Mailcow vs Postal
Both Mailcow and Postal are self-hosted alternatives to Amazon SES, Mailgun and SendGrid. Both are filed under Communication - Email - Complete Solutions.
Side by side
| Field | Mailcow | Postal |
|---|---|---|
| Description | Mail server suite based on Dovecot, Postfix and other software, that provides a modern Web UI for administration. | Complete and fully featured mail server for use by websites & web servers. |
| GitHub stars | 13,728 | 16,912 |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Platforms | Docker, PHP | Docker, Ruby |
| Latest release | 2026-10, 21 October 2026 | 3.3.7, 3 June 2026 |
| Repository activity | 21 October 2026 | 1 October 2026 |
| Health | Active | Active |
| Categories | Communication - Email - Complete Solutions | Communication - Email - Complete Solutions |
| Website | https://mailcow.email/ | https://docs.postalserver.io/ |
| Source code | https://github.com/mailcow/mailcow-dockerized | https://github.com/postalserver/postal |
Where the records differ
Computed from the two records above: a line appears only where the dataset states a figure, a date or a set relation, and no line recommends one application over the other.
- Postal has more GitHub stars in the dataset, 16,912 against 13,728.
- Mailcow recorded repository activity more recently, 21 October 2026 against 1 October 2026.
- Mailcow has the newer release on record: 2026-10, 21 October 2026, against 3.3.7, 3 June 2026.
- Licenses differ: Mailcow is listed under GPL-3.0; Postal under MIT.
- Platforms differ: Mailcow lists Docker, PHP; Postal lists Docker, Ruby.
- Both are filed under the same categories: Communication - Email - Complete Solutions.