SendPigeon vs MailCatcher
MailCatcher is a Ruby-based email testing tool that catches emails sent via SMTP and displays them in a web UI. SendPigeon CLI offers similar functionality with zero installation required.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | SendPigeon | MailCatcher |
|---|---|---|
| Local SMTP server SendPigeon on port 4125, MailCatcher on port 1025. | ||
| Web UI to view emails SendPigeon at localhost:4100, MailCatcher at localhost:1080. | ||
| No install required SendPigeon runs via npx. MailCatcher requires Ruby and gem install. | ||
| Recent updates Both are actively maintained. | ||
| Works offline | ||
| API for captured emails MailCatcher has a simple API to retrieve emails programmatically. | ||
| Works with any language Point any SMTP client to localhost and emails are captured. | ||
| Path to production SendPigeon: same SDK for dev and production. MailCatcher is local-only. | ||
| SDK auto-routing Set SENDPIGEON_DEV=true and the SDK routes to localhost automatically. | ||
| Cloud email sandbox SendPigeon test keys capture emails in dashboard for CI/staging. | ||
| HTML/plain text toggle Both show HTML and plain text versions of emails. | ||
| Attachment support |
Pricing Comparison
SendPigeon
All plans include multiple domains. No per-email fees.
Which Should You Choose?
Choose SendPigeon if...
- You want zero-install local email testing (just npx)
- You don't have Ruby installed and don't want to install it
- You want to use the same SDK from dev to production
- You need cloud-based email capture for CI/staging
Choose MailCatcher if...
- You already have Ruby installed and prefer gem-based tools
- You want a simple API to retrieve captured emails
- You have existing MailCatcher integrations
- You prefer a minimal, lightweight tool
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