Mailcow vs SelfPrivacy
Comparing two open source alternatives to Gmail. Use the comparison below to decide which one fits your needs.

Mailcow
GPL-3.0Self-hostable, Dockerized mail server bundle that combines Postfix, Dovecot, and a polished web UI — a Gmail and Microsoft 365 alternative for organisations.

SelfPrivacy
GPL-3.0Free app that turns a Hetzner or DigitalOcean VPS into your own private cloud, deploying email, Nextcloud, VPN, and more from Android or desktop.
Side-by-side comparison
Mailcow | SelfPrivacy | |
|---|---|---|
| License | GPL-3.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| GitHub Stars | 13,380 | 9 |
| Forks | 1,799 | 15 |
| Open Issues | 517 | 80 |
| Last Commit | Sep 4, 2026 | Sep 3, 2026 |
| First Released | Dec 9, 2016 | Dec 1, 2020 |
| Categories | ||
| Tags | — |
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