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Cybersecurity · head to head

Chainguard vs Mautic

Chainguard logo

Chainguard

Cybersecurity

Secure-by-default open source software with hardened container images and libraries

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Mautic logo

Mautic

Marketing

The main open source marketing automation platform, self-hosted and GPL licensed

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Chainguard containers Catalog at 19,000 USD/year expensive for teams under 10 people; Mautic mautic depends on reliably scheduled cron jobs to process segments and send campaigns, and a misconfigured or silently failing schedule stops sends without an obvious error, which is the most common way Mautic deployments fail in production.
  • They diverge on capability: Chainguard covers Hardened container images, Mautic covers Visual campaign builder.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chainguard and Mautic actually diverge.

Attributes where Chainguard and Mautic differ
AttributeChainguardMautic
Pricing modelLicensing by artifact type and team sizeOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsCloud, Container, VMWeb, Linux, Self-hosted, Docker
CategoryCybersecurityMarketing

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Chainguard

  • Hardened container images
  • CVE remediation SLA
  • SLSA L2/L3 builds
  • Sigstore signatures
  • SBOM generation
  • Language libraries
  • VM images
  • Artifact scanning

Only in Mautic

  • Visual campaign builder
  • Contact management and segmentation
  • Landing pages and forms
  • Lead scoring
  • Dynamic web content
  • Email builder and A/B testing
  • Self-hosted data control
  • No feature gating

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Chainguard

  • Deploying hardened container images with minimal attack surfacenot Mautic
  • Meeting supply chain security requirements for regulated industriesnot Mautic
  • Reducing CVE exposure with contractual remediation guaranteesnot Mautic
  • Building secure language packages with automatic backportsnot Mautic
  • Verifying artifact provenance with Sigstore signaturesnot Mautic

Mautic

  • A marketing agency running automation for many clients that cannot pass on per-contact SaaS pricing at scalenot Chainguard
  • A European university or public body whose data protection position requires contact data to stay on infrastructure it controlsnot Chainguard
  • A company with a list of several hundred thousand contacts where SaaS per-contact pricing has become the largest line in the marketing budgetnot Chainguard
  • A team that needs to modify the automation logic itself, not just configure it, and wants source access to do sonot Chainguard

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Chainguard

  • Containers Catalog at 19,000 USD/year expensive for teams under 10 people
  • Per-image pricing for containers requires custom quotes with no transparency
  • Free tier limited to 5 container images for testing
  • Libraries pricing by ecosystem and developer count lacks transparent per-developer cost
  • VM image catalog pricing opacity makes cost estimation difficult

Mautic

  • Mautic depends on reliably scheduled cron jobs to process segments and send campaigns, and a misconfigured or silently failing schedule stops sends without an obvious error, which is the most common way Mautic deployments fail in production.
  • Email sending is not included: you must arrange, pay for and warm up your own sending infrastructure through Amazon SES, SendGrid or similar, and deliverability problems become entirely your problem with no vendor to escalate to.
  • Acquia owns the commercial descendant, Campaign Studio, and is the largest contributor, so the loudest commercial interest in the ecosystem benefits from a hosted product rather than from the self-hosted one being easy.
  • Upgrades between major versions have historically been disruptive, requiring database migrations and plugin compatibility checks, so a neglected instance can become expensive to bring current.
  • The interface and the reporting are noticeably behind commercial platforms, so marketing teams that came from HubSpot or ActiveCampaign will find everyday tasks slower and will need training.

Pricing, plan by plan

Chainguard

Free
  • Free TierFree
    • Five container images to test and deploy
  • Containers Per-Image$undefined/custom
    • Licensed by quantity and type
    • Base images, application images, AI/ML images, FIPS variants
    • Custom pricing per image
  • Containers Catalog$19000/year
    • For 10-person engineering teams
    • 2,000+ container images
    • Contractual CVE remediation SLAs
  • Libraries Licensing$undefined/custom
    • Licensed by ecosystem (Python, Java, JavaScript)
    • Licensed by developer count
    • Unlimited pulls with no metering

Mautic

Free
  • Self-hosted communityFree
    • GPL licensed, no licence fee and no contact limits
    • All features included, no paid edition
    • You provide hosting, database, cron scheduling and email sending
  • Managed Mautic hosting$undefined/month
    • Third-party managed hosting listed by the project
    • Updates, backups and cron scheduling handled for you
    • Pricing varies by provider and is not set by the project

Which should you pick?

Choose Chainguard if

  • You need hardened container images.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Cloud, Container, VM.
  • You also want cve remediation sla.
Chainguard review

Choose Mautic if

  • You need visual campaign builder.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Self-hosted, Docker.
  • You also want contact management and segmentation.
Mautic review

Questions people ask

Is Chainguard or Mautic better?
Neither clearly leads. Chainguard starts at Free and Mautic at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chainguard or Mautic?
Chainguard starts at Free and Mautic at Free.
Does Chainguard or Mautic run on more platforms?
Chainguard runs on Cloud, Container, VM. Mautic runs on Web, Linux, Self-hosted, Docker.
Can I use Chainguard for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Chainguard best used for?
Chainguard is most often used for deploying hardened container images with minimal attack surface, meeting supply chain security requirements for regulated industries, reducing cve exposure with contractual remediation guarantees, building secure language packages with automatic backports. Of those, deploying hardened container images with minimal attack surface and meeting supply chain security requirements for regulated industries are not what Mautic is typically brought in for.
What can Chainguard do that Mautic cannot?
Chainguard covers Hardened container images, CVE remediation SLA, SLSA L2/L3 builds, Sigstore signatures. Mautic covers Visual campaign builder, Contact management and segmentation, Landing pages and forms, Lead scoring.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Chainguard: How much is the Chainguard Containers Catalog?

The Containers Catalog is 19,000 USD per year for 10-person engineering teams, providing access to 2,000+ hardened container images.

Source
Mautic: Is Mautic free?

Yes, GPL licensed with no licence fee and no contact limits. You pay for hosting, email sending and the staff time to maintain it.

Chainguard: What SLAs does Chainguard offer?

Chainguard provides contractual CVE remediation SLAs: 7 days for critical vulnerabilities, 14 days for high/medium/low severity, all with priority support.

Source
Mautic: Does Acquia own Mautic?

Acquia acquired the founding commercial entity in 2019 and sells Campaign Studio built on it, but the Mautic trademark sits with the Open Source Collective and the project is community governed.

Chainguard: Can I try Chainguard before purchasing?

Yes. The free tier includes five container images for testing and deployment, allowing hands-on evaluation.

Source
Mautic: What breaks most often?

Cron scheduling. If segment rebuilding and campaign triggers are not running on schedule, campaigns quietly stop sending with no alert.

Mautic: Can it handle large contact lists?

Yes, but performance at several hundred thousand contacts depends on database tuning and queue configuration, which is work you must do yourself.

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