox and responsive video embeds
- Video stories with a corner player that follows the reader
Homepage and layouts
- Four homepage designs for editorial, newsletter, CTA, and personal-brand sites
- Grid or list feeds, switched from Ghost Admin
- Tag filtering on the homepage with no page reload
- Full-width, single-sidebar, or two-sidebar layouts
Navigation and sidebars
- Multi-level left sidebar navigation
- Top-bar navigation with a More menu for long menus
- Navigation icons, built-in or your own safely sanitized SVGs
- Sitewide sidebar defaults with per-post overrides
Membership and growth
- A dedicated newsletter archive with five switchable layouts
- Ghost Memberships: sign-up, sign-in, account portal, and member avatars
- Newsletter sign-up prompts at the end of every post, plus the hero, sidebar, and footer
- Native Ghost comments, social sharing, and recommendations
- Sponsor logo wall, house-ad widget, and a reader donations card
Reader tools
- Local bookmarks with a header counter
- A reader preferences panel for theme and saved articles
- Dark, light, or system color scheme, with an optional dark-mode logo
Accessibility and languages
- 60+ built-in language translations
- Automatic right-to-left layout for Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, and Urdu
- Keyboard navigation, clear focus states, and reduced-motion support
Speed and developers
- A modern Vite and Tailwind build, kept lean by page-specific scripts
- Fast, responsive AVIF and WebP images out of the box
- Open Graph, Twitter Card, and clean semantic templates
- Source files included for deeper customization
License and support
- Single-site license
- Lifetime updates
- 14-day money-back guarantee
Setup guides at a glance.
Jump straight into the docs for the features you'll set up on day one. Every guide is written for editors, not just developers.
Video posts
Turn any post into a video story. YouTube, Vimeo, or video uploaded to Ghost, with a full-width hero and a corner player that follows the reader.
Newsletter archive
Wire up the dedicated archive at /newsletters/ with five switchable layouts.
Navigation & icons
Top bar, left sidebar, mobile drawer, with built-in or custom SVG icons.
Right sidebar
Contextual widgets for homepage, posts, and pages.
Sponsors & house ads
Show a sponsor logo wall and a house ad, both from ordinary Ghost pages.
Page templates
Ready-made templates for about, contact, archive, and custom pages.
Languages & RTL
60+ translations with automatic RTL layout for Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, and Urdu.
Theme settings
Brand colors, fonts, logo, color scheme, dark-mode logo.
Questions?
Which Ghost version does Enova support?
Do I need to know code?
Can I use Enova without sidebars?
Does Enova ship with a newsletter archive?
/newsletters/ with five layouts (List, Magazine, Compact, Timeline, Timeline Compact), a year jump-rail, sticky month chips, a native RSS feed at /newsletters/rss/, per-issue bookmarks, and a "Load older issues" pattern. Switch layouts any time from Ghost Admin. Your content stays the same. Setup is a one-time routes.yaml upload (bundled with the theme).Does Enova support video posts?
Can I show sponsors or run ads with Enova?
Can readers tip or donate on Enova?
What is included in the download?
What if the theme isn't right for me?
What does the license cover, including client work?
Can I modify the design?
Is installation help available?
Is Enova accessible?
Why do some automated accessibility tests show different scores?
What happens if I need support?
Is Enova a good Ghost theme for lifestyle magazines?
Is Enova a Substack or Beehiiv alternative?
/newsletters/, without Substack's 10% revenue cut or Beehiiv's platform lock-in. Your subscribers live in your own Ghost database, you keep 100% of revenue, and you can move hosts at any time. Ghost Portal handles paid subscriptions natively via Stripe.How does Enova compare to WordPress magazine themes?
Why Enova over Substack, WordPress, or a generic Ghost blog theme?
Independent publishers and serious newsletter operators outgrow the easy choices fast. Here's how Enova compares to the three alternatives buyers usually weigh.
vs Substack & Beehiiv
Own your audience, your design, and 100% of revenue.
Substack and Beehiiv work for solo writers who want network distribution. Enova gives a publication a real homepage, sections, archives, multi-author bylines, and a paywall, on your own domain, with your subscribers in your own Ghost database. No 10% revenue cut, no platform lock-in, no migration hostage situation.
vs WordPress magazines
A faster stack, without the plugin sprawl.
WordPress magazine themes are powerful but slow, plugin-dependent, and expensive to maintain. Enova gives you a comparable editorial surface on Ghost CMS, with memberships, email, and image optimization included natively. Lighthouse scores stay in the high 90s out of the box.
vs Generic Ghost themes
Built for publications, not for blogs.
Most Ghost themes are blog-shaped: one feed, recent posts on top. Enova is magazine-shaped: a real homepage with four layouts, deep sidebars, multi-author archives, a newsletter archive, and a paywall, plus client-ready source files for agencies shipping production publications.
From our customers
What publishers say about Enova
Enova is built by Kasun, a Certified Ghost Expert who has shipped Ghost sites for publishers, newsletters, magazines, and independent creators around the world. These are quotes from publishers using the Enova theme, and from clients who have hired Enova Studio for custom Ghost projects.
“Quite simply, brilliant. It’s exactly what I’ve been searching for over the last couple of years. It’s built carefully and considerately with both the author and the user in mind. Kasun’s commitment to customer engagement and incorporating feedback is without parallel.”
Scott Newling
Independent publisher · Verified Enova customer
“Enova is the theme I spent two years looking for, and the developer behind it is exactly who you hope you’re getting when you make that kind of investment. The thoughtfulness is in the product itself, but it’s also in how they engage. When I flagged a need for better ad support, it was built and pushed across the entire theme in under 24 hours. That’s not a support ticket getting closed. That’s a partnership.”
Justin
Tech Between the Lines · Verified Enova customer
Trusted by independent publishers, journalists, and creators worldwide.
See the work in recent client projects.
Ready to launch your magazine with Enova?
Get the full theme, source files, documentation, email support, and lifetime updates.
One-time payment · Lifetime updates · Single-site license · 14-day money-back guarantee
Not the right fit for your site? Email us within 14 days of purchase for a refund, less the payment processing fee.
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