listmonk vs Mailman

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?
FeaturelistmonkMailman
CategoryMail ServersMail Servers
LicenseAGPL-3.0GPL-3.0
LanguageGoPython
Setup difficultyEasyHard
Min. RAM512 MB1,024 MB
Deploymentdocker, binary, sourcedocker, bare-metal, source
GitHub stars★ 22,670★ 400
First released20201998
ReplacesMailchimp, SendinblueGoogle Groups

Why pick each one

Choose listmonk if…

  • Fast and scalable
  • Modern admin UI
listmonk details

Choose Mailman if…

  • Industry-standard list software
  • Strong moderation tools
Mailman details

Frequently asked questions

Is listmonk or Mailman better?

listmonk is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Mailman if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are listmonk and Mailman free and open-source?

Yes. listmonk is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Mailman under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run listmonk and Mailman with Docker?

listmonk: yes. Mailman: yes.

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