# Mautic

Self-hosted marketing automation: contacts, segments, campaigns, and email, with an official REST API.

Mautic is the largest open-source marketing automation platform: contact database, segments, drip campaigns, email builder, forms, landing pages, and reports, all self-hosted on PHP and MySQL. Configuration lives in config/local.php written by the installer. The Builder documents a REST API at devdocs.mautic.org that an agent uses to manage contacts, segments, emails, and campaigns.

Alternative to: HubSpot, Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign

- Capabilities: adaptable, operable
- Vertical: content-publishing
- Shape: business-app
- Form factor: web-app
- Execution model: deterministic
- Provenance: human-written (recorded, never ranked)
- Repo: https://github.com/mautic/mautic (GPL-3.0), 10434 stars, last commit 2026-09-03
- Last activity: 2026-09-03
- Page: apps/mautic--mautic.html
- JSON: apps/mautic--mautic.json

## Use it when

- I want HubSpot-style drips and segments on my own server, with contacts I own
- I need my agent to add leads, tag them into segments, and trigger campaigns over an API

## Gotchas

- GPL-3.0 (GitHub shows NOASSERTION; composer.json says GPL-3.0)
- The REST API is disabled by default and must be switched on in Configuration > API Settings
- Segments, campaigns, and email sends depend on cron jobs; without them nothing moves
- README warns against running from the GitHub source in production; use the mautic.org package or Composer
- Requires PHP and MySQL versions matching the release's supported versions page

## Editions

- Self-hosted: Free, open source
  - source: https://github.com/mautic/mautic
  - binary: https://www.mautic.org/download
  - installable: composer create-project mautic/recommended-project
- Hosted trial and partners: Free, closed source
  - hosted: https://mautic.org/start-using-mautic/try-mautic/

## Adaptable: make it yours

Effort: config-only (6 things to edit)

The installer writes config/local.php with database, mailer, site URL, and API settings; .env only carries APP_ENV and APP_DEBUG. Enable the API under Settings > Configuration > API Settings before an agent can log in. Themes for emails and pages live in themes/ and plugins in plugins/; no code edits are needed to run it as your own automation stack.

- Env vars: APP_ENV, APP_DEBUG
- Config files: config/local.php, .env, themes/, plugins/
- Prompt files: none
- Accounts you'll need: email delivery provider (SMTP, Amazon SES, Sendgrid, Mailgun, or similar)

## Operable: what an agent can drive

Operability: official. Interface: api at https://devdocs.mautic.org/ (published by the builder, local).

### Reach (partial coverage)

- Manage contacts and companies: reachable. REST API contacts and companies endpoints (devdocs.mautic.org; triage-confirmed)
- Build segments: reachable. REST API segments endpoint with add/remove contact
- Create and send emails: reachable. REST API emails endpoint with send-to-contact and send-to-segment
- Run drip campaigns: reachable. REST API campaigns endpoint; campaign events are also creatable, with a steeper payload
- Collect leads with forms: reachable. REST API forms endpoint and submissions
- Publish landing pages: reachable. REST API pages endpoint
- Host tracked assets: reachable. REST API assets endpoint
- Score with points and stages: reachable. REST API points, point triggers, and stages endpoints
- Pull reports: reachable. REST API reports endpoint
- Design email and page themes: undetermined. themes are zip uploads; API theme endpoint existence not verified during analysis

## Code stack

- Languages: PHP, JavaScript
- Frameworks: Symfony, Doctrine
- Package manager: composer
- Database: MySQL, MariaDB
- Hosting target: LAMP host, Docker (mautic/docker-mautic), DDEV (dev)

## Evidence and confidence

- formFactor: README: PHP web application installed with Composer or zip with a web installer (confidence 0.95)
- executionModel: no model at runtime (confidence 0.95)
- operability: devdocs.mautic.org (Builder domain) documents the REST API; endpoint page URL returned 404 during analysis so resource list is from triage plus prior knowledge (confidence 0.85)
- effort: repo has config/ (installer target for local.php), .env with APP_ENV and APP_DEBUG, themes/ and plugins/ (confidence 0.8)
- editions: README: self-host completely free; trials through the mautic.org form (confidence 0.8)
- active: pushedAt 2026-09-03; 179 open issues
- provenance: project since 2014 with foundation governance; no vibe-coded claim (confidence 0.9)
- reach:  (confidence 0.65)

## Open questions

- Find the current REST API reference URL under devdocs.mautic.org and verify the endpoint list; the guessed rest_api path 404'd
- Does the API expose theme upload?
- Who offers paid hosted Mautic and at what price (Acquia or partners)?

## Sources

- https://github.com/mautic/mautic (sourcing:content-publishing:curated)
- https://devdocs.mautic.org/ (analysis:content-publishing)
- https://www.mautic.org/download (analysis:content-publishing)