Convey is a new Linux email client based on the code of Geary, remade with a GTK4/libadwaita UI and support for Microsoft 365 accounts.
Somewhat like traditional mail, it arrives not long after I wrote about another new Linux email client, Postcard, which also draws its inspiration from Geary – the source being much-loved by Linux users, but whose last stable release was in 2024.
Convey is a self-described hard fork of Geary so, unlike Postcard, it isn’t a tribute so much as a continuation – albeit an unofficial one: the Flathub listing is clear that it is “not affiliated with or endorsed by the GNOME Foundation”.
I wrote about Geary’s first release in 2012 and covered it regularly. On launch, its use of webmail-like conversation threading (grouping an entire back-and-forth in one rather than display each reply as a separate message) was fairly novel in Linux email clients of the era.
Obviously, it’s less of a USP in 2026 as everything uses threading now – no surprise that Convey continues to stick to it, and also retains Geary’s standard 3-pane layout.
But Convey has ported the UI to GTK4/libadwaita. This looks more in keeping with modern desktops, sure, but also integrates and follows modern system features, keyboard shortcuts much better too.
Convey also updated the plugin architecture to use newer versions of core GNOME security and cryptographic libraries, and added a Microsoft Graph backend to support Outlook and Microsoft 365 accounts.
Other improvements in Convey v50.0:
- Add, rename and delete folders from the sidebar
- Keyboard navigation between panes
- Message colours follow system dark mode preference
- Address completion is now a navigable dropdown
In all, a welcome revival of an old(ish) fave.
It’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Geary is not dead – it’s available to install and continues to work – but it isn’t actively maintained. The last new stable release was v46 in May 2024. Prior to that, development had slowed.
Can it stand out against other new mail apps?
Linux has seen an uptick in new desktop email clients over the past 12 months, with AI coding tools playing a role in many. Convey‘s code has signs of AI assistance, though neither its GitLab repo nor its Flathub listing mentions it.
Either way, it stands apart by virtue of its lineage – but what next?
Geary was popular because it offered a lightweight, simple-to-use email client at a time when Linux desktop mail was still dominated by “groupware” suites, dated interfaces and fiddly configuration.
Things have come a long way since then so it’ll be interesting to see if Convey has also hard-forked Geary in spirit, or merely in ancestry.