alps vs WildDuck
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted mail servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | alps | WildDuck |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Category | Mail Servers | Mail Servers |
| License | MIT | EUPL-1.2 |
| Language | Go | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 700 | ★ 2,108 |
| First released | 2020 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Gmail | Microsoft Exchange, Gmail |
What are alps and WildDuck?
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
WildDuck
WildDuck is a modern, scalable mail server providing IMAP, POP3, and a full REST API for managing mailboxes. It stores messages in MongoDB and is designed for clustered, highly available deployments.
- IMAP and POP3
- Full REST API
- MongoDB storage
- Designed for scale
alps vs WildDuck: key differences
Alps is written in Go, while WildDuck is built with JavaScript. Licensing differs — MIT for alps versus EUPL-1.2 for WildDuck. Alps is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for WildDuck. WildDuck is the more established project (first released 2017), while alps arrived in 2020. WildDuck has the considerably larger community, at 2,108 GitHub stars versus 700. WildDuck lists first-class Docker deployment; alps does not.
Why pick each one
Choose alps if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose WildDuck if…
- API-driven management
- Horizontally scalable
Watch out for
- Requires MongoDB
- Complex to operate
Frequently asked questions
Is alps or WildDuck better?
Neither is universally better. WildDuck has the larger community, while alps is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are alps and WildDuck free and open-source?
Yes. alps is licensed under MIT and WildDuck under EUPL-1.2. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run alps and WildDuck with Docker?
alps: check the project docs for container support. WildDuck: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, alps or WildDuck?
alps has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for WildDuck. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.