Modoboa review 2026: an open-source mail hosting and admin panel built on Postfix and Dovecot. Features, self-hosting setup, and pricing compared.
Modoboa is a free, open-source platform for hosting and administering email. It wraps proven mail server components, Postfix for sending mail and Dovecot for retrieving it, in a modern, easy-to-use web administration panel and webmail client.
Created by French developer Antoine Nguyen and originally released under the name MailNG, Modoboa is written in Python using Django and Vue.js, and stores its configuration in a SQL database such as MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, or SQLite. The community reports the platform now powers hundreds of thousands of mailboxes worldwide.
Modoboa provides multi-domain and multi-mailbox management, an integrated webmail client with calendar and address book, and Sieve-based filtering and auto-responders. Administrators get real-time statistics, monitoring, and permission management from a single panel.
On the security side, Modoboa supports SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and DNSBL checks alongside automatic TLS via Let's Encrypt, helping protect domain reputation and deliverability. Because all functionality is built as modular extensions, administrators can enable only the features they need.
The core Modoboa platform is entirely free and open source under the ISC license, with no cost to download, self-host, or use at any scale. Users are responsible for their own server infrastructure.
For organizations that want commercial support, the team also offers Modoboa Pro, a paid extension suite, along with professional services such as installation, upgrades, and issue troubleshooting, priced individually starting from roughly 150 euros for setup assistance.
Yes, the core Modoboa platform is free and open source under the ISC license. A paid Modoboa Pro extension suite and professional services are also available for organizations that want additional support.
Modoboa is written in Python 3 using the Django framework for the backend and Vue.js for the frontend, and it manages Postfix and Dovecot as the underlying mail server components.
Modoboa was created by French developer Antoine Nguyen, originally under the project name MailNG before it was renamed.
Yes. Modoboa is self-hosted software, so you need a Linux server and basic sysadmin knowledge to install and maintain it, though the web panel simplifies day-to-day administration.
Yes, Modoboa ships with an integrated webmail client that includes calendar and address book functionality.
Modoboa, Mailcow, and iRedMail are all open-source self-hosted mail platforms built around Postfix and Dovecot; they differ mainly in admin UI design, extension architecture, and deployment method (Modoboa favors a Django/Vue app, Mailcow favors Docker containers).