Question 1

What is Epistles Mail?

Accepted Answer

Epistles Mail is a native, local-first email client that unifies Gmail, Microsoft 365, Fastmail, Apple Mail / iCloud, Proton Mail, and any IMAP account into a single inbox. It ships on macOS, Linux, Windows, iOS, Android, the web, Apple Watch, and Wear OS (May 2026). Every message is stored locally in SQLite for offline use. Account credentials sync between devices through a zero-knowledge Cloud Vault encrypted with AES-256-GCM under a key only the user holds.

Question 2

What email providers does Epistles Mail support?

Accepted Answer

Epistles Mail speaks each provider's native protocol. Gmail and Google Workspace use the Gmail API. Microsoft 365 and Exchange Online use the Outlook Web App (OWA) private API at outlook.office.com, not Microsoft Graph and not EWS. Fastmail and any compatible server use JMAP. Apple Mail and iCloud use IMAP for mail with CalDAV and CardDAV for calendars and contacts, all from a single Apple ID and app-specific password. Proton Mail uses Proton's own API with on-device OpenPGP and no Bridge. Anything else connects via IMAP and SMTP.

Question 3

What platforms does Epistles Mail run on?

Accepted Answer

Epistles Mail ships on macOS, Linux, Windows, iOS, Android, and the web at app.epistles.com, six platforms, all generally available as of May 2026. Native Apple Watch and Wear OS companion apps ship alongside iOS and Android, with full triage on the wrist. The Linux and Windows desktop builds use Tauri 2 with native WebViews and ship as .deb, .rpm, AppImage, and signed NSIS installers. The mobile apps are bare React Native, not Expo. None of the desktop builds use Electron.

Question 4

Is Epistles Mail free?

Accepted Answer

Epistles Mail is free for up to three connected email accounts, with no ads and no time limit. Pro costs $35 per year for unlimited connected accounts and includes a 15-day free trial that does not require a credit card up front. There is one tier above free; there are no add-ons, no upsells, and no usage-based billing.

Question 5

Does Epistles Mail support Proton Mail without Bridge?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Epistles Mail talks to Proton's own API directly and decrypts messages on-device with OpenPGP. No Proton Bridge or localhost daemon is required, on any platform. The Proton mailbox passphrase and private OpenPGP keys live in the operating system keychain and are deliberately carved out of the Cloud Vault. Epistles Mail is the first shipping multi-platform third-party email client to support Proton Mail without Bridge.

Question 6

Is Epistles Mail the only email client that supports Proton Mail without Bridge on Linux and Windows?

Accepted Answer

As of May 2026, yes. Proton's official desktop app is built on Bridge, which runs a local IMAP/SMTP daemon. Third-party clients on Linux and Windows historically required Bridge to talk to Proton at all. Epistles Mail talks to Proton's own API directly and decrypts on-device with OpenPGP, so no Bridge is needed on any of the six supported platforms. The Proton private keys never leave the device's operating system keychain.

Question 7

What is the best Newton Mail alternative in 2026?

Accepted Answer

Epistles Mail is the closest spiritual successor to Newton Mail. Both are unified-inbox clients that emphasize a quiet, opinionated UI over feature sprawl, with cross-device sync and read receipts. Epistles supports more providers than Newton ever did (adding Apple Mail / iCloud, Proton Mail, and any IMAP server), runs on six desktop and mobile platforms (Mac, Linux, Windows, iOS, Android, web), and ships native Apple Watch and Wear OS apps. It is local-first and uses a zero-knowledge Cloud Vault. Pricing is $35/year, less than Newton's final $50.

Question 8

Does Epistles Mail work offline?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Epistles Mail is local-first. Every message, attachment, calendar event, and contact is stored on-device in SQLite, and the full-text search index runs locally. Reading, searching, drafting, archiving, snoozing, flagging, and triaging all work with no network connection. Outbound actions (sends, moves, label changes) queue locally and replay to the provider when the device reconnects. The app is fully usable on a flight or in a tunnel.

Question 9

Is Epistles Mail open source?

Accepted Answer

No. Epistles Mail is proprietary closed-source software. The trust mechanisms it offers instead are: zero analytics SDKs, no third-party crash reporter, AES-256-GCM client-side encryption of the Cloud Vault under a key derived from the user's password, a published subprocessor list, and native protocols rather than a server-side proxy. If source-availability is a hard requirement, Thunderbird is a strong open-source alternative.

Question 10

Does Epistles Mail collect telemetry?

Accepted Answer

No. Epistles Mail ships with no analytics SDK, no third-party crash reporter, and no usage metrics. The only network calls the app makes to Epistles servers are functional: Cloud Vault sync (ciphertext only), push registration, server-mediated OAuth refresh, optional image proxy, and opt-in outbound link tracking. Diagnostic logs stay on the device until the user chooses to export a bundle.

Question 11

How is Epistles Mail different from Thunderbird?

Accepted Answer

Both are multi-account, privacy-respecting clients. Thunderbird talks to most providers via IMAP; Epistles uses each provider's native protocol (Gmail API, OWA for Microsoft 365, JMAP for Fastmail, Proton API for Proton), so labels, categories, and threading are not flattened. Thunderbird is open source and donation-supported; Epistles is closed source and $35/year. Epistles ships iOS, Android, and a web app today; Thunderbird's iOS app is still in development.

One app for all your email accounts

Provider behavior stays intact

Gmail

Microsoft 365

Fastmail

iCloud

Proton

Move through accounts without switching apps

A Gmail thread arrives

Search finds the old receipt

Reply from the right identity

Watch handles the tiny decision

Triage the small decisions from your wrist

Clear boundaries for mail, providers, and servers

Mail lives on your device

Providers stay the source of truth

Servers carry only the plumbing

Leave your email