Terminal email clients for BSD
18 clients and 7 mail tools that run on BSD, with the install command for each.
FreeBSD packages most clients (pkg install), and OpenBSD (pkg_add) and NetBSD (pkgsrc) package many of the same ones. A client listed as "build from source" compiles on BSD but has no package yet.
forwardemail on BSD
FeaturedForward Email's webmail in the terminal: mail, calendar, contacts and settings, with mouse support and a key hint bar.
Through npm, which runs anywhere Node.js 22 or later does.
npm
npm install -g forwardemailClients
| Systems | Name | Install on BSD |
|---|---|---|
| Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD, on Android through Termux. | Forward EmailFeaturedTUISource-availableForward Email's webmail in the terminal: mail, calendar, contacts and settings, with mouse support and a key hint bar. | npm install -g forwardemail |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | aercTUITerminal email client written in Go with IMAP, JMAP, Maildir and notmuch backends and an embedded terminal for editing. | pkg install aerc |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android. | alotTUITerminal mail reader written in Python that works on a local notmuch database, with tag-based search and threads. | pkg install mail/py-alot |
| Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD, on Android through Termux. | AlpineTUIMenu-driven terminal email client descended from Pine, with built-in help, setup screens and native Windows builds. | pkg install alpine |
| Runs on BSD, on Windows through WSL, builds from source on Linux. Not available for macOS or Android. | ConeTUIFull-screen console mail client and newsreader from the Courier mail server project. | pkg install cone |
| Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD, on Android through Termux. | GnusEmacsMail and news reader built into GNU Emacs, with back ends for IMAP, POP3, local mail folders and NNTP. | pkg install emacs |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and Windows, builds from source on BSD. Not available for Android. | HimalayaCLICommand-line email client written in Rust that lists, reads, sends and moves mail through shell commands with JSON output. | cargo install --locked --git https://github.com/pimalaya/himalaya.git |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and Windows, builds from source on BSD. Not available for Android. | MatchaTUITerminal email client written in Go with the Bubble Tea TUI library, with IMAP, JMAP and POP3 support. | git clone https://github.com/floatpane/matcha && cd matcha && go build . |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android. | mblazeCLISet of small Unix utilities for reading, searching, threading and composing mail stored in Maildir folders. | pkg install mblaze |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD. Not available for Windows or Android. | meliTUITerminal email client written in Rust with IMAP, JMAP, notmuch, Maildir, mbox and NNTP backends and TOML configuration. | pkg_add meli |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | mu4eEmacsEmail client that runs inside GNU Emacs, built on the mu Maildir indexer and search tool. | pkg install mu isync |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | MuttTUILong-running text-mode email client with IMAP, POP3 and SMTP support, configured through a muttrc file. | pkg install mutt |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | NeoMuttTUIFull-screen terminal mail reader forked from Mutt, with notmuch, NNTP, Lua scripting and a sidebar built in. | pkg install neomutt |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | nmhCLIThe MH message handling system: separate shell commands to read, file, search and send mail stored one file per message. | pkg install nmh |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | Notmuch Emacs interfaceEmacsEmacs front end for notmuch that reads, searches, tags and composes mail from a local Maildir. | pkg install notmuch-emacs isync msmtp |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android. | S-nailCLICommand-line mail program that implements POSIX mailx, with MIME, IMAP, POP3, SMTP, Maildir and S/MIME support. | pkg install s-nail |
| Runs on Linux and macOS, on Windows through WSL, builds from source on BSD. Not available for Android. | SupTUICurses email client in Ruby built around threads, labels and fast full-text search over local mail. | gem install sup |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | WanderlustEmacsMail and news reader for Emacs, written in Emacs Lisp, with built-in IMAP, POP3, NNTP and SMTP support. | pkg install wanderlust |
| No client matches. | ||
Mail tools
| Systems | Name | Install on BSD |
|---|---|---|
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android. | getmail6CLIMail retriever that downloads messages over POP3 or IMAP into Maildir, mbox or an external delivery program. | pkg install py312-getmail6 |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | isyncCLICommand line program (mbsync) that syncs IMAP mailboxes with local Maildir folders in both directions. | pkg install isync |
| Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD, on Android through Termux. | msmtpCLISMTP client with a sendmail-compatible interface that terminal mail clients use to send mail. | pkg install msmtp |
| Runs on Linux and BSD, on Windows through WSL, builds from source on macOS. Not available for Android. | mutt-wizardCLIShell script that sets up NeoMutt, isync and msmtp for an email account, with passwords stored in pass. | pkg_add mutt-wizard |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux. | notmuchCLICommand-line mail indexer that adds fast full-text search, threading and tags to a local Maildir. | pkg install notmuch |
| Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android. | OfflineIMAPCLIPython program that syncs IMAP mailboxes with local Maildir folders in both directions. | pkg install mail/py-offlineimap |
| Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD. Not available for Android. | PopTUISend-only email tool from Charm with a terminal form for composing and a command-line mode for scripts. | go install github.com/charmbracelet/pop@latest |
| Nothing matches. | ||
Questions
Which terminal email clients run on BSD?
Which BSD clients have built-in IMAP?
Does Forward Email work on BSD?
Yes. Its terminal app installs from npm, and every other client on this page can use a Forward Email mailbox over IMAP and SMTP, directly or through a sync tool.