Modoboa vs Postal
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?
Modoboa
Mail hosting and management platform with a modern UI
VS
Postal
Complete mail delivery platform for outgoing email
| Feature | Modoboa | Postal |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Mail Servers | Mail Servers |
| License | ISC | MIT |
| Language | Python | Ruby |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 2,048 MB | 2,048 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,530 | ★ 16,724 |
| First released | 2010 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Google Workspace, cPanel Email | SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Modoboa or Postal better?
Neither is universally better. Postal has the larger community, while Modoboa is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Modoboa and Postal free and open-source?
Yes. Modoboa is licensed under ISC and Postal under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Modoboa and Postal with Docker?
Modoboa: yes. Postal: yes.