# docker-smtp vs Mail-in-a-Box

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | docker-smtp | Mail-in-a-Box |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 38/100 | 72/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #88 of 106 in Email | #3 of 16 in Mail Server |
| GitHub stars | 145 | 15 447 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | — | +29 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 0 | 4 ✓ |
| Latest release | — | v77 · 26 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Easy ✓ | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes ✓ | No |
| License | — | CC0-1.0 |
| Main language | Shell | Python |

## Which one should you pick?

Mail-in-a-Box scores 72/100 against 38/100 for docker-smtp, so it is the safer default.

Mail-in-a-Box ships more often: 4 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for docker-smtp.

If you want the quickest setup, docker-smtp is easier to run; Mail-in-a-Box needs more configuration.

Mail-in-a-Box is growing faster right now (+29 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [docker-smtp](https://selfhost.directory/project/docker-smtp) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/docker-smtp.md)
- [Mail-in-a-Box](https://selfhost.directory/project/mail-in-a-box) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/mail-in-a-box.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/docker-smtp-vs-mail-in-a-box