alps vs Mailpile
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted mail servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | alps | Mailpile |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Mail Servers | Mail Servers |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 700 | ★ 8,816 |
| First released | 2020 | 2013 |
| Replaces | Gmail | Gmail |
What are alps and Mailpile?
alps
alps is a minimal webmail client that connects to IMAP and SMTP servers, designed to be lightweight and extensible. It is developed by the team behind the SourceHut mail infrastructure.
- Minimal webmail interface
- IMAP and SMTP support
- Plugin system
- No database required
Mailpile
Mailpile is a free email client that emphasizes privacy, fast search, and built-in encryption. It runs as a personal web application that you host yourself.
- Fast local email search
- Built-in PGP encryption
- Privacy-respecting design
- Self-hosted personal webmail
alps vs Mailpile: key differences
Alps is written in Go, while Mailpile is built with Python. Licensing differs — MIT for alps versus AGPL-3.0 for Mailpile. Alps is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Mailpile. Mailpile is the more established project (first released 2013), while alps arrived in 2020. Mailpile has the considerably larger community, at 8,816 GitHub stars versus 700.
Why pick each one
Choose alps if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose Mailpile if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Mature project with 8.8k GitHub stars
- Written in Python
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Watch out for
- Development has slowed
- Single-user focus
Frequently asked questions
Is alps or Mailpile better?
Neither is universally better. Mailpile has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are alps and Mailpile free and open-source?
Yes. alps is licensed under MIT and Mailpile under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run alps and Mailpile with Docker?
alps: check the project docs for container support. Mailpile: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, alps or Mailpile?
alps has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Mailpile. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.