Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

mailcow VS ForthWrite

Compare mailcow VS ForthWrite and see what are their differences

mailcow logo mailcow

An open source mailserver suite.

ForthWrite logo ForthWrite

Email that sounds like you, and gets measurably more like you every week. Drafts in Gmail, Outlook, and the browser. Free to start.
Visit Website
  • mailcow Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-01-24
  • ForthWrite Landing Page
    Landing Page //
    2026-06-19
  • ForthWrite Dashboard
    Dashboard //
    2026-06-19
  • ForthWrite In Gmail
    In Gmail //
    2026-06-19
  • ForthWrite Pricing
    Pricing //
    2026-06-19

ForthWrite is an AI email writing assistant for Gmail and Outlook that learns your writing style from your real sent mail. The more you use it, the more it sounds like you. Get smart drafts in seconds, auto-draft replies before you open your inbox, and maintain your personal voice at scale. Free to start, no credit card required. Works inside Gmail and Outlook on the web.

How it works

ForthWrite captures your tone, sentence rhythm, and sign-offs from your actual sent emails, then uses that profile to generate drafts that match how you write, not a generic AI voice. Every draft you edit or send improves the model over time.

Key features

  • Auto-draft: replies waiting in Gmail before you open your inbox
  • Voice matching from your real sent mail, not templates
  • Recipient-aware drafts that adapt to who you are emailing
  • Prompt Lab for version-controlling and A/B testing your persona prompt
  • BYOK support: bring your own API key for Claude, OpenAI, Grok, Mistral, and more
  • Works in Gmail and Outlook on the web, plus a standalone browser widget
  • Training data export and full data portability

Who uses it

Professionals who send high volumes of relationship-critical email: lawyers, financial advisors, recruiters, account executives, founders, and anyone who wants their inbox handled without sounding like a chatbot wrote it.

Pricing

Free tier includes 10 drafts per week with no credit card required. Paid plans start at $12/month and include unlimited drafts, custom persona prompts, and auto-draft.

mailcow

Pricing URL
-
$ Details
Platforms
-
Release Date
-

ForthWrite

$ Details
freemium $12.0 / Monthly (Standard plan)
Platforms
Web
Release Date
2026 June
Startup details
Country
United States
State
California
City
San Diego
Founder(s)
Curtis Boortz
Employees
1 - 9

mailcow features and specs

  • Comprehensive Feature Set
    Mailcow offers a wide range of features including an easy-to-use web interface, spam filtering, virus protection, calendar and contact synchronization, and more. It is an all-in-one solution for managing email services.
  • Open Source
    Being open source, Mailcow allows users to audit the code, customize it to their needs, and contribute to its improvement. This provides more control and transparency compared to proprietary solutions.
  • Docker-based Deployment
    Mailcow uses Docker containers for its various services, making it easier to deploy, scale, and maintain. Docker containers also help isolate services, enhancing security and performance.
  • Active Community and Support
    Mailcow has an active community and good documentation, which can be very helpful for troubleshooting and getting the most out of the system. Community support often compensates for the lack of formal customer service.
  • Security Features
    Mailcow includes many built-in security features such as Let's Encrypt SSL, DKIM, DMARC support, and automatic updates, ensuring a secure email environment.

Possible disadvantages of mailcow

  • Complexity
    While Docker simplifies deployment, the initial setup and configuration can be complex and time-consuming, especially for users not familiar with Docker or email server management.
  • Resource Intensive
    Mailcow can be resource-intensive, requiring significant CPU, memory, and storage resources to run efficiently. Smaller servers or low-spec hardware may struggle to handle the load.
  • Learning Curve
    Due to its comprehensive feature set, there can be a steep learning curve to fully understand and utilize all of Mailcow's capabilities. It may require time and effort to master.
  • Lack of Professional Support
    As an open-source project, Mailcow relies on community and volunteer support rather than professional customer service. This can be a drawback if immediate or guaranteed support is needed.
  • Regular Maintenance Required
    Running your own mail server, even with a solution like Mailcow, requires regular maintenance and updates to ensure security, performance, and reliability. This adds administrative overhead.

