[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":88},["ShallowReactive",2],{"vs-smtp4dev":3},{"id":4,"title":5,"body":6,"comparison":50,"competitor":78,"description":79,"extension":80,"meta":81,"navigation":82,"path":83,"seo":84,"stem":85,"tagline":86,"__hash__":87},"vs\u002Fvs\u002Fsmtp4dev.md","Mailcatcher vs. smtp4dev",{"type":7,"value":8,"toc":42},"minimark",[9,14,18,22,25,29,32,35,39],[10,11,13],"h2",{"id":12},"what-is-smtp4dev","What is smtp4dev?",[15,16,17],"p",{},"smtp4dev is a free, open-source SMTP test server built on .NET. It runs cross-platform (Docker, Windows, Linux, macOS) and catches outgoing mail for local inspection, alongside some IMAP retrieval and message-relay options.",[10,19,21],{"id":20},"where-smtp4dev-shines","Where smtp4dev shines",[15,23,24],{},"Beyond the usual HTML\u002Ftext preview, smtp4dev exposes the raw SMTP session log — the actual protocol exchange between your app and the server. That's a real advantage if you're debugging an SMTP client implementation or a tricky connection issue, rather than just checking what an email looks like.",[10,26,28],{"id":27},"where-mailcatcher-differs","Where Mailcatcher differs",[15,30,31],{},"smtp4dev, like most self-hosted catchers, gives you a single shared inbox per instance with no accounts or permissions — fine for one developer, awkward for a team. Someone still has to run the server, keep it updated, and expose it if anyone else needs access.",[15,33,34],{},"Mailcatcher trades that raw protocol-level detail for a hosted, multi-project setup: unlimited projects, team accounts with permissions, and nothing to install or maintain.",[10,36,38],{"id":37},"which-should-you-choose","Which should you choose?",[15,40,41],{},"If you're troubleshooting SMTP protocol behavior itself and want full control over a self-hosted tool, smtp4dev is a good, actively developed option. If you want your team to share and organize captured emails across projects without running infrastructure, Mailcatcher is the more direct fit.",{"title":43,"searchDepth":44,"depth":44,"links":45},"",2,[46,47,48,49],{"id":12,"depth":44,"text":13},{"id":20,"depth":44,"text":21},{"id":27,"depth":44,"text":28},{"id":37,"depth":44,"text":38},[51,55,59,63,66,70,72,75],{"feature":52,"mailcatcher":53,"competitor":54},"Deployment","Hosted SaaS","Self-hosted (Docker, Windows service, or binary)",{"feature":56,"mailcatcher":57,"competitor":58},"Setup","Point your SMTP settings at us","Install, run, and keep the server up",{"feature":60,"mailcatcher":61,"competitor":62},"Team accounts & permissions","Yes","No",{"feature":64,"mailcatcher":61,"competitor":62,"note":65},"Shared access without exposing your network","Remote access means running your own reverse proxy or tunnel",{"feature":67,"mailcatcher":68,"competitor":69},"Multiple isolated projects","Unlimited","One shared inbox per instance",{"feature":71,"mailcatcher":61,"competitor":61},"HTML\u002Ftext preview, headers & attachments",{"feature":73,"mailcatcher":62,"competitor":61,"note":74},"Raw SMTP session\u002Fprotocol logs","Useful when you're debugging the SMTP conversation itself, not just the email content",{"feature":76,"mailcatcher":62,"competitor":61,"note":77},"Open source \u002F full control","Free, self-hosted, cross-platform","smtp4dev","How Mailcatcher compares to smtp4dev for testing outgoing emails, including SMTP session inspection, team access, and hosting.","md",{},true,"\u002Fvs\u002Fsmtp4dev",{"title":5,"description":79},"vs\u002Fsmtp4dev","A solid open-source, self-hosted SMTP test server with raw protocol-level logging — no team features or hosting included.","VrqV_ag6ZS1n6b_DO7jgsHWgQgxdnSl593otqHQfbrI",1788004070809]