aerc vs Matcha
aerc: Terminal email client written in Go with IMAP, JMAP, Maildir and notmuch backends and an embedded terminal for editing.
Matcha: Terminal email client written in Go with the Bubble Tea TUI library, with IMAP, JMAP and POP3 support.
Differences
- Only aerc has built-in mbox and notmuch.
- Only Matcha has built-in POP3.
- On Windows, aerc runs through WSL and Matcha runs natively.
- On BSD, aerc runs natively and Matcha builds from source.
- On Android, aerc runs through Termux and Matcha is not available.
- Matcha has S/MIME; aerc does not.
- Configuration: aerc uses INI-style files: accounts.conf, aerc.conf, binds.conf, and Matcha uses ~/.config/matcha/config.json plus in-app settings.
Side by side
| aerc | Matcha | |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | Full-screen terminal interface | Full-screen terminal interface |
| Language | Go | Go |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Latest version | 0.22.0 | v1.0.1 |
| Linux | Native | Native |
| macOS | Native | Native |
| Windows | Through WSL | Native |
| BSD | Native | Build from source |
| Android | Through Termux | No |
| IMAP | Yes | Yes |
| POP3 | No | Yes |
| SMTP | Yes | Yes |
| JMAP | Yes | Yes |
| Maildir | Yes | Yes |
| mbox | Yes | No |
| notmuch | Yes | No |
| OpenPGP | Yes | Yes |
| S/MIME | No | Yes |
| OAuth2 sign-in | Yes | Yes |
| Threads | Yes | Yes |
| Search | built-in; server-side for IMAP and JMAP; notmuch queries | built-in search and filter |
| HTML mail | via filters, w3m by default | built-in rendering, with inline images in supported terminals |
| Mouse | Yes | Yes |
| Multiple accounts | Yes | Yes |
| Offline use | with mbsync or OfflineIMAP through the Maildir backend; IMAP header cache | local cache of message lists and bodies |
| Calendar | Yes | shows .ics invites and sends RSVP replies |
| Contacts | via address-book-cmd, e.g. khard or the bundled carddav-query | address book built from sent and received mail |
| Vim-style keys | Yes | Yes |
| Configuration | INI-style files: accounts.conf, aerc.conf, binds.conf | ~/.config/matcha/config.json plus in-app settings |
Which to choose
Choose aerc for
- Embedded terminal runs the editor and other commands inside aerc
- Built-in commands for applying and reviewing git patch series
- Supports JMAP and notmuch as well as IMAP and Maildir
Watch out for
- No POP3 or S/MIME support
- mbox files open read-only
- No native Windows build
Choose Matcha for
- Supports IMAP, JMAP, POP3 and Maildir in one client
- PGP (including YubiKey) and S/MIME signing and encryption
- Prebuilt packages for Linux (Snap, Flatpak), macOS (Homebrew tap) and Windows (winget)
Watch out for
- Young project; v1.0 shipped only after a long series of 0.x releases
- JSON config is less readable to hand-edit than muttrc-style files
- Binary name clashes with an unrelated tool also called matcha
Questions
What is the difference between aerc and Matcha?
Only aerc has built-in mbox and notmuch. Only Matcha has built-in POP3. On Windows, aerc runs through WSL and Matcha runs natively.
Which runs on Windows, aerc or Matcha?
On Windows, aerc runs through WSL. On Windows, Matcha runs natively.
See also: aerc alternatives, Matcha alternatives.