# Kanidm vs Mail-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).

## Details

- [Kanidm](https://selfhost.directory/project/kanidm) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/kanidm.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/kanidm-vs-mail-in-a-box