What is Mailtrain?
Mailtrain is a platform that presents itself as an alternative to Mailchimp, but it gives you the option to install it on your own web server, so you won't depend on third-party environments to send your own newsletters.
The service was created to support large databases (it supports thousands of subscribers) and thanks to its import system through CSV files you can migrate your Mailchimp database to Mailtrain.
Although Mailtrain isn't yet as powerful as Mailchimp, from the utility you'll be able to create templates, get sending statistics, manage lists, take care of domain reputation by avoiding spam (sending technology), import contacts, among other functions.
The platform's code is hosted on GitHub, and this way you can send newsletters through third-party providers like Amazon SES, SparkPost, SendGrid, Mailgun, or any provider that works with SMTP.
How to install Mailtrain
To install it, you'll have to download the .zip file from the GitHub page, then run npm install to install the requirements the platform needs, then copy config/default.toml to config/production.toml and enter the database, the username, and its password.
Then, if you need to import database tables from another environment (Mailchimp), you'll have to do it from the mailtrain.sql file (Setup- mailtrain.sql). And then you can start the server (NODE_ENV=production npm start).
- http://localhost:3000/
- http://localhost:3000/settings
- http://localhost:3000/users/account
Really, Mailtrain is a very good option for having a newsletter sending system installed on your web server or local server, although it's not yet up to Mailchimp's level, it has more than interesting options.
Mailtrain is an open-source platform that is available to install on both a web server and a local server.
