Gnus vs Matcha
Gnus: Mail and news reader built into GNU Emacs, with back ends for IMAP, POP3, local mail folders and NNTP.
Matcha: Terminal email client written in Go with the Bubble Tea TUI library, with IMAP, JMAP and POP3 support.
Differences
- Gnus is a mail client that runs inside Emacs; Matcha is a full-screen terminal client.
- Only Gnus has built-in mbox.
- Only Matcha has built-in JMAP.
- On BSD, Gnus runs natively and Matcha builds from source.
- On Android, Gnus runs through Termux and Matcha is not available.
- Matcha has Vim-style keys; Gnus does not.
- Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp; Matcha in Go.
- Configuration: Gnus uses Emacs Lisp in init.el or ~/.gnus.el, and Matcha uses ~/.config/matcha/config.json plus in-app settings.
Side by side
| Gnus | Matcha | |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | Runs inside Emacs | Full-screen terminal interface |
| Language | Emacs Lisp | Go |
| License | GPL 3.0 or later | MIT |
| Latest version | 5.13 (bundled with Emacs 31.1) | v1.0.1 |
| Linux | Native | Native |
| macOS | Native | Native |
| Windows | Native | Native |
| BSD | Native | Build from source |
| Android | Through Termux | No |
| IMAP | Yes | Yes |
| POP3 | Yes | Yes |
| SMTP | Yes | Yes |
| JMAP | No | Yes |
| Maildir | Yes | Yes |
| mbox | Yes | No |
| notmuch | Through a separate tool | No |
| OpenPGP | Yes | Yes |
| S/MIME | Yes | Yes |
| OAuth2 sign-in | via plugin | Yes |
| Threads | Yes | Yes |
| Search | gnus-search: IMAP SEARCH, or notmuch, mu, mairix and other local indexers | built-in search and filter |
| HTML mail | built-in, rendered with the Emacs shr library | built-in rendering, with inline images in supported terminals |
| Mouse | Yes | Yes |
| Multiple accounts | Yes | Yes |
| Offline use | via the Gnus agent or local Maildir back ends | local cache of message lists and bodies |
| Calendar | replies to invitations with gnus-icalendar | shows .ics invites and sends RSVP replies |
| Contacts | via BBDB or EUDC | address book built from sent and received mail |
| Vim-style keys | No | Yes |
| Configuration | Emacs Lisp in init.el or ~/.gnus.el | ~/.config/matcha/config.json plus in-app settings |
Which to choose
Choose Gnus for
- Included with every GNU Emacs install, including native Windows builds.
- Reads IMAP directly, plus local Maildir, MH and mbox stores and NNTP newsgroups.
- Scoring, splitting and the Gnus agent allow detailed filtering and offline reading.
Watch out for
- The group, summary and article model takes time to learn.
- IMAP access runs inside Emacs, so large mailboxes can make Emacs wait.
- Configuration is Emacs Lisp spread across many variables.
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 Gnus and Matcha?
Gnus is a mail client that runs inside Emacs; Matcha is a full-screen terminal client. Only Gnus has built-in mbox. Only Matcha has built-in JMAP.
Which runs on Windows, Gnus or Matcha?
On Windows, Gnus runs natively. On Windows, Matcha runs natively.
See also: Gnus alternatives, Matcha alternatives.