Members-only podcasts
Podcasting is one of the most popular ways publishers share their work — and one of the most common requests we hear is for an easier way to run a private, members-only podcast alongside a Ghost publication.
Until now, doing that meant stitching together automations, managing subscriber lists manually, and hoping nothing fell out of sync. It worked, but it wasn't great.
Today, Ghost and Transistor.fm have partnered to build an official integration that connects the two platforms directly — with full member sync, flexible access controls, and built-in tools to help your members subscribe to their private feeds without any custom code or theme changes.
Full member sync
Once connected, Ghost members are automatically synced into Transistor. When someone signs up, upgrades, downgrades, or cancels — their podcast access updates in real time. There's nothing to manage manually.
For each podcast, you choose exactly who should have access:
- All members — free and paid
- Paid members only — anyone with an active subscription
- Specific tiers — lock access to individual membership tiers
This is configured per-podcast, so if you're running multiple shows, each one gets its own access rules. A free weekly show for all members, and a deep-dive series exclusively for paying subscribers? That all works.
Built-in ways for members to subscribe
Every member with podcast access gets a unique private feed — specific to them — that they use to subscribe in their podcast app of choice.
To make that process smooth, there are a few places where members can get access out of the box:
Portal
If a member has access to a private podcast, their account settings in Portal will now include a dedicated podcasts section, linking directly to your branded Transistor landing page where they can subscribe to their unique feed in their player of choice.
Editor card
Once activated, the Ghost editor will include a new Transistor card that gives you flexible ways to surface podcast access directly on your site and in your newsletters.
You can use the Transistor card on any post or page to drop in an embed that gives members direct access to their unique private feeds, right there on your site. For example, a Welcome Page that your members land on immediately after sign up 👇
For posts sent as a newsletter, the card renders in the email as a direct link to the member's personalized Transistor landing page — making access as seamless as possible.
Ways to use it
There are a lot of creative ways to put this to work, depending on your business:
- Premium podcast as a paid member benefit — Offer an exclusive show to paying subscribers, automatically unlocked when they sign up.
- Bonus audio for all members — Share weekly commentary, behind-the-scenes content, or interview extras with your entire audience.
- Tiered access — Run different shows for different tiers, giving each group of members their own content.
- Audio companion to your newsletter — Record audio versions of your written posts and deliver them as a private feed.
Get started
First, you’ll need a Transistor.fm account. As part of our partnership, the Transistor team is offering a limited-time discount for any Ghost publishers of 20% off your first year.
If you’re already a Transistor customer, you can follow the full setup guide here:
Or follow along with Transistor.fm founder, Justin Jackson, in this detailed demo:
Ghost(Pro) users can log in and start enjoying all of this right away! If you're a developer, self-hosting Ghost, you'll need to update to the latest version to get access to everything that's new.
If there are ways you think this feature could be more valuable based on the way you use Ghost, we’d like to hear it. Let us know using the feedback link in the left sidebar of Ghost Admin.
