# meli vs nmh

- meli: Terminal email client written in Rust with IMAP, JMAP, notmuch, Maildir, mbox and NNTP backends and TOML configuration.
- nmh: The MH message handling system: separate shell commands to read, file, search and send mail stored one file per message.

## Differences

- meli is a full-screen terminal client; nmh is a command-line program.
- Only meli has built-in IMAP, JMAP and notmuch.
- Only nmh has built-in POP3.
- On Windows, meli is not available and nmh runs through WSL.
- On Android, meli is not available and nmh runs through Termux.
- meli has mouse support; nmh does not.
- nmh has calendar support; meli does not.
- meli has OpenPGP; nmh does not.
- meli has OAuth2 sign-in; nmh does not.
- meli has Vim-style keys; nmh does not.
- meli has threaded views; nmh does not.
- meli is written in Rust; nmh in C.
- Configuration: meli uses TOML file (config.toml), and nmh uses ~/.mh_profile and mts.conf text files.

## Side by side

| | meli | nmh |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Interface | Full-screen terminal interface | Command-line tools and prompts |
| Language | Rust | C |
| License | EUPL 1.2 or GPL 3.0 or later | BSD 3-Clause |
| Linux | Native | Native |
| macOS | Native | Native |
| Windows | Not supported | Through WSL |
| BSD | Native | Native |
| Android | Not supported | Through Termux |
| IMAP | Yes | Through a separate tool |
| POP3 | No | Yes |
| SMTP | Yes | Yes |
| JMAP | Yes | No |
| Maildir | Yes | Yes |
| mbox | Yes | Yes |
| notmuch | Yes | No |
| OpenPGP | Yes | No |
| S/MIME | No | No |
| OAuth2 sign-in | via script | No |
| Threads | Yes | No |
| Search | built-in; sqlite3 index by default; notmuch queries | pick command matches header fields and message text |
| HTML mail | via filter command, w3m by default | via mhshow with an external converter such as w3m |
| Mouse | Yes | No |
| Multiple accounts | Yes | via per-command switches or separate profiles |
| Offline use | IMAP header cache in sqlite3; full offline use with Maildir and mbsync | full; messages are stored as local files |
| Calendar | No | replies to invitations with mhical |
| Contacts | built-in contact list; reads vCard and mutt alias files | aliases via MailAliases and the ali command |
| Vim-style keys | Yes | No |
| Configuration | TOML file (config.toml) | ~/.mh_profile and mts.conf text files |

Pages: [meli](https://terminalemail.com/clients/meli/index.md), [nmh](https://terminalemail.com/clients/nmh/index.md)