ForthWrite features and specs

  • Voice Matching
    Learns from your real sent mail, not templates
  • Auto-draft replies
    Replies waiting in Gmail before you open your inbox
  • Batch-drafting
    Draft replies for your entire inbox with one click
  • Works in browser
    Gmail, Outlook, and web browsers
  • BYOK support
    Claude, OpenAI, Grok, Mistral, and more
  • Prompt Lab
    Version control and A/B test your persona prompt
  • Free tier
    10 drafts per week, no credit card required

Analysis of ForthWrite

Overall verdict

  • I don't have verified information about a product called ForthWrite (forthwrite.ai). I cannot confirm its features, quality, or reputation, so I'm unable to provide an accurate assessment of whether it's good.

Why this product is good

  • No reliable data available on this specific product in my knowledge base
  • This may be a newer product, a niche tool, or possibly a fictional/hypothetical name
  • Providing details without verified information could result in inaccurate or fabricated claims

Recommended for

  • Unable to determine without verified product information
  • Consider checking the official website, user reviews on platforms like G2 or Trustpilot, and independent tech review sites for accurate details

mailcow videos

Install a mail server on Linux in 10 minutes - docker, docker-compose, mailcow

ForthWrite videos

No ForthWrite videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to mailcow and ForthWrite)
Email
96 96%
4% 4
Self-hosted Email
100 100%
0% 0
Email Productivity
0 0%
100% 100
Email Service Provider
100 100%
0% 0

Questions & Answers

As answered by people managing mailcow and ForthWrite.

Which are the primary technologies used for building your product?

ForthWrite's answer:

Next.js, React, Supabase, Anthropic Claude, OpenAI, Stripe, Vercel, Chrome Extensions API

What makes your product unique?

ForthWrite's answer:

ForthWrite learns your writing style from your actual sent mail, not a generic prompt. Every draft sounds like you wrote it because it was trained on how you actually write. It also auto-drafts replies before you open your inbox, so your email is partially handled before your day starts.

Why should a person choose your product over its competitors?

ForthWrite's answer:

Most AI email tools give you a blank box and a "write for me" button. ForthWrite builds a voice profile from your sent history and gets more accurate with every draft you edit or send. Unlike ChatGPT or Gemini, it works natively inside Gmail and Outlook with no copy-paste. Unlike Lavender, it writes the draft, not just scores it.

How would you describe the primary audience of your product?

ForthWrite's answer:

Professionals who send high volumes of relationship-critical email and cannot afford to sound generic: lawyers, financial advisors, recruiters, account executives, consultants, and founders managing their own inbox.

What's the story behind your product?

ForthWrite's answer:

Built out of frustration with AI writing tools that produce text that sounds nothing like the person sending it, and as a way to handle large amounts of daily email. The core insight was that your sent mail is the best training data you already have, and no tool was using it.

User comments

Share your experience with using mailcow and ForthWrite. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare mailcow and ForthWrite

mailcow Reviews

The BEST Email Hosting Providers for Small Business in 2021
Mailcow also provides the necessary communication standards, integration with anti-virus software, anti-spam, firewall, etc. Furthermore, Mailcow stores the data on a hidden server somewhere in Germany and they have a growing base of users. The data center of their servers is operated on 100% green electricity. Installing this easy-to-use email service takes several steps....
20+ Options for hosting our own mail server
mailcow.github.io/mailcow-dockerized-docs The integrated mailcow UI allows administrative work on your mail server instance as well as separated domain administrator and mailbox user access. Mailcow forum. Gitrepo.
Source: dev.to
15 Best Email Hosting for Small Business (2019)
MailCow is open-source docker based email server suite. It is a collection of containers linked in one bridged network. Each container represent a single application, such as Dovecot, Memcached, MySQL, PHP, Postfix, Nginx, etc. MailCow provides a web user interface to manage the mail server and email accounts.

ForthWrite Reviews

  1. curtisboortz
    ยท Founder at ForthWrite ยท
    I built ForthWrite to fix generic AI email, and I still use it every day

    I built ForthWrite because I kept sending emails that sounded like they came from the same generic AI as everyone else. After launching it, I still use it for my own inbox every day, which is about the most honest endorsement I can give.

    The Chrome extension lives inside Gmail and Outlook on the web. Open a thread, hit Alt+Shift+D, and a draft comes back in your voice, not a template. The free tier is real: 10 drafts per week, no API key, no credit card. Voice matching is included on free, because that is the point.

