After two decades of building systems, I've developed a deep appreciation for elegant solutions that just work. Today, I want to share one of those discoveries that made me smile - PikaPods, a hosting platform that's changing the game for self-hosted open source applications.
The Open Source Hosting Dilemma
We've all been there. You want to run Ghost for your blog, maybe Matomo for privacy-focused analytics, or perhaps Code Server to have your development environment available anywhere. The traditional options? Spin up a VPS, manage your own Docker containers, handle updates, and pray nothing breaks at 3 AM. Or pay premium prices for managed hosting that often feels overengineered for your needs.
Enter PikaPods: The Elegant Solution
PikaPods caught my attention because it solves this problem with remarkable simplicity. Think of it as the "npm install" of hosting - it just works. Here's why it's become my go-to recommendation for hosting Ghost and other open source applications:
- Truly Simple Pricing: Starting at just $1/month per application, with most Ghost installations comfortably running on the $5/month tier
- Zero Infrastructure Headaches: No servers to maintain, no Docker to configure, no SSL certificates to renew
- Privacy-First Approach: No tracking, no ads, and EU/US hosting options - a breath of fresh air in today's data-hungry world
- Supporting Open Source: They actually share revenue with open source authors where possible (look for the 💚)
Getting Ghost Running in 10 Minutes
Here's how quickly you can get your Ghost blog running:
- Create a PikaPods account (you get $5 welcome credit)
- Select Ghost from their app library
- Choose your pod size (the $5 tier works well for most blogs)
- Add your domain name
- Wait about 2 minutes for deployment
- Update your DNS records (they provide clear instructions)
- Set up your Ghost admin account
- Start writing
That's it. No really, that's it.
Beyond Ghost: A Platform for Developers
What excites me most about PikaPods isn't just Ghost hosting - it's the potential for running multiple open source applications with the same simplicity. As a developer, here are some setups I particularly love:
- Code Server: Running VS Code in the browser is a game-changer. I use this for quick edits when I'm away from my main machine or need to access a development environment from anywhere.
- Matomo Analytics: Finally, a proper alternative to Google Analytics that respects privacy. I run this alongside Ghost to get deep insights without compromising visitor privacy.
- n8n: Powerful workflow automation (think Zapier, but self-hosted)
Each application gets its own isolated environment, automatic updates, and direct database access if you need it. It's like having a team of DevOps engineers maintaining your applications, but at a fraction of the cost.
vs Self Hosting
I self host a lot of stuff too, but my home lab isn't as stable or reliable as I'd want my blog to be. For me, it's worth paying for services where I need reliability, and self hosting services where I need flexibility and want cost savings. Last I checked I had somelike like 30 containers running locally, not something I want to farm out.