# aerc vs Cone

- aerc: Terminal email client written in Go with IMAP, JMAP, Maildir and notmuch backends and an embedded terminal for editing.
- Cone: Full-screen console mail client and newsreader from the Courier mail server project.

## Differences

- Only aerc has built-in JMAP and notmuch.
- Only Cone has built-in POP3.
- On Linux, aerc runs natively and Cone builds from source.
- On macOS, aerc runs natively and Cone is not available.
- On Android, aerc runs through Termux and Cone is not available.
- aerc has mouse support; Cone does not.
- aerc has calendar support; Cone does not.
- aerc has OAuth2 sign-in; Cone does not.
- aerc has Vim-style keys; Cone does not.
- aerc is written in Go; Cone in C++.
- Configuration: aerc uses INI-style files: accounts.conf, aerc.conf, binds.conf, and Cone uses interactive setup screens; settings saved under ~/.cone.

## Side by side

| | aerc | Cone |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Interface | Full-screen terminal interface | Full-screen terminal interface |
| Language | Go | C++ |
| License | MIT | GPL 3.0 |
| Linux | Native | Build from source |
| macOS | Native | Not supported |
| Windows | Through WSL | Through WSL |
| BSD | Native | Native |
| Android | Through Termux | Not supported |
| IMAP | Yes | Yes |
| POP3 | No | Yes |
| SMTP | Yes | Yes |
| JMAP | Yes | No |
| Maildir | Yes | Yes |
| mbox | Yes | Yes |
| notmuch | Yes | No |
| OpenPGP | Yes | Yes |
| S/MIME | No | No |
| OAuth2 sign-in | Yes | No |
| Threads | Yes | Yes |
| Search | built-in; server-side for IMAP and JMAP; notmuch queries | built-in folder search; server-side on IMAP |
| HTML mail | via filters, w3m by default | built-in HTML renderer |
| Mouse | Yes | No |
| Multiple accounts | Yes | Yes |
| Offline use | with mbsync or OfflineIMAP through the Maildir backend; IMAP header cache | No |
| Calendar | Yes | No |
| Contacts | via address-book-cmd, e.g. khard or the bundled carddav-query | built-in address books, stored locally, in an IMAP folder, or on LDAP |
| Vim-style keys | Yes | No |
| Configuration | INI-style files: accounts.conf, aerc.conf, binds.conf | interactive setup screens; settings saved under ~/.cone |

Pages: [aerc](https://terminalemail.com/clients/aerc/index.md), [Cone](https://terminalemail.com/clients/cone/index.md)