    What keeps it useful compared to Gemini or a chat tab: it learns from what you actually send. Every edit you make before hitting send becomes a signal. Over time the drafts drift closer to how you really write, and the dashboard shows the improvement curve so you can see it happening.

    The web compose surface lets you draft from forthwrite.ai without installing anything, useful for people who want to try before committing to the extension.

    Standard adds recipient-aware and intent-aware drafting plus AI coaching. Pro adds auto-draft (replies waiting when you open Gmail), batch replies, and Prompt Lab for version-controlling your prompts. Teams adds a shared persona and seat-level analytics.

    ForthWrite is not for everyone. If you just need quick replies and tone does not matter, Gemini is free and already in your inbox. ForthWrite is for people where tone does matter: client communication, relationship-driven threads, external correspondence where sounding off costs something real.

    Disclosure: I am the founder and use it daily. Happy to answer questions in the comments.

    ๐Ÿ Competitors: Jace.ai, Fyxer, Mailmeteor
    ๐Ÿ‘ Pros:    Drafts land inside gmail and outlook; no copy-pasting from a chat window|Voice matching is on the free tier, not paywalled behind paid plans|No api key, no credit card to start; free tier runs on a server-side proxy|Learns from every edit you make before sending; drafts improve over time|Full keyboard flow: alt+shift+d to draft in any thread, no mouse required|Byok on paid plans, 9 providers supported, keys encrypted at rest|Web compose at forthwrite.ai works without installing the extension at all
    ๐Ÿ‘Ž Cons:    10 free drafts/week is enough to evaluate, not enough for a heavy inbox|Auto-draft, batch replies, and prompt lab all require the pro tier|Early-stage product; fewer third-party integrations than mature inbox tools|No mobile app: the extension and add-in are desktop-only (chrome on web, or the outlook desktop add-in)

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, mailcow seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 88 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

mailcow mentions (88)

  • How to Self-Host Your Own Email Server (And Stop Depending on Third Parties)
    I went with Mailcow โ€” it's a dockerized mail server suite that bundles Postfix, Dovecot, Rspamd, SOGo, and a web UI. There are other solid options like Mail-in-a-Box or rolling your own with Postfix + Dovecot, but Mailcow hits the sweet spot between control and convenience. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Mox โ€“ modern, secure, all-in-one email server
    > Wow... Having just gone through a 20+ hour byzantine nightmare of setting up postfix & dovecot Did you do this by hand / manually, or use a 'pre-canned' solution like: * https://mailcow.email * https://workaround.org. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: Replacement for Rackspace SMTP Hosting?
    I've been running mailcow for a long time to _receive_ mail. Sending was hit and miss. For a long time I could relay through my ISP, but that got me into delivery problems as well. Now I've been relaying through Mail.baby/Interserver for 18 months or so and it works great. $1/mo base fee + usage. With the <100 mails me and my family send that adds up to $1.01/mo. https://mailcow.email/. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: Replacement for Rackspace SMTP Hosting?
    If you had a server around, considering just setting up https://mailcow.email/ it's super easy and straigforward. Everything is in docker compose. `docker compose up` and you go. If you want a hosted SMTP for your own single domain, and volume is low, consider just using AWS SES. I run betterdev.link with it, send about 20k email per months and pay around $2 If finally you want some nice and easy UI to use for... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • A SpamAssassin Surprise
    You could go with https://mailcow.email, it's pretty easy to setup and keep up to date. - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
View more

ForthWrite mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of ForthWrite yet. Tracking of ForthWrite recommendations started around Jun 2026.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing mailcow and ForthWrite, you can also consider the following products

Mail-in-a-box - Mail-in-a-Box provides webmail and an IMAP/SMTP server for use with mobile devices and desktop mail software and also includes contacts and calendar synchronization.

ReclaimAI - Helps users prioritize their work and personal calendars

Mailu - Mailu is a simple yet full-featured mail server as a set of Docker images.

Superhuman - Superhuman is an email management tool.

Modoboa - Modoboa is a mail hosting and management platform including a modern and simplified Web User Interface.

Shortwave - Email smarter & faster with a reinvented experience for your Gmail