# Install meli with Homebrew, apk, apt, MacPorts, Nix, zypper

Terminal e-mail client and e-mail client library. Version 0.8.13 via Homebrew; verified from local package data. Also installable with debian: sudo apt install meli.

## Install

```sh
sudo av install brew:meli
```

Additional install commands:

### macOS

- Homebrew (100%):

```sh
brew install meli
```

  Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata

- MacPorts (94%):

```sh
sudo port install meli
```

  Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: mail/meli/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1

### Linux

- apk (92%):

```sh
sudo apk add meli
```

  Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: meli from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz

- Debian apt (92%):

```sh
sudo apt install meli
```

  Evidence: Debian stable package indexes: meli from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz

- Nix (92%):

```sh
nix profile install nixpkgs#meli
```

  Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/me/meli/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1

- zypper (92%):

```sh
sudo zypper install meli
```

  Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: meli from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst

## Package facts

- **Package key:** brew:meli
- **Package manager:** Homebrew
- **Version:** 0.8.13
- **Source summary:** Terminal e-mail client and e-mail client library
- **Homepage:** <https://meli-email.org/>
- **Generated:** 2026-08-03T19:37:03+00:00

## Executables

- meli (alias)

## Install behavior

- Bottle: not available

## Freshness

- Page generated: 2026-08-03
- Package-manager version: 0.8.13
## Project history and usage

meli is a Rust terminal email client and email-client library. Its README describes support for multiple accounts and Maildir, mbox, notmuch, IMAP, JMAP, and NNTP/Usenet backends on BSD, Linux, and macOS.

### Project history

The project identifies itself as established in 2017 and presents meli as a modern terminal mail user agent with configurability, extensibility, and sane defaults. The official README lists a main self-hosted repository, several official mirrors, mailing lists, IRC and Matrix community channels, and an old WebAssembly demo.

Early public releases used alpha version numbers, with alpha-0.5.0 and alpha-0.5.1 visible in the GitHub mirror release history. The project later moved through 0.8 releases and continues to publish signed tags and release notes for terminal, backend, and dependency fixes.

The codebase is split between the meli binary and melib library, which helps explain the formula description as both a terminal email client and email client library.

### Adoption history

meli sits in the long terminal-email tradition alongside mutt, neomutt, aerc, alpine, and notmuch-based workflows. Its README lists installation through cargo, official Debian packages, AUR, openSUSE, Alpine Linux, NetBSD pkgsrc, OpenBSD ports, Homebrew, MacPorts, Nix, and prebuilt Debian/static binaries.

That packaging spread is important because terminal mail users often care about local mail stores, distro integration, GPG, notmuch indexing, and text-editor workflows. meli's support for IMAP, Maildir, notmuch, JMAP, NNTP, SMTP, GPG, themes, and TOML configuration positions it as a newer Rust entrant in a mature niche.

### How it is used

The quick start creates a TOML config at $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/meli/config.toml with meli create-config, edits it with meli edit-config, then starts the client with meli. The README also documents MELI_CONFIG and -c/--config for arbitrary configuration paths.

meli supports compile-time cargo features for notmuch, JMAP, SMTP, sqlite3 caches, GPG, TLS, HTTP, DBus notifications, embedded CLI docs, and static linking choices.

### Why package nerds care

meli is significant for package nerds because terminal email clients are unusually sensitive to optional dependencies, crypto libraries, terminal behavior, mail backends, and distro conventions. Its cargo feature matrix makes packaging choices visible and consequential.

### Timeline

- 2017: README badge marks the project as established.
- Early alpha era: alpha-0.5.0 and alpha-0.5.1 releases appear in the GitHub mirror release history.
- 2026-01-05: v0.8.13 released with IMAP fixes, mbox viewing support, tab-width configuration, dependency updates, and crash fixes.

### Related projects

- melib: the email client library within the meli repository.
- notmuch: one of meli's supported mail backends.
- mutt and neomutt: older terminal mail clients in the same user culture.
- aerc: another modern terminal mail client often compared in the same niche.

### Sources

- <https://git.meli-email.org/meli/meli>
- <https://github.com/meli/meli>
- <https://github.com/meli/meli/releases/tag/v0.8.13>
- <https://github.com/meli/meli/releases?page=3>
- source_facts.package-manager-url


## Security Notes

broad file, network, media, or database tool signal.

- **Geiger risk:** blue / medium
- broad file, network, media, or database tool signal


## Configuration and credential file locations

These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.


## Configuration files

- Unix: $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/meli/config.toml
## Other Package-Manager Records

- Debian apt - meli - 0.8.11+dfsg-1+b1: normalized package name match | Debian stable package indexes: meli from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz | terminal mail client | https://meli-email.org/
- Nix - meli: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/me/meli/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1
- apk - meli - 0.8.13-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: meli from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | terminal e-mail client | https://meli-email.org/
- apk - meli-doc - 0.8.13-r0: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: meli-doc from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | terminal e-mail client (documentation) | https://meli-email.org/
- zypper - meli - 0.8.11-1.5: normalized package name match | openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: meli from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst | Terminal email client | https://meli-email.org/
- zypper - meli-with-debug-tracing - 0.8.11-1.5: normalized package name match | openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: meli-with-debug-tracing from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/50b07339cb64c8ed4091bdbabddadc1ff5737b090e478818a195b40d8a3292861a879139b4a3987c31109699fde9fbf4a716367ddf4eef77da75f96e3193d6ed-primary.xml.zst | Terminal email client | https://meli-email.org/
- MacPorts - meli: normalized package name match | MacPorts ports tree: mail/meli/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1


## Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/meli.yml](https://github.com/mxcl/pkgdb/blob/main/combined/meli.yml)


## Sources

- pkg.so package database
- Geiger risk classifier
- curated configuration and credential file locations
- curated package history
- pkgdb category and tag curation
- external package-manager database matches
- cross-ecosystem install command graph