head to head · open source
Inbox Zero vs Keila
Inbox Zero has 12,238 GitHub stars, 1,536 forks, 209 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Keila has 2,211 stars, 167 forks, 76 open issues and last shipped 2 days ago. Inbox Zero leads on adoption by 454% (12,238 vs 2,211 stars). Inbox Zero is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; Keila is written in Elixir under AGPL-3.0. Inbox Zero has attracted 13% as many forks as stars, Keila 8%. Inbox Zero was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Inbox Zero | Keila | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 12K | ★ 2.2K |
| License | Custom / other | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | TypeScript | Elixir |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-16 |
| Forks | ⑂ 1.5K | ⑂ 167 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Inbox Zero if
- You weight community size — 12K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Keila if
- You want the Keila feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Elixir
- You evaluated both and Keila fits your workflow better
About Inbox Zero
Inbox Zero is an open source AI email assistant written in TypeScript and placed in the email productivity ecosystem. It is a web application built with Next.js, shadcn/ui, Prisma, and related tools. The project describes itself as a 24/7 assistant that organizes email, drafts replies, manages calendar context, and handles attachments.
read the full Inbox Zero overview →
About Keila
Keila is an open source newsletter and email marketing tool written in Elixir and licensed under AGPL 3.0. It is presented as an open alternative to Mailchimp and Sendinblue, and it lives in the open source email marketing and newsletter ecosystem for people who want to manage campaigns and subscriber sign ups without relying only on a paid hosted service.
read the full Keila overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Inbox Zero or Keila more popular?
Inbox Zero has 12,238 GitHub stars and Keila has 2,211. Inbox Zero has the larger community by that measure.
Are Inbox Zero and Keila free?
Both are open source. Inbox Zero has no licence declared in this registry, and Keila is licensed under AGPL-3.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Inbox Zero and Keila?
Inbox Zero is written in TypeScript and Keila in Elixir. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Inbox Zero or Keila?
Choose Inbox Zero if you want the larger community (12,238 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose Keila if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.