Terminal email clients for macOS

18 clients and 7 mail tools that run on macOS, with the install command for each.

Most clients install with Homebrew: 14 of the 18 that run on macOS have a Homebrew formula or cask. The rest install with an install script, Nix, RubyGems and MELPA, and each client's page has the command.

forwardemail on macOS

Featured

Forward Email's webmail in the terminal: mail, calendar, contacts and settings, with mouse support and a key hint bar.

Standalone builds for Apple Silicon and Intel.

Screenshots and features

install scriptcurl -fsSL https://github.com/forwardemail/mail.forwardemail.net/releases/latest/download/install.sh | sh

npmnpm install -g forwardemail

Clients

Filter clients by name, language or protocol

18 clients for macOS
Systems	Name	Install on macOS
Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD, on Android through Termux.	Forward EmailFeaturedTUISource-availableForward Email's webmail in the terminal: mail, calendar, contacts and settings, with mouse support and a key hint bar.	`curl -fsSL https://github.com/forwardemail/mail.forwardemail.net/releases/latest/download/install.sh \| sh`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	aercTUITerminal email client written in Go with IMAP, JMAP, Maildir and notmuch backends and an embedded terminal for editing.	`brew install aerc`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android.	alotTUITerminal mail reader written in Python that works on a local notmuch database, with tag-based search and threads.	`brew install alot`
Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD, on Android through Termux.	AlpineTUIMenu-driven terminal email client descended from Pine, with built-in help, setup screens and native Windows builds.	`brew install alpine`
Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD, on Android through Termux.	GnusEmacsMail and news reader built into GNU Emacs, with back ends for IMAP, POP3, local mail folders and NNTP.	`brew install emacs`
Runs on Linux, macOS and Windows, builds from source on BSD. Not available for Android.	HimalayaCLICommand-line email client written in Rust that lists, reads, sends and moves mail through shell commands with JSON output.	`brew install himalaya`
Runs on Linux, macOS and Windows, builds from source on BSD. Not available for Android.	MatchaTUITerminal email client written in Go with the Bubble Tea TUI library, with IMAP, JMAP and POP3 support.	`brew install --cask floatpane/matcha/matcha`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android.	mblazeCLISet of small Unix utilities for reading, searching, threading and composing mail stored in Maildir folders.	`nix profile install nixpkgs#mblaze`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD. Not available for Windows or Android.	meliTUITerminal email client written in Rust with IMAP, JMAP, notmuch, Maildir, mbox and NNTP backends and TOML configuration.	`brew install meli`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	mu4eEmacsEmail client that runs inside GNU Emacs, built on the mu Maildir indexer and search tool.	`brew install mu isync emacs`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	MuttTUILong-running text-mode email client with IMAP, POP3 and SMTP support, configured through a muttrc file.	`brew install mutt`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	NeoMuttTUIFull-screen terminal mail reader forked from Mutt, with notmuch, NNTP, Lua scripting and a sidebar built in.	`brew install neomutt`
Runs on Linux and macOS. Not available for Windows, BSD or Android.	nmailTUITerminal email client for Linux and macOS with an Alpine-like interface and built-in IMAP and SMTP.	`brew install nmail`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	nmhCLIThe MH message handling system: separate shell commands to read, file, search and send mail stored one file per message.	`brew install nmh`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	Notmuch Emacs interfaceEmacsEmacs front end for notmuch that reads, searches, tags and composes mail from a local Maildir.	`brew install notmuch emacs isync msmtp`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android.	S-nailCLICommand-line mail program that implements POSIX mailx, with MIME, IMAP, POP3, SMTP, Maildir and S/MIME support.	`brew install s-nail`
Runs on Linux and macOS, on Windows through WSL, builds from source on BSD. Not available for Android.	SupTUICurses email client in Ruby built around threads, labels and fast full-text search over local mail.	`gem install sup`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	WanderlustEmacsMail and news reader for Emacs, written in Emacs Lisp, with built-in IMAP, POP3, NNTP and SMTP support.	`M-x package-install RET wanderlust RET`
No client matches.

Mail tools

7 mail tools for macOS
Systems	Name	Install on macOS
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android.	getmail6CLIMail retriever that downloads messages over POP3 or IMAP into Maildir, mbox or an external delivery program.	`brew install getmail6`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	isyncCLICommand line program (mbsync) that syncs IMAP mailboxes with local Maildir folders in both directions.	`brew install isync`
Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD, on Android through Termux.	msmtpCLISMTP client with a sendmail-compatible interface that terminal mail clients use to send mail.	`brew install msmtp`
Runs on Linux and BSD, on Windows through WSL, builds from source on macOS. Not available for Android.	mutt-wizardCLIShell script that sets up NeoMutt, isync and msmtp for an email account, with passwords stored in pass.	`git clone https://github.com/LukeSmithxyz/mutt-wizard && cd mutt-wizard && sudo make install`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL, on Android through Termux.	notmuchCLICommand-line mail indexer that adds fast full-text search, threading and tags to a local Maildir.	`brew install notmuch`
Runs on Linux, macOS and BSD, on Windows through WSL. Not available for Android.	OfflineIMAPCLIPython program that syncs IMAP mailboxes with local Maildir folders in both directions.	`brew install offlineimap`
Runs on Linux, macOS, Windows and BSD. Not available for Android.	PopTUISend-only email tool from Charm with a terminal form for composing and a command-line mode for scripts.	`brew install pop`
Nothing matches.

Questions

Which terminal email clients run on macOS?

18 clients run on macOS: Forward Email, aerc, alot, Alpine, Gnus, Himalaya, Matcha, mblaze, meli, mu4e, Mutt, NeoMutt, nmail, nmh, Notmuch Emacs interface, S-nail, Sup and Wanderlust.

Which macOS clients have built-in IMAP?

aerc, Alpine, Gnus, Himalaya, Matcha, meli, Mutt, NeoMutt, nmail, S-nail and Wanderlust. The others read local mail that a sync tool such as isync keeps up to date, or, for Forward Email's app, connect through its API.

Does Forward Email work on macOS?

Yes. Its terminal app has a standalone build, and every other client on this page can use a Forward Email mailbox over IMAP and SMTP, directly or through a sync tool.