KanidmvsMail-in-a-Box
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Kanidm | Mail-in-a-Box | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 67/100 | 72/100 |
| Rank in category | #3 of 3 in IAM | #3 of 16 in Mail Server |
| GitHub stars | 5 512 | 15 446 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +106 | +27 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 14 | 4 |
| Latest release | v1.11.2 · 11 Sept 2026 | v77 · 26 Sept 2026 |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | No |
| License | MPL-2.0 | CC0-1.0 |
| Main language | Rust | Python |
Which one should you pick?
Mail-in-a-Box scores 72/100 against 67/100 for Kanidm, so it is the safer default.
Kanidm ships more often: 14 stable releases in the past year, against 4 for Mail-in-a-Box.
If you want the quickest setup, Mail-in-a-Box is easier to run; Kanidm needs more configuration.
Kanidm is growing faster right now (+106 stars in 30 days).
Kanidm details →Mail-in-a-Box details →