Keyboard first terminal email client: IMAP/SMTP, Gmail & Outlook; Go + BubbleTea

TideMail keeps accounts, message lists, and reading panes on one screen, speaking both IMAP and SMTP protocols while storing its cache locally. The client gives keyboard users priority with a terminal-based interface that avoids config file editing, offering all settings through its GUI.

The application features a three-pane interface with accounts and folders on the left, message lists in the upper-right, and the reading pane below. This design ensures opening messages never hides the rest of the inbox, with keyboard navigation using j and k keys for movement and Tab to switch between panes.

AI Integration

TideMail includes portable agent skills for Codex, Claude, Pi, and Hermes, allowing AI agents to read, draft, and send emails without directly accessing IMAP/SMTP credentials. The system implements an invocation-approval step that separates reading, drafting, and sending capabilities, granting agents only as much access as users permit.

Optional AI tools can summarize emails, proofread drafts, and build local filters from plain English commands. The client also offers an offline spell checker in English or Spanish that underlines misspelled words and steps through fixes with F7.

Features & Themes

The application includes 51 built-in themes across 23 families including Catppuccin, Tokyo Night, Rosé Pine, Gruvbox, Nord, and Solarized. All themes are checked against WCAG-style contrast minimums (4.5:1 for text, 3:1+ for large text and UI elements) and enforced by automated tests.

On Omarchy systems, the match-omarchy theme follows the current desktop theme with contrast correction and repaints live when switching. TideMail also supports PGP encryption through a plugin that uses the user's own GnuPG setup for reading encrypted and signed mail.

Installation & Platforms

Linux and macOS builds are available for Intel and ARM machines, while Windows support remains experimental. On Arch Linux, TideMail is available in the AUR as tidemail-bin. For Homebrew users on Linux and macOS, the application can be installed with 'brew install tidemail'.

The installer writes to ~/.local/bin by default and adds TideMail to the app launcher with an icon and desktop entry. Windows users must download releases manually as in-app updates aren't available, and passwords are saved in plain text without system keychain support.