SHSelfHostIndex

Maddy Mail Server vs smtp4dev

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 SM smtp4dev Fake SMTP server for development email testing
FeatureMaddy Mail Serversmtp4dev
CategoryMail ServersMail Servers
LicenseGPL-3.0GPL-3.0
LanguageGoC#
Setup difficultyMediumEasy
Min. RAM256 MB128 MB
Deploymentdocker, binary, sourcedocker, binary
GitHub stars★ 6,060★ 3,941
First released20192015
ReplacesGoogle Workspace, Microsoft 365Mailtrap

Why pick each one

Choose Maddy Mail Server if…

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

Choose smtp4dev if…

  • Easy local testing
  • Cross-platform
smtp4dev details

Frequently asked questions

Is Maddy Mail Server or smtp4dev better?

Neither is universally better. Maddy Mail Server has the larger community, while smtp4dev is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.

Are Maddy Mail Server and smtp4dev free and open-source?

Yes. Maddy Mail Server is licensed under GPL-3.0 and smtp4dev under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Maddy Mail Server and smtp4dev with Docker?

Maddy Mail Server: yes. smtp4dev: yes.

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