SHSelfHostIndex

Maddy Mail Server vs mailcow

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?
MA Maddy Mail Server Composable, all-in-one mail server in Go VS MA mailcow Dockerized full-stack mail server suite
FeatureMaddy Mail Servermailcow
CategoryMail ServersMail Servers
LicenseGPL-3.0GPL-3.0
LanguageGoJavaScript
Setup difficultyMediumMedium
Min. RAM256 MB6,144 MB
Deploymentdocker, binary, sourcedocker
GitHub stars★ 6,060★ 13,245
First released20192016
ReplacesGoogle Workspace, Microsoft 365Microsoft Exchange, Google Workspace

Why pick each one

Choose Maddy Mail Server if…

  • Drastically simpler than traditional stacks
  • Low resource use
Maddy Mail Server details

Choose mailcow if…

  • All components preconfigured
  • Active community
mailcow details

Frequently asked questions

Is Maddy Mail Server or mailcow better?

Neither is universally better. mailcow has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.

Are Maddy Mail Server and mailcow free and open-source?

Yes. Maddy Mail Server is licensed under GPL-3.0 and mailcow under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Maddy Mail Server and mailcow with Docker?

Maddy Mail Server: yes. mailcow: yes.

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