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Comparison · Mkt Auto
Mautic vs Keila
A side-by-side editorial comparison of Mautic and Keila — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.
Mautic vs Keila: at a glance
What is Mautic?
Mautic is heads-down on security backports and code-health refactoring across four branches.
Mautic is the open-source marketing-automation platform, actively maintaining four parallel branches (5.2, 6.0, 7.0, 7.1). Recent activity is dominated by coordinated security backports and bug-fix dot releases, with the 7.1 line as the active development track. A May 28 coordinated security release patched SQL injection and SSRF CVEs across every supported branch at once.
What is Keila?
Self-hosted newsletter tool laying groundwork to expand into transactional email
Keila is shipping steadily again after a roughly 10-month gap, with five releases since January 2026. The headline move is v0.20.0's new email scheduler and a migration from a recipients schema to a generic messages schema, explicitly framed as the foundation for transactional emails. Around it sit incremental gains: welcome emails, interaction-based segmentation, newsletter archives, a faster block/markdown editor, more translations, and performance indices.
Mautic vs Keila: editorial side-by-side
Mautic
5.0MKT AUTO
Mautic is heads-down on security backports and code-health refactoring across four branches.
◆ Current state
Mautic is the open-source marketing-automation platform, actively maintaining four parallel branches (5.2, 6.0, 7.0, 7.1). Recent activity is dominated by coordinated security backports and bug-fix dot releases, with the 7.1 line as the active development track. A May 28 coordinated security release patched SQL injection and SSRF CVEs across every supported branch at once.
◆ Where it's heading
The project is in a maintenance-and-hardening phase: heavy refactoring with Rector, PHPStan, and PHP 8.1 cleanup is modernizing the codebase while security and bug fixes flow steadily across branches. Community contributions drive most changes, and the multi-branch backport discipline signals a mature support posture rather than rapid feature expansion. Visible new capability is thin; the energy is in code health and security.
◆ Prediction
Expect continued dot-release maintenance across all four branches, with the 7.1 line accruing incremental fixes and the next notable step likely a 7.2 feature release once the refactoring groundwork settles.
Keila
6.3MKT AUTO
Self-hosted newsletter tool laying groundwork to expand into transactional email
◆ Current state
Keila is shipping steadily again after a roughly 10-month gap, with five releases since January 2026. The headline move is v0.20.0's new email scheduler and a migration from a recipients schema to a generic messages schema, explicitly framed as the foundation for transactional emails. Around it sit incremental gains: welcome emails, interaction-based segmentation, newsletter archives, a faster block/markdown editor, more translations, and performance indices.
◆ Where it's heading
The product is broadening from a pure newsletter tool toward a fuller email platform. The schema migration decouples sent-message records from campaigns and contacts, which the changelog says unlocks transactional email — a new capability surface, not just a newsletter improvement. Alongside, a wave of localization and editor/performance work suggests a push for both reach and polish.
◆ Prediction
Expect transactional email to land as a first-class feature on top of the new messages schema, plus continued automation primitives (welcome emails hint at more lifecycle messaging) and localization. The renewed release cadence looks likely to hold.
Alternatives to Mautic and Keila
Other Mkt Auto products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Mautic or Keila.
AWeber
AWeber is betting on prompt-to-form AI, with its AI Signup Form Builder as the centerpiece.
PandaDoc
PandaDoc's feed is SEO and glossary content, with no shipped product changes to read.
Ghost
Ghost leans into creator monetization and open-source positioning while polishing community UX.
Stensul
Stensul launched a governance agent for accessibility QA and named a new CEO — doubling down on the Governed Creation pitch.
WPForms
WPForms is publishing daily SEO content built around its built-in AI builder and quiz engine.
See all Mautic alternatives → · See all Keila alternatives →
Recent activity from Mautic and Keila
Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.
- 4h agoMauticMautic 7.1.2 security release: SQLi and SSRF fixes
- 4h agoMauticMautic 6.0.9 security release: SQLi and SSRF backport
- 4h agoMauticMautic 5.2.11 security release: SQLi and SSRF backport
- 3d agoKeila0.20.1: pre-filled forms, pt-BR, query-perf indices
- 20d agoKeila0.20.0: new email scheduler and messages-schema migration ⚡
- 24d agoMauticMautic 7.1.1: segment, asset, and trusted-host fixes
- 1mo agoMauticMautic 7.1.0 GA: campaign refactor and stricter validation
- 1mo agoKeila0.19.1: SMTP-without-auth, image resizing, faster Markdown
- 1mo agoMauticMautic 7.0.2: webhook, email, and Salesforce bug fixes
- 3mo agoKeila0.19.0: welcome emails, Phoenix 1.7/LiveView upgrade
- 4mo agoKeila0.18.0: archives, interaction-based segmentation
- 1y agoKeila0.17.1: launch-error hotfix for 0.17.0
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Mautic and Keila?
They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Keila is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 5.0), with 1 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.
Is Mautic better than Keila?
Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Keila is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 5.0), with 1 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Mkt Auto products to evaluate alongside.
What are the best alternatives to Mautic?
Top Mautic alternatives in Mkt Auto are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Mautic alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/mautic for the full list with editorial commentary on each.
What are the best alternatives to Keila?
Top Keila alternatives in Mkt Auto are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Keila alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/keila for the full list with editorial commentary on each.