SHSelfHostIndex

Stalwart Mail Server vs Betterbird

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?
ST Stalwart Mail Server Modern all-in-one mail server in a single binary VS BE Betterbird Community-enhanced fork of the Thunderbird email client
FeatureStalwart Mail ServerBetterbird
CategoryMail ServersMail Servers
LicenseAGPL-3.0MPL-2.0
LanguageRustShell
Setup difficultyMediumEasy
Min. RAM512 MB256 MB
Deploymentdocker, binary, bare-metalbinary, source
GitHub stars★ 14,059★ 948
First released20202022
ReplacesMicrosoft Exchange, Google WorkspaceMicrosoft Outlook

Why pick each one

Choose Stalwart Mail Server if…

  • Single modern binary
  • Strong security defaults
Stalwart Mail Server details

Choose Betterbird if…

  • Released under the MPL-2.0 license
  • Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
  • Written in Shell
  • Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Betterbird details

Frequently asked questions

Is Stalwart Mail Server or Betterbird better?

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

Are Stalwart Mail Server and Betterbird free and open-source?

Yes. Stalwart Mail Server is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Betterbird under MPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run Stalwart Mail Server and Betterbird with Docker?

Stalwart Mail Server: yes. Betterbird: check the project docs for container support.

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