MailcowvsPi-hole
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| Mailcow | Pi-hole | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 77/100 | 87/100 |
| Rank in category | #2 of 106 in Email | #1 of 41 in DNS |
| GitHub stars | 13 713 | 61 527 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +215 | +483 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 16 | 7 |
| Latest release | 2026-10 · 21 Oct 2026 | v6.5 · 17 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Other |
| Main language | JavaScript | Shell |
Which one should you pick?
Pi-hole scores 87/100 against 77/100 for Mailcow, so it is the safer default.
Mailcow ships more often: 16 stable releases in the past year, against 7 for Pi-hole.
If you want the quickest setup, Pi-hole is easier to run; Mailcow needs more configuration.
Pi-hole is growing faster right now (+483 stars in 30 days).
Mailcow details →Pi-hole details →
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