Ethereal Email vs Mailinator
Ethereal Email
ethereal.email
Mailinator
mailinator.comSide by side
| Figure | Ethereal Email | Mailinator |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $79/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 13 |
| Spec score · Email Testing Software | 7.9 (#13) | 9.0 (#3) |
| Purpose | Ethereal is a free email-catching service for testing outbound email; it stores messages for review and never delivers them. | Mailinator provides temporary inboxes and email and SMS workflow testing for developers, QA teams, and businesses. |
| Support | The FAQ directs users to the help page, Nodemailer documentation, or [email protected] for assistance. | Documentation is available 24/7/365; the support page says public issue emails are usually answered within 24–72 hours and subscribers receive priority support. |
Plans
Mailinator
- Public - FreeFree
- Public - FreeFree
- Verified ProFree
- Verified ProFree
- Business$79 a month
- Business (annual)$79 a month
- Business$99 a month
- Business Plus$159 a month
- Business Plus (annual)$159 a month
- Business Plus$199 a month
In their own words
Ethereal Email
Ethereal Email has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.
Mailinator
Mailinator provides temporary inboxes and tools for testing email and SMS workflows. Developers, QA teams, and businesses can use it to check delivery for OTP, MFA, onboarding, password recovery, and other email processes at scale. Paid subscriptions include private testing domains, where messages can arrive at any address without creating an inbox first. The REST API retrieves inboxes, messages, and SMS, injects messages, and connects with CI/CD pipelines. Inbound webhooks can accept HTTP POST messages from sources such as alert systems, Zapier, or Twilio, then apply configured rules. SMS can be routed to an inbox or API for automated OTP and 2FA testing. The free public inboxes are readable by anyone, and messages typically auto-delete after several hours. Mailinator is receive-only: it cannot send email or fill out forms. The Public - Free plan is free to use without sign-up. Business costs $79 a month billed yearly; a two-week Business trial is listed. Other plans include Verified Pro at free, Business Plus at $159 a month billed yearly, and Enterprise at a price agreed with the maker with custom pricing.