docker-mailserver vs Mail-in-a-Box

Two self-hosted Communication - Email - Complete Solutions apps, compared on the facts we track: GitHub popularity and activity, license, language, Docker images and a rough hosting estimate.

Side by side

	docker-mailserver	Mail-in-a-Box
Description	Production-ready fullstack but simple mail server (SMTP, IMAP, LDAP, Antispam, Antivirus, etc.) running inside a container. Only configuration files, no SQL database.	Turns any Ubuntu server into a fully functional mail server with one command.
GitHub stars	19,721	15,455
Forks	–	–
Open issues	–	–
Commits (12 months)	116	23
Last activity	2026-11-02	2026-10-22
Latest release	v16.0.1 (2026-09-04)	v77 (2026-09-26)
Maintenance health	Active	Active
License	MIT	CC0-1.0
Language / platform	Docker	Shell
Docker Hub image	–	–
Docker pulls	–	–
Est. server size	~4 GB, 2 vCPU	~4 GB, 2 vCPU
Est. hosting from	$20/mo	$20/mo
Categories	Communication - Email - Complete Solutions	Communication - Email - Complete Solutions
Links	Website · Source	Website · Source

What the numbers say

docker-mailserver is more popular on GitHub: 19.7k stars vs 15.5k for Mail-in-a-Box.
docker-mailserver had more commits in the last 12 months (116 vs 23).
Mail-in-a-Box published a release more recently (v77 on 2026-09-26; docker-mailserver's latest is v16.0.1 on 2026-09-04).
docker-mailserver is licensed under MIT, Mail-in-a-Box under CC0-1.0.
Mail-in-a-Box is written in Shell; the language of docker-mailserver is not listed upstream.
Deployment options listed upstream: docker-mailserver: Docker; Mail-in-a-Box: none listed.

Summary: docker-mailserver leads on GitHub popularity and commit activity. The right choice depends on the features you need — read both project descriptions and docs.

This summary is generated from GitHub, Docker Hub and awesome-selfhosted data as of 2026-11-05. It does not rate features or quality.

Frequently asked questions

Is docker-mailserver or Mail-in-a-Box more popular?

docker-mailserver has more GitHub stars (19,721 vs 15,455 for Mail-in-a-Box, as of 2026-11-05). Stars measure interest, not quality.

Which is more actively maintained, docker-mailserver or Mail-in-a-Box?

docker-mailserver had more commits over the last 12 months (116 vs 23). The last recorded activity was 2026-11-02 for docker-mailserver and 2026-10-22 for Mail-in-a-Box. Our health labels: docker-mailserver is “Active”, Mail-in-a-Box is “Active”.

What licenses do docker-mailserver and Mail-in-a-Box use?

docker-mailserver: MIT. Mail-in-a-Box: CC0-1.0.

Can I run docker-mailserver and Mail-in-a-Box with Docker?

We did not detect a Docker Hub image for either app. The upstream listing mentions Docker as a deployment option for docker-mailserver. Check each project's documentation for install options.