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JOB 04 · MAIL SERVER VPS · AS212345

VPS for a self-hosted mail server

Self-hosting email is the rare job where hardware is not the hard part — reputation is. The Work plan with the Mailcow stack gives the hardware its due, and the policy around port 25 and reverse DNS is where we do our part.

Recommended build

Recommended build

IV Work

€10.40/mo

Work with Mailcow · 12-month term

Image: Mailcow dockerized

Configure this build →

Round trip from Frankfurt

Düsseldorf4 ms
Zurich6 ms
Paris6 ms
Amsterdam7 ms

SPEC · 4 SHEETS

What this workload needs

Four properties that matter for this job, and how the recommended plan covers each one.

01

Mailcow dockerized, preinstalled and preconfigured

The stack image brings up Mailcow with its mailboxes, SOGo webmail, spam filtering and DKIM keys generated on first boot. What is left for you is the part that should be yours: the domain, the users and the policy.

02

Port 25 opens after one short request

Outbound SMTP is closed by default because open relays are how IPs die. Request port 25 in the console, tell us the sending domain, and it opens within the hour — no sales call, no 'business plan' review.

03

Reverse DNS and SPF that line up

The PTR record for your IPv4 is set from the console and propagates in minutes. SPF, DKIM and DMARC records are printed for you at deploy time with the exact values, because a mail server is only as good as its alignment.

04

Reputation starts with the IP, not the spin

Frankfurt's peering and our abuse handling mean the IP block you receive has a clean history and stays clean as long as you do not spam. Warm-up is still real; we just do not sell you a pre-warmed address that someone else can ruin.

DATA SHEET · CONDENSED

The short version

Recommended
Work (6 vCPU, 16 GB, 200 GB NVMe) with Mailcow — €10.40/mo. Enough headroom for mail plus a filter or two.
Port 25
Request it in the console with your sending domain. Standard spam and malware rules from the AUP apply from the first packet.
DNS
PTR via the console, SPF/DKIM/DMARC values printed at deploy. Align them before you send the first campaign.
Deliverability
We maintain our IP ranges and respond to abuse mail within the day — reputation is a shared asset, and we treat yours as one.
Bigger lists
Transactional mail for a real product belongs on a dedicated IP and a warm-up plan; the Forge or Monolith plus extra IPv4s is the upgrade path.

FLEET · FIT CHECK

Plans that fit

The recommended plan is marked. Every plan runs every solution — these are just the sizes we would start with.

PART EVPS-BASE · REV. D

Most chosen

III Base

€5.50/mo

billed €€66.00 once· save 20% vs 6-month

vCPU
4 × EPYC
Memory
8 GB DDR5
Storage
100 GB Gen4 NVMe
Traffic
8 TB
Port
2.5 Gbit/s

Typically used forDocker stack · Nextcloud · Staging server · Game server

Configure

PART EVPS-WORK · REV. D

IV Work

€10.40/mo

billed €€124.80 once· save 19% vs 6-month

vCPU
6 × EPYC
Memory
16 GB DDR5
Storage
200 GB Gen4 NVMe
Traffic
12 TB
Port
2.5 Gbit/s

Typically used forProduction web app · Postgres primary · CI runner · Scraping

Configure

PART EVPS-FORGE · REV. D

V Forge

€18.90/mo

billed €€226.80 once· save 21% vs 6-month

vCPU
8 × EPYC
Memory
32 GB DDR5
Storage
400 GB Gen4 NVMe
Traffic
20 TB
Port
10 Gbit/s

Typically used forHeavy build machines · Data pipelines · Multiple tenants · Media processing

Configure
Recommended: Work in FrankfurtSee all seven plans →

Q&A · REV. C

Questions people ask

Four answers per solution, and each one is the same answer support would give you.

Why do I need to request port 25 — why not leave it open?
Open outbound SMTP on every server is how IP ranges become spam sources, and a spam-source IP range is worthless for everyone on it. The request takes one message and is approved in under an hour when the sending domain checks out. It is a bouncer, not a gate.
Will my mail actually land in inboxes from a small host's IP?
Usually, yes, if the basics are right: aligned SPF, DKIM and DMARC, a PTR matching your hostname, and a sending pattern that looks human. We keep our ranges' reputation clean and answer abuse mail promptly. What we cannot do is make a cold IP land warm — that is the two-week warm-up you own.
Mailcow or a plain Postfix setup?
Mailcow if you want mailboxes, webmail and spam filtering in one maintained package — most people do. Plain Postfix if you are sending application mail only and want the smallest possible surface. Both are supported; the stack image is just the fast path.
Which site should I host mail in?
Frankfurt is the default: clean ranges, deep peering and German data law, which several of our customers' contracts require. Zurich if Swiss jurisdiction is the selling point, and any site if your recipients are regional — just remember delivery reputation is global and cold starts are real.

ADJACENT JOB CARDS

Related jobs

Adjacent workloads, if this one is not quite the shape of your problem.

Nextcloud VPS

Nextcloud 30 AIO, your own disk, from €10.40/mo on the Work plan.

Read the solution →from €10.40/mo

Docker VPS

Docker Engine preinstalled on Debian 13, compose included, root over everything.

Read the solution →from €5.50/mo

Cheap VPS hosting

The Nano at €1.90/mo covers most small jobs — for real, not as a teaser.

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