Why did my Ghost newsletter subscribers change after I imported members?
The Ghost help pages give 4 common reasons. The first to rule out: Members imported as subscribed join every newsletter set to take new members, so one import can raise several newsletter counts at once.
What causes it?
Members imported as subscribed join every newsletter set to take new members, so one import can raise several newsletter counts at once.
In the Ghost help:
members will be opted in to all newsletters that have "Subscribe new members on signup" turned on.
Import members, read 2026-11-12.Members imported as not subscribed are added without a newsletter, so the member count can grow while newsletter counts stay the same.
In the Ghost help:
members are unsubscribed from all newsletters upon import.
Import members, read 2026-11-12.Importing people who are already members as subscribed can bring back some who had unsubscribed from everything.
In the Ghost help:
email subscription preferences will be left alone, unless they were previously unsubscribed from all.
Import members, read 2026-11-12.Importing people who are already members as not subscribed takes them off every newsletter, so subscriber counts can drop after an import.
In the Ghost help:
members are unsubscribed from all newsletters.
Import members, read 2026-11-12.
How do I check it myself?
If imported members were given a label, filter by it to see exactly who the import touched.
In the Ghost help:
Labels can be used to segment your members, such as VIP members.
Member management, read 2026-11-12.Save a list of the affected members to compare their subscriptions with the file you imported.
In the Ghost help:
Use filtered segments to export a list of your members for use in other tools.
Member management, read 2026-11-12.
How does Ghost work with Feder?
- Connect Ghost to Feder and it joins your Interest apps.
- When you connect Ghost, Feder checks the connection straight away and shows Connected only when that check passes. If a reading cannot be taken later, Feder shows it as not read, never as zero.
Some numbers are too quiet to judge daily, such as a form filled in a few times a week. Until there is enough of your own history to judge a change, Feder says it is still learning and scores nothing, rather than guessing.
See whether you can trust the numbers in Ghost, one of your Interest apps. Feder only reads. It never changes anything in Ghost.
What else goes wrong with these numbers?
- Why did my member count change in Ghost?Ghost
- Why did my Ghost newsletter open rate drop?Ghost
- Why did Google Analytics stop collecting data?Google Analytics
- Why aren't my key events showing in Google Analytics?Google Analytics
- Why does Google Analytics show (not set)?Google Analytics
See every question.
Where do these answers come from?
Every cause and check on this page comes from the Ghost help pages, quoted above with the date we read them. Last reviewed 2026-11-12. We read them again by 2027-11-12. If one changes, this page changes or comes down.