Quick verdict
Maildev is a solid choice if you're comfortable with Docker and want a local-only solution. MailHog.site is the hosted alternative when you need team access, spam scoring, HTML compatibility analysis, or don't want to maintain Docker infrastructure for a dev tool.
Feature comparison
| Feature | MailHog.site | Maildev |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting | Hosted SaaS | Self-hosted (Docker/npm) |
| Setup time | 60 seconds | 5–15 minutes |
| SMTP capture | ✅ | ✅ |
| Real-time updates | ✅ SSE | ✅ WebSocket |
| Spam scoring | ✅ rspamd engine | ❌ |
| HTML compatibility | ✅ 12+ clients | ❌ |
| REST API | ✅ Full CRUD | ✅ Basic |
| Team access | ✅ Multi-user | ❌ No auth |
| Multiple inboxes | ✅ Up to 25 | ❌ Single inbox |
| Authentication | ✅ argon2id | ❌ Open access |
| Email search | ✅ Full-text | ✅ Basic filter |
| Relay to real SMTP | ❌ | ✅ Auto-relay option |
| Docker Compose | Not needed | ✅ One-liner |
| Cost | Free – $29/mo | Free (self-host) |
When Maildev is the right choice
- You're already running Docker Compose and want to add SMTP in one line
- You need the auto-relay feature to forward captured emails to a real SMTP server
- All your testing is local-only — no team sharing needed
- You don't need spam scoring or HTML compatibility analysis
- Data sensitivity requires emails to never leave your machine
When MailHog.site is the right choice
- You want to skip Docker setup — sign up and start testing in 60 seconds
- Your team needs shared inboxes with per-user access control
- You need spam scoring and HTML compatibility built into the inbox
- You're running CI/CD pipelines that need reliable, always-on SMTP
- You have staging environments that need a shared email testing endpoint
Try the hosted alternative
No Docker. No infrastructure. Just SMTP credentials and a beautiful inbox.
Start free →