Notmuch MCP server

This is a small helper that connects your AI assistant to your own email on your computer, using a tool called notmuch. It is handy if you keep your mail in a local folder and want to ask questions about it in plain words. Think of it as letting your AI look through your inbox for you, without sending anything.

What this MCP server does

You ask your AI something about your email, like what is still unanswered. Your AI passes that request to this helper program. The helper then runs real notmuch searches on your computer and reads the matching messages. It hands the results back to your AI, which explains them to you in the chat. Nothing is sent, and nothing is changed unless you turn on extra options.

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What you can do with it

• Search your mail by sender, subject, date, or tag
• Read a whole email thread from oldest to newest
• See a quick one-line overview of a long thread before reading it all
• Find out which messages still need a reply from you
• Check whether a topic has come up before
• List and read attachments, including PDFs and office documents
• Draft a plain-text reply for you to review and send yourself

Try asking your AI

• “What emails are still waiting for my reply?”
• “Show me the whole thread about the budget from last month.”
• “Has this project come up in my mail before?”
• “Find all PDF attachments from 2025.”

What it gives back to you

You get back lists of matching emails, short summaries, or full message text right in the chat. It can also tell you counts, like how many messages match a search. If you turned on drafts, it writes a draft file for you to review. It never sends anything on its own.

Before you start

Who it's for

People who keep their email locally and want an AI to help them search, read, and keep track of replies.