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OfflineIMAP vs fetchmail: catalog facts
OfflineIMAP	fetchmail
Free Free and open source under the GPL.	Free Free, with source code available on GitLab.
macOS, Linux, Command line	macOS, Linux, Command line
Two-way sync into plain Maildir, which any local mail client can read Per-folder rules and filters for what gets mirrored	Supports both POP3 and IMAP retrieval Actively maintained with a public security errata page
Python performance is poor on very large mailboxes Configuration is a hand-written file with many options	Only fetches mail; reading and filtering need other tools Past security issues in optional NTLM support
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: GPL-2.0	License not stated
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 22, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 1, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.