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    Command Linux
    Home - man page - mutt

    mutt

    WillieBy WillieMarch 10, 2026Updated:April 15, 2026No Comments5 Mins Read
     

    NAME

    mutt – The Mutt Mail User Agent  

    SYNOPSIS

    mutt [-nRyzZ] [-e cmd] [-F file] [-m type] [-f file]

    mutt [-nx] [-e cmd] [-F file] [-H file] [-i file] [-s subj] [-b addr] [-c addr] [-a file […] –] addr|mailto_url […]

    mutt [-nx] [-e cmd] [-F file] [-s subj] [-b addr] [-c addr] [-a file […] –] addr|mailto_url […] < message

    mutt [-n] [-e cmd] [-F file] -p

    mutt [-n] [-e cmd] [-F file] -A alias

    mutt [-n] [-e cmd] [-F file] -Q query

    mutt -v[v]

    mutt -D  

    DESCRIPTION

    Mutt is a small but very powerful text based program for reading and sending electronic mail under unix operating systems, including support for color terminals, MIME, OpenPGP, and a threaded sorting mode.

    Note: This manual page gives a brief overview of mutt’s command line options. You should find a copy of the full manual in /usr/share/doc, in text, HTML, and/or PDF format.  

    OPTIONS

    -A alias
    An expanded version of the given alias is passed to stdout.
    -a file […]
    Attach a file to your message using MIME. When attaching single or multiple files, separating filenames and recipient addresses with "–" is mandatory, e.g. mutt -a image.jpg — addr1 or mutt -a img.jpg *.png — addr1 addr2. The -a option must be placed at the end of command line options.
    -b address
    Specify a blind-carbon-copy (BCC) recipient
    -c address
    Specify a carbon-copy (CC) recipient
    -d level
    If mutt was complied with +DEBUG log debugging output to ~/.muttdebug0. Level can range from 1-5 and effects verbosity. A value of 2 is recommended.
    -D
    Print the value of all configuration options to stdout.
    -e command
    Specify a configuration command to be run after processing of initialization files.
    -f mailbox
    Specify which mailbox to load.
    -F muttrc
    Specify an initialization file to read instead of ~/.muttrc
    -h
    Display help.
    -H draft
    Specify a draft file which contains header and body to use to send a message.
    -i include
    Specify a file to include into the body of a message.
    -m type
    specify a default mailbox type for newly created folders.
    -n
    Causes Mutt to bypass the system configuration file.
    -p
    Resume a postponed message.
    -Q query
    Query a configuration variables value. The query is executed after all configuration files have been parsed, and any commands given on the command line have been executed.
    -R
    Open a mailbox in read-only mode.
    -s subject
    Specify the subject of the message.
    -v
    Display the Mutt version number and compile-time definitions.
    -vv
    Display license and copyright information.
    -x
    Emulate the mailx compose mode.
    -y
    Start Mutt with a listing of all mailboxes specified by the mailboxes command.
    -z
    When used with -f, causes Mutt not to start if there are no messages in the mailbox.
    -Z
    Causes Mutt to open the first mailbox specified by the mailboxes command which contains new mail.
    —
    Treat remaining arguments as addr even if they start with a dash. See also "-a" above.
     

    ENVIRONMENT

    EDITOR
    Specifies the editor to use if VISUAL is unset.
    EMAIL
    The user’s e-mail address.
    HOME
    Full path of the user’s home directory.
    MAIL
    Full path of the user’s spool mailbox.
    MAILDIR
    Full path of the user’s spool mailbox if MAIL is unset. Commonly used when the spool mailbox is a maildir (5) folder.
    MAILCAPS
    Path to search for mailcap files.
    MM_NOASK
    If this variable is set, mailcap are always used without prompting first.
    PGPPATH
    Directory in which the user’s PGP public keyring can be found.
    TMPDIR
    Directory in which temporary files are created.
    REPLYTO
    Default Reply-To address.
    VISUAL
    Specifies the editor to use when composing messages.
     

    FILES

    ~/.muttrc or ~/.mutt/muttrc
    User configuration file.
    /etc/Muttrc
    System-wide configuration file.
    /tmp/muttXXXXXX
    Temporary files created by Mutt.
    ~/.mailcap
    User definition for handling non-text MIME types.
    /etc/mailcap
    System definition for handling non-text MIME types.
    ~/.mime.types
    User’s personal mapping between MIME types and file extensions.
    /etc/mime.types
    System mapping between MIME types and file extensions.
    /usr/bin/mutt_dotlock
    The privileged dotlocking program.
    /usr/share/doc/mutt/manual.txt.gz
    The Mutt manual.
     

    BUGS

    None. Mutts have fleas, not bugs.  

    FLEAS

    Suspend/resume while editing a file with an external editor does not work under SunOS 4.x if you use the curses lib in /usr/5lib. It does work with the S-Lang library, however.

    Resizing the screen while using an external pager causes Mutt to go haywire on some systems.

    Suspend/resume does not work under Ultrix.

    The help line for the index menu is not updated if you change the bindings for one of the functions listed while Mutt is running.

    For a more up-to-date list of bugs, errm, fleas, please visit the mutt project’s bug tracking system under http://bugs.mutt.org/.  

    NO WARRANTIES

    This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.  

    Willie
    • Website

    Willie has over 15 years of experience in Linux system administration and DevOps. After managing infrastructure for startups and enterprises alike, he founded Command Linux to share the practical knowledge he wished he had when starting out. He oversees content strategy and contributes guides on server management, automation, and security.

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