I'm building a fairly simple PHP script that will need to send some emails with attachments. I've found these 2 libraries to do this.
Does either one have significant advantages over the other? Or should I just pick one at random and be done with it?
I was going to say that PHPMailer is no longer developed, and Swift Mailer is. But when I googled ...
https://github.com/PHPMailer/PHPMailer
That suggests its being worked on again.
I've used PHPMailer a lot, and its always been solid and reliable. I had recently started using Swift Mailer, for the above reason, and it too has given me no trouble.
Now that PHPMailer is developed again, I think I'll probably give the new version a try.
So, my answer is that both are capable, and that it doesn't matter that much – choose one, learn it, use it. Both offer massive advantages over mail() and abstract away the nuances of email so that you can get on with whatever you are really trying to develop.
There is also Zend_Mail. If I had to pick one for a new project today, I would seriously consider that.
Having looked at both I think SwiftMailer has a much nicer interface than PHPMailer and as someone has pointed out Zend_Mail is also another good option especially if you're using other Zend components. It makes life much easier if you use everything from the same framework.
I've used PHPMailer on many projects and never had a problem. It's feature complete and it has good docs.
I had never heard of Swiftmailer so I took a peek at the website. It seems a nice solution too.
If your needs are simple as you say, then just pick one at random.
