Braid
Braid app iconBraidAlpha

One fast inbox for every address you own.

A keyboard-first, local-first mail client for the Mac.

Download for MacGitHub

Free and open source · macOS 11 or later · Gmail and Google Workspace

The Braid window: accounts and mailboxes on the left, the inbox with bucket tabs in the middle, a conversation open on the right

Why Braid

Mail at the speed you think.

Fast

Your mail lives in SQLite on your Mac, with a full-text index. Search answers as you type, switching is instant, and it works offline. New mail arrives in seconds.

Keyboard-first

Every action has a key, and you can change them. ⌘K runs any command by name, or a plain sentence like "archive everything from github".

Sorted for you

New mail lands in buckets: Important, People, Receipts and your own, described in plain words. Sorting uses Jev or Claude Haiku with your own key. It's optional.

Private

Your mail database stays on your Mac. Braid talks to Google directly, with no Braid server or telemetry. Optional AI sends limited email content directly to Jev or Anthropic only after you add your own key.

Braid in action

j j j to move, e to archive, ⌘K "archive everything from github", then the buckets menu.

Feature tour

Everything a mail client needs, nothing in the way.

The More menu listing buckets with counts
Buckets. Pin the tabs you use; the rest wait under More.
The command bar understanding 'archive everything from github'
Command bar. ⌘K takes a command name or a plain sentence.
A calendar invite with the day around it and a clash flagged
Invites. See your day and clashes, answer with ⇧Y / M / N.
A PDF attachment open in the preview
Attachment preview. Space opens PDFs, images and text in place.
The composer with bold text, a list, an underline and two attachments
Rich composer. Markdown-style typing, attachments, undo send, Send later.
The label picker with nested labels and checkboxes
Gmail labels. l labels, v moves, nested labels keep Gmail's colours.
The From picker in a reply, listing three send-as addresses
Drafts and send-as. Drafts sync with Gmail; reply from any of your addresses.
The Block sender dialog explaining what happens
Mute and block. m silences a thread, ⌥! sends a sender to Spam.
The conversation's More menu with Print conversation at the top
Print. ⌘P prints a conversation, or one message, cleanly.
Settings, Shortcuts, with one shortcut waiting for new keys
Your shortcuts. Rebind any key in Settings, or turn single keys off.

Also: several Gmail accounts together or one at a time, search with from: to: subject: has: is: label: before: after:, offline changes that sync when you're back, summaries and reply drafts with your own Anthropic key, and HTML mail in a sandbox with remote images blocked until you allow them.

Keyboard

Your hands stay on the keys.

Press ? in the app for the full sheet. These are the ones you'll use most, and every one can be changed.

j/k
Next / previous conversation
e
Archive
#
Move to Trash
s
Star
x
Select
/
Search
c
New message
r/a/f
Reply / reply all / forward
h
Snooze until tomorrow
l/v
Label / move to label
b
Move to bucket
⌘K
Command bar

Privacy

Your mail, stored on your Mac.

Braid stores your mail locally and connects directly to Google, with no Braid servers. Optional AI sends limited email content directly to your chosen provider.

Read the privacy policy

  • Stored locally. Mail, the search index and settings live in one folder on your Mac.
  • No Braid server. Braid talks to Google directly: sign-in, the Gmail API and IMAP.
  • No telemetry. No analytics, no tracking, no crash reporting that phones home.
  • AI is optional. Off unless you add your own Jev or Anthropic key. Then limited email content goes directly from your Mac to that provider.

Open source

Free software, in the open.

Braid is licensed under the AGPL-3.0. If you want to use its code without releasing your own source under the AGPL, a commercial license is available. Contributors sign a short CLA and keep the copyright to their work.

Source on GitHubLicensingContributing