# Claws Mail review (2026): is it any good? > Lightweight GTK email and news client, free under the GPL Checked Nov 12, 2026 ยท graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA. Claws Mail is a free email and Usenet news client built on GTK, with keyboard access to almost every command. It stores messages in the MH format and can be extended with plugins for an RSS reader, a calendar and more. It is distributed under the GPL and aimed mainly at Linux and Unix systems. - **Category:** Email Apps - **Made by:** Claws Mail project - **Website:** https://www.claws-mail.org - **Runs on:** Linux, Windows - **Who should skip it:** Skip it if you want a calendar built in, as that's a plugin. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 12, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 12, 2026, Claws Mail is free to use. - **Pricing model:** Free - **Free plan:** The whole application is free software under the GPL. - **Free trial:** None listed. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | Claws Mail | $0 | Free under the GPL; install from a distribution package or the source tarballs. | Read from https://www.claws-mail.org/ on Nov 12, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Claws Mail before buying. ## Key features - **Keyboard-driven interface:** Almost all commands can be reached from the keyboard, in a layout meant to look familiar to people from other mail clients. - **Filtering and search:** Filtering, per-folder processing, message scoring, colour labels and a search function for sorting a busy mailbox. - **GnuPG support:** Encrypt and sign messages with GnuPG through GPGME, and switch the encryption type while composing. - **Plugins:** Extras such as an RSS aggregator and a calendar come as plugins, and the project lists them on a plugins page. - **Protocols and accounts:** Multiple accounts over POP3, IMAP4rev1 and SMTP with SSL, plus Usenet news reading and posting through NNTP. - **MH storage and import:** Messages are kept in the MH format, and mbox import and export lets you move mail in and out of other clients. ## Good for - Linux users who want a fast, low-resource mail client - People who prefer to work from the keyboard - Users who read both email and Usenet news ## Worth knowing - Calendar and RSS are plugins, not part of the base application. - Windows is listed as a separate port; no macOS version is mentioned on the downloads page. - The interface is built on GTK and follows the look of older desktop mail clients. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.8 out of 4**, graded Nov 12, 2026. Claws Mail is a free, GPL mail client that you can drive from the keyboard, with filters, search, GnuPG and plugins. Calendar and RSS are plugins, not part of the base app. It looks like an older desktop mail program, and it's Linux plus a separate Windows port. - **Value for money: A.** Free under the GPL for anyone to download. A program anyone can download and run counts as free and substantial. - **Free plan and trial: A.** Free outright, the whole app, with no paid edition. - **Features: C.** A keyboard-driven client with filtering, search, GnuPG, plugins, several protocols and MH storage. Gaps: calendar and RSS are plugins, not the base app. - **Ease of use: C.** No store rating on record. You install from a distro package or source, connect your accounts and add plugins for extras. - **Platforms and integrations: C.** Linux, plus a separate Windows port. No macOS version is mentioned and there's no phone or web version. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Claws Mail's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among email apps - Claws Mail's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 48 of the 70 other email apps we grade, and level with 6. - It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 55 of 70) and worst on features (C, above 0). - Claws Mail has no paid plan. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.0 out of 4. Nothing scores higher for less, though at least one tool matches that score at a lower price. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/email ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** Claws Mail is free, so making your own would save you nothing. And it is not the kind of software a weekend replaces. It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 2.8 is higher than 48 of the 70 other email apps we grade. - You could not: An email client: sending, receiving, threading and searching years of mail. - You could not: Filters that read every message as it arrives. - You could not: A real app for Windows and Linux. Something home-made would be a web page. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. ## Works with GnuPG **Tags:** Email client, Open source, Keyboard-first, Inbox filtering ## Alternatives - [Thunderbird](https://toolgpa.com/tools/thunderbird): Free, open-source email app for Windows, macOS, Linux and Android. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/claws-mail-vs-thunderbird) - [Evolution](https://toolgpa.com/tools/evolution): GNOME's free mail, calendar and address book app. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/claws-mail-vs-evolution) - [Betterbird](https://toolgpa.com/tools/betterbird): A fork of Thunderbird with extra features and bug fixes. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/betterbird-vs-claws-mail) - [Mailspring](https://toolgpa.com/tools/mailspring): Open-source desktop email client for Mac, Windows and Linux. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/claws-mail-vs-mailspring) - [MailMate](https://toolgpa.com/tools/mailmate): Keyboard-driven IMAP email client for macOS with Markdown composing. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/claws-mail-vs-mailmate) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 12, 2026: - https://www.claws-mail.org/ - https://www.claws-mail.org/features.php - https://www.claws-mail.org/downloads.php Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/claws-mail Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).