aerc vs S-nail
aerc: Terminal email client written in Go with IMAP, JMAP, Maildir and notmuch backends and an embedded terminal for editing.
S-nail: Command-line mail program that implements POSIX mailx, with MIME, IMAP, POP3, SMTP, Maildir and S/MIME support.
Differences
- aerc is a full-screen terminal client; S-nail is a command-line program.
- Only aerc has built-in JMAP and notmuch.
- Only S-nail has built-in POP3.
- On Android, aerc runs through Termux and S-nail is not available.
- aerc has mouse support; S-nail does not.
- aerc has calendar support; S-nail does not.
- aerc has OpenPGP; S-nail does not.
- S-nail has S/MIME; aerc does not.
- aerc has Vim-style keys; S-nail does not.
- aerc is written in Go; S-nail in C.
- Configuration: aerc uses INI-style files: accounts.conf, aerc.conf, binds.conf, and S-nail uses ~/.mailrc command file.
Side by side
| aerc | S-nail | |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | Full-screen terminal interface | Command-line tools and prompts |
| Language | Go | C |
| License | MIT | ISC and BSD 2-Clause and BSD 3-Clause and BSD 4-Clause |
| Latest version | 0.22.0 | 14.9.25 |
| Linux | Native | Native |
| macOS | Native | Native |
| Windows | Through WSL | Through WSL |
| BSD | Native | Native |
| Android | Through Termux | No |
| IMAP | Yes | Yes |
| POP3 | No | Yes |
| SMTP | Yes | Yes |
| JMAP | Yes | No |
| Maildir | Yes | Yes |
| mbox | Yes | Yes |
| notmuch | Yes | No |
| OpenPGP | Yes | No |
| S/MIME | No | Yes |
| OAuth2 sign-in | Yes | via script |
| Threads | Yes | Yes |
| Search | built-in; server-side for IMAP and JMAP; notmuch queries | built-in message specifications and the search command; IMAP SEARCH on IMAP folders |
| HTML mail | via filters, w3m by default | built-in tag-soup filter or external viewer via mailcap |
| Mouse | Yes | No |
| Multiple accounts | Yes | Yes |
| Offline use | with mbsync or OfflineIMAP through the Maildir backend; IMAP header cache | IMAP cache with disconnected mode |
| Calendar | Yes | No |
| Contacts | via address-book-cmd, e.g. khard or the bundled carddav-query | aliases via the alias command |
| Vim-style keys | Yes | No |
| Configuration | INI-style files: accounts.conf, aerc.conf, binds.conf | ~/.mailrc command file |
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 S-nail for
- Drop-in POSIX mailx, so it works in existing shell scripts and cron jobs.
- Built-in SMTP, POP3 and IMAP with TLS; no separate sync or send tool needed.
- S/MIME signing and encryption are built in.
Watch out for
- Line-oriented prompt instead of a full-screen interface.
- No built-in OpenPGP; upstream documents a gpg pipe workaround only.
- IMAP support is kept at an older code level and upstream advises care.
Questions
What is the difference between aerc and S-nail?
aerc is a full-screen terminal client; S-nail is a command-line program. Only aerc has built-in JMAP and notmuch. Only S-nail has built-in POP3.
Which runs on Windows, aerc or S-nail?
On Windows, aerc runs through WSL. On Windows, S-nail runs through WSL.
See also: aerc alternatives, S-nail alternatives.