Matcha vs nmh
Matcha: Terminal email client written in Go with the Bubble Tea TUI library, with IMAP, JMAP and POP3 support.
nmh: The MH message handling system: separate shell commands to read, file, search and send mail stored one file per message.
Differences
- Matcha is a full-screen terminal client; nmh is a command-line program.
- Only Matcha has built-in IMAP and JMAP.
- Only nmh has built-in mbox.
- On Windows, Matcha runs natively and nmh runs through WSL.
- On BSD, Matcha builds from source and nmh runs natively.
- On Android, Matcha is not available and nmh runs through Termux.
- Matcha has mouse support; nmh does not.
- Matcha has OpenPGP; nmh does not.
- Matcha has S/MIME; nmh does not.
- Matcha has OAuth2 sign-in; nmh does not.
- Matcha has Vim-style keys; nmh does not.
- Matcha has threaded views; nmh does not.
- Matcha is written in Go; nmh in C.
- Configuration: Matcha uses ~/.config/matcha/config.json plus in-app settings, and nmh uses ~/.mh_profile and mts.conf text files.
Side by side
| Matcha | nmh | |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | Full-screen terminal interface | Command-line tools and prompts |
| Language | Go | C |
| License | MIT | BSD 3-Clause |
| Latest version | v1.0.1 | 1.8 |
| Linux | Native | Native |
| macOS | Native | Native |
| Windows | Native | Through WSL |
| BSD | Build from source | Native |
| Android | No | Through Termux |
| IMAP | Yes | Through a separate tool |
| POP3 | Yes | Yes |
| SMTP | Yes | Yes |
| JMAP | Yes | No |
| Maildir | Yes | Yes |
| mbox | No | Yes |
| notmuch | No | No |
| OpenPGP | Yes | No |
| S/MIME | Yes | No |
| OAuth2 sign-in | Yes | No |
| Threads | Yes | No |
| Search | built-in search and filter | pick command matches header fields and message text |
| HTML mail | built-in rendering, with inline images in supported terminals | via mhshow with an external converter such as w3m |
| Mouse | Yes | No |
| Multiple accounts | Yes | via per-command switches or separate profiles |
| Offline use | local cache of message lists and bodies | full; messages are stored as local files |
| Calendar | shows .ics invites and sends RSVP replies | replies to invitations with mhical |
| Contacts | address book built from sent and received mail | aliases via MailAliases and the ali command |
| Vim-style keys | Yes | No |
| Configuration | ~/.config/matcha/config.json plus in-app settings | ~/.mh_profile and mts.conf text files |
Which to choose
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
Choose nmh for
- Every action is a shell command, so mail handling is easy to script.
- One file per message lets grep, find and other Unix tools work on mail.
- Built-in POP3 and SMTP with TLS and SASL; reads mbox and Maildir drops.
Watch out for
- No IMAP; IMAP mail must be synced to a Maildir first and then incorporated.
- No built-in OpenPGP or S/MIME, and no thread view.
- SMTP authentication needs nmh built with Cyrus SASL and its PLAIN or LOGIN plugin.
Questions
What is the difference between Matcha and nmh?
Matcha is a full-screen terminal client; nmh is a command-line program. Only Matcha has built-in IMAP and JMAP. Only nmh has built-in mbox.
Which runs on Windows, Matcha or nmh?
On Windows, Matcha runs natively. On Windows, nmh runs through WSL.
See also: Matcha alternatives, nmh alternatives.