aerc vs Mailspring
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted mail servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | aerc | Mailspring |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Mail Servers | Mail Servers |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,300 | ★ 17,853 |
| First released | 2019 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Gmail, Outlook | Outlook, Apple Mail |
What are aerc and Mailspring?
aerc
aerc is an email client for the terminal designed for power users, with support for multiple accounts, embedded terminal, and a tab-based workflow. It handles IMAP, Maildir, JMAP, and notmuch backends.
- Terminal email client
- Multiple account support
- IMAP, JMAP, and notmuch
- Embedded terminal viewer
Mailspring
Mailspring is a fast, modern desktop email client that works with any IMAP and SMTP account, including self-hosted mail servers. It offers unified inboxes, snooze, and reading tracking with a local sync engine.
- Modern cross-platform email client
- Works with self-hosted IMAP
- Unified inbox and snooze
aerc vs Mailspring: key differences
Aerc is written in Go, while Mailspring is built with TypeScript. Licensing differs — MIT for aerc versus GPL-3.0 for Mailspring. Aerc is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Mailspring. Mailspring is the more established project (first released 2017), while aerc arrived in 2019. Mailspring has the considerably larger community, at 17,853 GitHub stars versus 3,300.
Why pick each one
Choose aerc if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (3.3k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose Mailspring if…
- Fast unified inbox
- Works with any IMAP
- Modern clean design
Watch out for
- Some features need Pro
- Electron memory usage
Frequently asked questions
Is aerc or Mailspring better?
Mailspring is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider aerc if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are aerc and Mailspring free and open-source?
Yes. aerc is licensed under MIT and Mailspring under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run aerc and Mailspring with Docker?
aerc: check the project docs for container support. Mailspring: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, aerc or Mailspring?
aerc has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Mailspring. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.