Mailinator
Mailinator provides temporary inboxes and email and SMS workflow testing for developers, QA teams, and businesses.
What Mailinator is
Mailinator provides temporary inboxes and email and SMS workflow testing for developers, QA teams, and businesses. Teams can use it to check delivery for OTP, MFA, onboarding, password recovery, and other email workflows at scale. Subscriptions include private testing domains, where messages can be received at any address without setting up an inbox first. Its REST API retrieves inboxes, messages, and SMS; it can also inject messages and connect with CI/CD pipelines. Inbound webhooks accept HTTP POST messages from sources such as alert systems, Zapier, or Twilio, with configurable rules. SMS can be routed to an inbox or API for automated OTP and 2FA checks. Public inboxes are readable by anyone, and their messages typically auto-delete after several hours; Mailinator is receive-only and cannot send email or fill out forms. A two-week Business trial is listed. Paid plans include private domains, storage, and usage limits that vary by tier.
Good
- Tests OTP, MFA, and recovery email workflows
- Private domains receive messages without inbox setup
- REST API supports inbox and SMS retrieval
- Inbound webhooks accept HTTP POST messages
- Free public inbox plan
Watch out
- Public inbox messages are readable by anyone
- Receive-only; cannot send email or fill out forms
- Public messages typically auto-delete after several hours
- Business plan is $79/mo (annual)
Who it suits
It suits developers, QA teams, and businesses testing email or SMS workflows, especially where API or CI/CD integration is useful. Public inboxes are for messages that do not require privacy.
Verdict
Mailinator is built around receiving and testing email and SMS rather than sending messages. Its public inboxes are free, but private testing domains and higher usage allowances are covered by subscription plans.
Plans and prices
From Mailinator's own pricing page, checked 14 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Public - Free | Free | unlimited public inboxes · temporary storage · no sign-up · no attachments in public inboxes · per month |
| Verified Pro | Free | unlimited private inboxes · 1 private domain · 10MB permanent storage · up to 10 emails/sec · 1K emails/month · 1 user · with verification |
| Business (annual) | $79 a month | unlimited private inboxes · 1 private domain · 50MB storage · up to 20 emails/sec · 100K emails/month · 5 team seats · SSO · billed yearly |
| Business | $99 a month | unlimited private inboxes · 1 private domain · 50MB storage · up to 20 emails/sec · 100K emails/month · 5 team seats · SSO · monthly |
| Business Plus (annual) | $159 a month | unlimited private inboxes · 3 private domains · 100MB storage · up to 100 emails/sec · 300K emails/month · 10 team seats · SSO · billed yearly |
| Business Plus | $199 a month | unlimited private inboxes · 3 private domains · 100MB storage · up to 100 emails/sec · 300K emails/month · 10 team seats · SSO · monthly |
| Enterprise | $699 a month | unlimited private inboxes · 5+ private domains · custom storage · up to 500 emails/sec · 3MM+ emails/month · custom seats and limits · SSO · and up; custom pricing |
| Enterprise (annual) | $699 a month | unlimited private inboxes · 5+ private domains · custom storage · up to 500 emails/sec · 3MM+ emails/month · custom seats and limits · SSO · and up; custom pricing |
The facts
Each one read from Mailinator's own pages, with the date it was checked.
Where it runs
- Android app listing
- Google Play lists a third-party app named Mailinator: Verification Email with temporary inboxes, OTP receipt and auto-refresh; the listing shows 100+ downloads and no star rating.checked 14 Oct 2026
What it does
- API authentication
- API requests authenticate with a team token supplied in an Authorization header or token query parameter.checked 14 Oct 2026
- API capabilities
- The REST API lists, retrieves, parses and deletes messages, reads attachments and SMTP logs, handles domains and rules, and supports webhook injection.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Automation
- The REST API supports inbox and message retrieval, SMS retrieval, message injection, and integration with CI/CD pipelines.checked 5 Oct 2026
- CLI and MCP
- Mailinator publishes a Node.js CLI and MCP server supporting inbox listing, message retrieval and AI-assistant access.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Disposable inboxes
- The service lets users create temporary addresses under the public mailinator.com domain without registration.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Documentation
- The January 21, 2026 documentation overhaul added reorganized navigation, API references, Postman material and product guides.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Email receipt testing
- Mailinator supports checking whether transactional and bulk email messages were delivered to test inboxes.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Email testing
- Teams can test email delivery, OTP, MFA, onboarding, password recovery, and other email workflows at scale.checked 5 Oct 2026
- Framework integrations
- Mailinator advertises use with Selenium, Cypress, Playwright and Puppeteer test frameworks.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Hosting certifications
- The security page lists Linode SOC 1 Type 2, SOC 2 Type 2, HIPAA Type 1, HITECH, and PCI DSS certifications, and DigitalOcean SOC 2 Type 2, SOC 3 Type 2, and PCI DSS.checked 5 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- Inbound webhooks can accept HTTP POST messages from sources such as alert systems, Zapier, or Twilio and apply configured rules.checked 5 Oct 2026
- Licence
- The official Python SDK repository is released under the MIT license; Mailinator itself is delivered as a hosted service.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Limit: blocked addresses
- A G2 reviewer reports that some websites blacklist Mailinator addresses and would like private temporary inboxes on the free tier.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Limit: privacy and retention
- Capterra reviewers complain that public inboxes are not private and that messages may appear slowly or remain available only briefly.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Load testing
- Email load testing is offered, with the home page stating that an Enterprise subscription is required.checked 14 Oct 2026
The company
- Company
- The pricing page says Mailinator is wholly owned and operated in the U.S.A., and the site footer identifies Manybrain, Inc.checked 5 Oct 2026
- Company founding
- ManyBrain states that Mailinator was founded in 2003 as a way to avoid spam from web forms.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Company funding
- Crunchbase identifies Manybrain, LLC as the legal entity and lists Mailinator as a private Ann Arbor company with 1–10 employees; no funding amount is shown on the accessible profile.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Company headquarters
- ManyBrain lists its headquarters at 2232 S Main St, Suite 356, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Company size
- LinkedIn lists Manybrain LLC as privately held with 2–10 employees.checked 14 Oct 2026
- Founded
- 2003checked 23 Sep 2026
- Headquarters
- Ann Arbor, Michigan, USAchecked 23 Sep 2026
- Maker legal name
- Mailinator is operated by Manybrain, LLC.checked 14 Oct 2026
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