listmonk vs swaks
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?
| Feature | listmonk | swaks |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Mail Servers | Mail Servers |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | Go | Perl |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 16 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 22,670 | ★ 1,327 |
| First released | 2020 | 2003 |
| Replaces | Mailchimp, Sendinblue | Mailtrap |
Why pick each one
Choose swaks if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.3k GitHub stars)
- Written in Perl
Frequently asked questions
Is listmonk or swaks better?
Neither is universally better. listmonk has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are listmonk and swaks free and open-source?
Yes. listmonk is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and swaks under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run listmonk and swaks with Docker?
listmonk: yes. swaks: check the project docs for container support.