Haraka vs Mailpit
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted mail servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Haraka
High-performance, pluggable SMTP server in Node.js
VS
Mailpit
Email and SMTP testing tool with web UI
| Feature | Haraka | Mailpit |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Mail Servers | Mail Servers |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | JavaScript | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 64 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,612 | ★ 10,067 |
| First released | 2011 | 2022 |
| Replaces | SendGrid, Mailgun | Mailtrap, MailHog |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Haraka or Mailpit better?
Mailpit is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Haraka if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Haraka and Mailpit free and open-source?
Yes. Haraka is licensed under MIT and Mailpit under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Haraka and Mailpit with Docker?
Haraka: yes. Mailpit: yes.