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6 top picks · 2 audience rankings

Best open source email marketing and newsletter tools

The best open source email marketing tool is Listmonk (AGPL-3.0, 24,011 GitHub stars, Docker image). Mautic stands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (6,380), and Keila stands out for its Elixir codebase.

This page also breaks the picks down by team size and use: Listmonk leads for startups, small business and freelancers.

Updated · data from GitHub, refreshed daily

Top picks

  1. Rank 1:

    Listmonk

    knadh/listmonk

    High performance, self-hosted newsletter and mailing list manager with a modern dashboard.

    Active · last commit Oct 28, 2026

    Newsletters & Mailing ListsGoDocker

    Stands out for the most GitHub stars. Listmonk has 24,011 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 463 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack.

  2. Rank 2:

    Mautic

    mautic/mautic

    Marketing automation software (email, social and more).

    Active · last commit Oct 27, 2026

    Newsletters & Mailing ListsPHP

    Stands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (6,380). Mautic has 10,856 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license and had 6,380 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack.

  3. Rank 3:

    Keila

    pentacent/keila

    Reliable and easy-to-use newsletter tool (alternative to Mailchimp and Sendinblue).

    Active · last commit Oct 27, 2026

    Newsletters & Mailing ListsElixirDocker

    Stands out for its Elixir codebase. Keila has 2,255 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 442 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack.

At a glance

Open source email marketing and newsletter tools compared

Ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits across the 6 apps in the newsletters & mailing lists category. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.

Top 6 picks compared, data as of Oct 28, 2026
AppStands out forLicenseGitHub starsCommits (12 mo)Last commitDocker image
Listmonkthe most GitHub starsAGPL-3.024,011463Oct 28, 2026Yes
Mauticthe most commits in the last 12 months (6,380)GPL-3.010,8566,380Oct 27, 2026No
Keilaits Elixir codebaseAGPL-3.02,255442Oct 27, 2026Yes
Dittofeeda permissive MIT licenseMIT3,02675Oct 12, 2026Yes
phpList–AGPL-3.087729Oct 19, 2026No
Sympa–GPL-2.031571Aug 14, 2026No

1 of 3 · 6 picks

Top picks

6 of the 6 apps in the newsletters & mailing lists category.

  1. 1

    Listmonk

    High performance, self-hosted newsletter and mailing list manager with a modern dashboard.

    Stands out for the most GitHub stars. Listmonk has 24,011 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 463 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack.

  2. 2

    Mautic

    Marketing automation software (email, social and more).

    Stands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (6,380). Mautic has 10,856 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license and had 6,380 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack.

  3. 3

    Keila

    Reliable and easy-to-use newsletter tool (alternative to Mailchimp and Sendinblue).

    Stands out for its Elixir codebase. Keila has 2,255 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 442 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack.

  4. 4

    Dittofeed

    Omni-channel customer engagement and messaging automation platform (alternative to Braze, Customer.io, Iterable).

    Stands out for a permissive MIT license. Dittofeed has 3,026 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 75 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp.

  5. 5

    phpList

    Newsletter and email marketing with advanced management of subscribers, bounces, and plugins.

    phpList has 877 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license and had 29 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp.

  6. 6

    Sympa

    Mailing list manager.

    Sympa has 315 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-2.0 license and had 71 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp.

2 of 3 · 5 picks

Which open source email marketing tool is best for startups?

For startups, Listmonk ranks first (AGPL-3.0, 24,011 GitHub stars), followed by Mautic and Dittofeed. Ranked for startups on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses, project websites and recent commits.

  1. 1

    Listmonk

    High performance, self-hosted newsletter and mailing list manager with a modern dashboard.

    Listmonk has 24,011 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 463 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack. For startups it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  2. 2

    Mautic

    Marketing automation software (email, social and more).

    Mautic has 10,856 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license and had 6,380 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack. For startups it also scores on an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  3. 3

    Dittofeed

    Omni-channel customer engagement and messaging automation platform (alternative to Braze, Customer.io, Iterable).

    Dittofeed has 3,026 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 75 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp. For startups it also scores on a Docker image, a permissive license (MIT), a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  4. 4

    Keila

    Reliable and easy-to-use newsletter tool (alternative to Mailchimp and Sendinblue).

    Keila has 2,255 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 442 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack. For startups it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  5. 5

    phpList

    Newsletter and email marketing with advanced management of subscribers, bounces, and plugins.

    phpList has 877 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license and had 29 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp. For startups it also scores on an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

3 of 3 · 5 picks

Which open source email marketing tool is best for small business and freelancers?

For small business and freelancers, Listmonk ranks first (AGPL-3.0, 24,011 GitHub stars), followed by Mautic and Keila. Ranked for small business and freelancers (the same order for each) on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits.

  1. 1

    Listmonk

    High performance, self-hosted newsletter and mailing list manager with a modern dashboard.

    Listmonk has 24,011 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 463 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack. For small business it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  2. 2

    Mautic

    Marketing automation software (email, social and more).

    Mautic has 10,856 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license and had 6,380 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack. For small business it also scores on an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  3. 3

    Keila

    Reliable and easy-to-use newsletter tool (alternative to Mailchimp and Sendinblue).

    Keila has 2,255 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 442 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp and Substack. For small business it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  4. 4

    Dittofeed

    Omni-channel customer engagement and messaging automation platform (alternative to Braze, Customer.io, Iterable).

    Dittofeed has 3,026 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 75 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp. For small business it also scores on a Docker image, an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

  5. 5

    phpList

    Newsletter and email marketing with advanced management of subscribers, bounces, and plugins.

    phpList has 877 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license and had 29 commits in the last year; it replaces Mailchimp. For small business it also scores on an open-source license, a project website and a commit in the last 90 days.

FAQ

Questions and answers

Still curious? Email info@appsgit.com.

Is Listmonk free?

Yes. Listmonk is open-source software released under the AGPL-3.0 license, so you can self-host it at no cost. You only pay for the server it runs on, and some projects also offer an optional paid cloud plan.

Can I self-host these email marketing and newsletter tools with Docker?

Yes, 3 of the 6 picks. Listmonk, Keila and Dittofeed publish Docker images, so you can run them on a VPS or home server with Docker Compose. The others install from their own packages or source; follow each project's install guide.

Are all of these email marketing and newsletter tools open source?

All 6 apps on this list are open source. You can self-host and modify each one under its license.

Which of these email marketing and newsletter tools is the most actively developed?

Mautic, with 6,380 commits in the last 12 months and a latest release, 7.2.2, from October 2026. Activity is a good sign that bugs and security issues get fixed.

How is this list ranked?

Ranked on GitHub stars, commits in the last year, Docker images, open-source licenses and recent commits across the 6 apps in the newsletters & mailing lists category. Projects with fewer than 12 commits in the last 12 months rank below every more active project.

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