# maildev/maildev

:mailbox: SMTP Server + Web Interface for viewing and testing emails during development.

Repository: https://github.com/maildev/maildev
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/maildev
Homepage: https://maildev.github.io/maildev/
Language: TypeScript
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: maildev, smtp, nodemailer, docker, smtp-server, mailcatcher, testing, development, developer-tools, nodejs
Last push: 2026-08-26T00:27:49+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 86/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 60, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4903, "days_push": 8, "days_rel": 58, "gap_med": 571, "n_releases_24m": 2}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 6032, forks 557 (observed 2026-08-28T04:09:34.449738+00:00)

## What it is
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
- artifact type: application
- maturity: active
- function: http-server, testing, developer-tools, email, cli, mcp
- domain: developer-tools, email, testing, web-development
- platform: cli, cross-platform
- tags: smtp-server, mailcatcher, email-testing, fake-smtp, dev-inbox, email-preview, rest-api, mcp-server, nodemailer, email-debugging, command-line, nodejs, docker, web-server

## Member repositories
- maildev/maildev (main) score 86

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:34.449738+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T17:49:08.924940+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/maildev/maildev (fetched 2026-08-28T04:09:34.449738+00:00, sha 15986190ef95)
  - homepage: https://maildev.github.io/maildev/ (fetched 2026-08-29T08:45:31.691080+00:00, sha a84c369183d6)
  - registry_npm: https://registry.npmjs.org/maildev (fetched 2026-08-29T08:45:31.693841+00:00, sha db3e3a1bd5d0)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.