docker-mailserver vs Stalwart Mail Server

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	Stalwart Mail Server
Description	Production-ready fullstack but simple mail server (SMTP, IMAP, LDAP, Antispam, Antivirus, etc.) running inside a container. Only configuration files, no SQL database.	All-in-one mail server with JMAP, IMAP4, and SMTP support and a wide range of modern features.
GitHub stars	19,721	15,730
Forks	–	–
Open issues	–	–
Commits (12 months)	116	694
Last activity	2026-11-02	2026-11-04
Latest release	v16.0.1 (2026-09-04)	v1.0.3 (2026-11-04)
Maintenance health	Active	Active
License	MIT	AGPL-3.0
Language / platform	Docker	Rust, Docker
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 15.7k for Stalwart Mail Server.
Stalwart Mail Server had more commits in the last 12 months (694 vs 116).
Stalwart Mail Server published a release more recently (v1.0.3 on 2026-11-04; docker-mailserver's latest is v16.0.1 on 2026-09-04).
docker-mailserver is licensed under MIT, Stalwart Mail Server under AGPL-3.0. docker-mailserver's license is permissive; Stalwart Mail Server's is copyleft (changes you distribute must stay open).
Stalwart Mail Server is written in Rust; the language of docker-mailserver is not listed upstream.
Deployment options listed upstream: docker-mailserver: Docker; Stalwart Mail Server: Docker.

Summary: docker-mailserver leads on GitHub popularity; Stalwart Mail Server leads on 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 Stalwart Mail Server more popular?

docker-mailserver has more GitHub stars (19,721 vs 15,730 for Stalwart Mail Server, as of 2026-11-05). Stars measure interest, not quality.

Which is more actively maintained, docker-mailserver or Stalwart Mail Server?

Stalwart Mail Server had more commits over the last 12 months (694 vs 116). The last recorded activity was 2026-11-02 for docker-mailserver and 2026-11-04 for Stalwart Mail Server. Our health labels: docker-mailserver is “Active”, Stalwart Mail Server is “Active”.

What licenses do docker-mailserver and Stalwart Mail Server use?

docker-mailserver: MIT. Stalwart Mail Server: AGPL-3.0. docker-mailserver's license is permissive; Stalwart Mail Server's is copyleft (changes you distribute must stay open).

Can I run docker-mailserver and Stalwart Mail Server 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 and Stalwart Mail Server. Check each project's documentation for install options.