OSEMvsStalwart Mail Server
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| OSEM | Stalwart Mail Server | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 47/100 | 79/100 |
| Rank in category | #8 of 11 in Event Management | #2 of 16 in Mail Server |
| GitHub stars | 929 | 15 479 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +0 | +676 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 0 | 31 |
| Latest release | — | v1.0.1 · 28 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | Yes |
| License | MIT | AGPL-3.0-only AND LicenseRef-SEL |
| Main language | Ruby | Rust |
Which one should you pick?
Stalwart Mail Server scores 79/100 against 47/100 for OSEM, so it is the safer default.
Stalwart Mail Server ships more often: 31 stable releases in the past year, against 0 for OSEM.
If you want the quickest setup, Stalwart Mail Server is easier to run; OSEM needs more configuration.
Stalwart Mail Server is growing faster right now (+676 stars in 30 days).
OSEM details →Stalwart Mail Server details →