What are the best command-line email clients for Linux?

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Recs.

Feb 1, 2024

Last
Updated

Mutt vs Alpine vs aerc

vs Notmuch vs NeoMutt vs lumail vs sup vs Himalaya vs cone

Specs

License

GPLv2+

Platforms

Windows, macOS, Linux

Technology

Search

Yes

Based On

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OS Family

Release Schedule

Minimum Available Storage

License

Platforms

Technology

Search

Based On

None

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OpenRC

OS Family

Linux

Release Schedule

Rolling

Minimum Available Storage

130MiB

License

MIT

Platforms

Technology

Search

Based On

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OS Family

Release Schedule

Minimum Available Storage

License

GPL-3.0

Platforms

Technology

Search

Based On

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OS Family

Release Schedule

Minimum Available Storage

License

GPL-2.0

Platforms

Technology

Search

Based On

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OS Family

Release Schedule

Minimum Available Storage

License

Platforms

Technology

Search

Based On

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OS Family

Release Schedule

Minimum Available Storage

License

Platforms

Technology

Search

Based On

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OS Family

Release Schedule

Minimum Available Storage

License

Platforms

Technology

Search

Based On

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OS Family

Release Schedule

Minimum Available Storage

License

Platforms

Technology

Search

Based On

Default Desktop Environment

Init-System

OS Family

Release Schedule

Minimum Available Storage

Pros + Cons

Pro
Highly configurable

Everything is configurable, you can have display filters, hooks, and a lot of stuff before the email is even displayed on your terminal.

Comment

Con
Configuring it takes a lot of time

It takes a lot of time until you get satisfied with everything that you need because you need to try a lot of things. From simple stuff like an address book to more advanced requirements like accepting a calendar invitation. The good part is everything is possible but you need to pay the price with your time

Comment

Pro
Active development

Even though it was first released in 1995, Mutt still enjoys an active community following it and having new releases constantly.

Comment

Pro
Highly configurable macros

[add description]

Comment

Con
Steep learning curve

Learning how to navigate and configure Mutt can be time consuming. It is not a drop and drop replacement for web or GUI email clients.

Comment

Pro
Supports PGP encryption

GnuPG allows to sign and encrypt messages.

Comment

Pro
It's very familiar

If you are a VI user, you will be right at home with the 'jk' navigation from one message to the next.

Comment

Con
No new features being released lately

Even though Mutt is still being actively developed, most releases lately have focused more on bug fixes and security updates rather than new features.

Comment

Con
Can't show HTML format

Everyone's saying mutt -- RECIPIENT@gmail.com -e 'set content_type="text/html"' -s "TITLE" < out.html could do the job, yet you may find that it's a lie.

Comment

Pro
Extremely user-friendly

[add description]

Comment

Pro
Can use the built-in text editor or can be integrated with another text editor

Alpine comes with pico, a lightweight text editor which can also be used as a standalone tool. It can also be integrated with vi, vim, emacs, etc... if the user prefers to do so.

Comment

Pro
On-screen contextual help

Alpine has contextual help that can be displayed on-screen. Removing the need to consult the man pages every time you forget a command or how to do something inside it.

Comment

Con
Updates are not frequent

Alpine is not updated frequently. This means that new features, bug fixes or security updates come much later than in other email clients.

Comment

Pro
Lets you pick the tools you prefer to compose, send and receive email

Notmuch is a highly modular email client. It only focuses on browsing and managing email, leaving to the user the freedom to choose the tools with which to do all the other tasks.

Comment

Pro
Extendable

Sup's features can be extended through extensions developed by the community.

Comment

Pro
Supports a large number of emails

Sup describes itself as "a console-based email client for people with a lot of email" and rightly so. The hierarchical interface that sup provides and support for tags allows users to easily manage and navigate a large number of emails.

Comment