PHP email marketing script you actually own — full Laravel source, one-time licence

A PHP email marketing script is a self-hosted application — written in PHP, backed by MySQL/MariaDB — that you install on your own server to manage lists, build campaigns, send through an SMTP/SES provider, and track opens and clicks. You own the install and your data, and you pay only for hosting + sending (typically Amazon SES at ~$0.10 per 1,000) instead of a per-subscriber SaaS fee. Examples include AcelleMail, nuevoMailer, phpList, Sendy, and MailWizz.

AcelleMail is a full PHP application built on the Laravel framework — not a single drop-in .php file. You get a complete, unencrypted Laravel codebase (controllers, models, queue workers, a plugin SDK) that installs via a 5-minute web installer. That means it is far more capable than a basic script (visual builder, branching automation, multi-tenant SaaS layer) while still being something you self-host and own outright.

For a full-featured app you own, AcelleMail ships the most in one $80 one-time licence — drag-and-drop builder, visual branching automation, 8 sending drivers, A/B testing, a plugin SDK, and a multi-tenant SaaS layer — with the complete Laravel source. nuevoMailer and MailWizz are other capable PHP options; Sendy is the leanest/cheapest ($69); phpList is free and open source but more basic. The comparison table on this page lays out the trade-offs.

All three are self-hosted PHP/MySQL. phpList is free and open source (AGPLv3) but basic — no drag-and-drop builder or visual automation, and the copyleft licence restricts offering a modified version as a service. nuevoMailer is a one-time commercial licence (around $139) with autoresponders and drip workflows across many SMTP providers. AcelleMail ($80 one-time) undercuts nuevoMailer on price, runs on a modern Laravel stack, adds a visual builder + branching automation + a plugin SDK, ships full editable source with no copyleft, and includes a live demo.

Yes. AcelleMail ships the full, unencrypted PHP/Laravel source under a CodeCanyon Regular/Extended licence — you can read and modify it, and private modifications carry no copyleft obligation. It also exposes a four-pattern Hook plugin SDK (REGISTRY, EVENT, FILTER, BEHAVIOR) so you can add sending drivers, payment gateways, or UI panels without forking core. phpList is open source on GitHub (AGPLv3); some commercial PHP scripts ship encrypted or obfuscated code — confirm each vendor's terms.

AcelleMail needs PHP 8.1+, MySQL ≥ 5.7 or MariaDB ≥ 10.3, ~512 MB RAM minimum (1 GB recommended for larger lists), and a system cron entry for campaign workers. An optional Redis cache + queue workers support higher volume and the automation engine. It runs under PHP-FPM behind nginx or Apache — standard PHP hosting, a small VPS, or Docker all work.

Both. AcelleMail ships 8 built-in drivers — Amazon SES, SendGrid, SparkPost, Mailgun, Elastic Email, Blastengine, Gmail relay, and generic SMTP — plus a plugin SDK for more. Most self-hosters pair it with Amazon SES (~$0.10 per 1,000 emails) for the cheapest reliable delivery; it generates the SPF/DKIM records and signs DKIM at the app layer. See the dedicated Amazon SES page.

No — AcelleMail is a commercial one-time licence ($80 Regular / $199 Extended), not free or OSI-open-source. It is "source-available": the full PHP source ships to you and you can modify it privately, without the copyleft strings that AGPL projects like phpList or listmonk attach to service deployments. If you specifically need a $0 OSI-licensed option, phpList (PHP) or listmonk (Go) are free; if you want a fuller app you own with no copyleft, that is the AcelleMail trade.

Yes — the AcelleMail Extended Licence ($199) adds a multi-tenant SaaS layer: customer accounts, subscription plans, 6 payment gateways (Stripe, PayPal, Braintree, Razorpay, Paystack, Offline), prorated upgrades, dunning, and white-label branding, all on one install. Because the licence is commercial (no copyleft), you can run it as your own product — something AGPL scripts like phpList cannot offer without source-availability obligations. See For Developers.