Self-hosted alternatives to Proton Mail
Want encrypted email without handing your data to Proton Mail? These 20 self-hosted apps run on your own server. Cheapest estimated hosting starts at about $5/month.
About Proton Mail: End-to-end encrypted email service based in Switzerland.
| App | Health | Stars | License | Docker | RAM (est.) | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| docker-mailserver | Active | 19.7k | MIT | ✓ | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Postal | Active | 16.9k | MIT | ✓ | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Stalwart Mail Server | Active | 15.7k | AGPL-3.0 | ✓ | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Mail-in-a-Box | Active | 15.5k | CC0-1.0 | – | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Mailcow | Active | 13.7k | GPL-3.0 | ✓ | 8 GB | $40/mo |
| Mailu | Active | 7.6k | MIT | ✓ | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Roundcube | Active | 7.3k | GPL-3.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| SimpleLogin | Active | 7.1k | MIT | ✓ | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Maddy Mail Server | Active | 6.1k | GPL-3.0 | – | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Mox | Active | 5.9k | MIT | – | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| AnonAddy | Active | 4.9k | MIT | ✓ | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Modoboa | Active | 3.5k | ISC | – | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| wildduck | Active | 2.1k | EUPL-1.2 | ✓ | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| iRedMail | Active | 1.9k | GPL-3.0 | – | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Cypht | Active | 1.8k | LGPL-2.1 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| SnappyMail | Active | 1.7k | AGPL-3.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
| Forward Email | Active | 1.7k | BUSL-1.1, MPL-2.0 | ✓ | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| Simple NixOS Mailserver | Active | 321 | GPL-3.0 | – | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| b1gMail | Active | 4 | GPL-2.0 | – | 4 GB | $20/mo |
| SquirrelMail | Unknown | – | GPL-2.0 | – | 1 GB | $5/mo |
The options in detail
1. docker-mailserver
Production-ready fullstack but simple mail server (SMTP, IMAP, LDAP, Antispam, Antivirus, etc.) running inside a container. Only configuration files, no SQL database.
Active Last commit 2026-11-02. 2 releases in the past year. Latest release v16.0.1 (2026-09-04). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
2. Postal
Complete and fully featured mail server for use by websites & web servers.
Active Last commit 2026-10-01. Latest release 3.3.7 (2026-06-03). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
3. Stalwart Mail Server
All-in-one mail server with JMAP, IMAP4, and SMTP support and a wide range of modern features.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. Latest release v1.0.3 (2026-11-04). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
4. Mail-in-a-Box
Turns any Ubuntu server into a fully functional mail server with one command.
Active Last commit 2026-10-22. Latest release v77 (2026-09-26). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
5. Mailcow
Mail server suite based on Dovecot, Postfix and other software, that provides a modern Web UI for administration.
Active Last commit 2026-10-21. Latest release 2026-10 (2026-10-21). Needs roughly 8 GB RAM. How to run it →
6. Mailu
Simple yet full-featured mail server as a set of Docker images.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. Latest release 2024.06.67 (2026-10-23). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
7. Roundcube
Browser-based IMAP client with an application-like user interface.
Active Last commit 2026-10-25. Latest release 1.7.5 (2026-10-19). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
8. SimpleLogin
Email alias solution to protect your email address. Comes with browser extensions and mobile apps.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. Latest release v4.83.4 (2026-11-04). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
9. Maddy Mail Server
All-in-one mail server that implements SMTP (both MTA and MX) and IMAP. Replaces Postfix, Dovecot, OpenDKIM, OpenSPF, OpenDMARC with single daemon.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. 8 releases in the past year. Latest release v0.9.6 (2026-10-03). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
10. Mox
Complete e-mail solution with IMAP4, SMTP, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, MTA-STS, DANE and DNSSEC, reputation-based and content-based junk filtering, Internationalization (IDNA), automatic TLS with ACME and Let's Encrypt, account autoconfiguration, and webmail.
Active Last commit 2026-10-27. Latest release v0.0.17 (2026-08-19). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
11. AnonAddy
Email forwarding service for creating aliases.
Active Last commit 2026-10-29. 10+ releases in the past year. Latest release v1.7.4 (2026-10-29). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
12. Modoboa
Mail hosting and management platform including a modern and simplified web user interface.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. Latest release 2.12.0 (2026-10-26). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
13. wildduck
Scalable no-SPOF IMAP/POP3 mail server.
Active Last commit 2026-11-03. Latest release v1.55.3 (2026-11-02). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
14. iRedMail
Full-featured mail server solution based on Postfix and Dovecot.
Active Last commit 2026-10-28. Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
15. Cypht
Feed reader for your email accounts.
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. 10+ releases in the past year. Latest release v2.13.1 (2026-11-04). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
16. SnappyMail
Simple, modern, lightweight & fast web-based email client (fork of RainLoop).
Active Last commit 2026-11-04. Latest release v2.38.2.1 (2026-10-23). Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
17. Forward Email
Privacy-focused encrypted email for everyone. All-in-one (alternative to Gmail, Mailchimp, Sendgrid).
Active Last commit 2026-11-05. 10+ releases in the past year. Latest release v2.19.0 (2026-11-04). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
18. Simple NixOS Mailserver
Complete mailserver solution leveraging the Nix Ecosystem.
Active Last commit 2026-10-21. Latest release v2.3.0 (2019-12-16). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM. How to run it →
19. b1gMail
Complete email solution that runs on any webspace with PHP and MariaDB. It supports POP3 catchall mailboxes and can also integrate with Postfix or b1gMailServer if you're running your own server.
Active Last commit 2026-10-21. 1 release in the past year. Latest release 7.4.2-rc3 (2026-10-01). Needs roughly 4 GB RAM incl. mariadb. How to run it →
20. SquirrelMail
Another browser-based IMAP client.
Unknown Needs roughly 1 GB RAM. How to run it →
Why self-host instead of Proton Mail?
- Own your data — it lives on a server you control, with backups you decide on.
- Predictable cost — a small VPS often replaces per-seat pricing for a whole team or family.
- No lock-in — open-source licenses let you keep running the software even if a vendor disappears.
The trade-off: you are responsible for updates, backups and security. Pick an app marked Active (a commit in the last 90 days) and with Docker support for the easiest ride.
Browse related categories
Other alternatives guides
Proton Mail is a trademark of its owner; this site is not affiliated with it. Listings come from the community-maintained awesome-selfhosted list.