maildev/maildev
:mailbox: SMTP Server + Web Interface for viewing and testing emails during development. observed · 2026-08-28
Health v2 · maintenance only
86/100
- Activity 99
- Release rhythm 60
- Longevity 100
How is this computed?
round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10) — computed 2026-09-03. Adoption (stars, forks) is never an input.
- gap_med: 571
- age_days: 4903
- days_rel: 58
- days_push: 8
- n_releases_24m: 2
Adoption not part of the score
6032 stars · 557 forks observed · 2026-08-28
What it is AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, 2026-08-29, confidence not recorded
MailDev is a local SMTP server with a modern web interface that catches all emails sent by your application during development, so nothing reaches real inboxes. It supports HTML/plain text/raw source previews, responsive viewport testing, a REST API, and (as of 3.0) a built-in MCP server so AI agents can inspect the dev inbox.
Use cases
- test emails locally without sending to real users
- catch outgoing emails from my app in a fake SMTP inbox
- preview how HTML emails render on mobile viewports
- inspect email headers and raw source during development
- grab verification links from signup emails via an AI agent
- spin up a local mailcatcher alternative with a modern UI
- check whether a password reset email actually went out
When to choose
- you need a zero-config local SMTP catch-all for development and testing
- you want a web UI to inspect rendered HTML, plain text, headers, and raw email source
- you use Node.js or Docker and want an npm-installable or containerized fake SMTP server
- you want AI agents (via MCP) to search your dev inbox and extract links
- you need a REST API to programmatically assert on emails in tests
When to avoid
- you need to send real emails to actual recipients in production
- you need a full production MTA with relaying, spam filtering, or deliverability features
- your stack cannot run Node.js or Docker
- you need persistent long-term email storage rather than a transient dev inbox
Facets
application · maturity active
http-server testing developer-tools email cli mcp developer-tools email testing web-development cli cross-platform smtp-server mailcatcher email-testing fake-smtp dev-inbox email-preview rest-api mcp-server nodemailer email-debugging command-line nodejs docker web-server
3 sources
- readme: https://github.com/maildev/maildev · fetched 2026-08-28 · 15986190ef95
- homepage: https://maildev.github.io/maildev/ · fetched 2026-08-29 · a84c369183d6
- registry_npm: https://registry.npmjs.org/maildev · fetched 2026-08-29 · db3e3a1bd5d0
Member repositories
| Repository | Role | Health v2 |
|---|---|---|
| maildev/maildev | main | 86 |
For agents
Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00 · Report a problem