Pebble

Pebble

A local-first desktop email client for people who want a calmer, more private inbox.

简体中文 · Releases · License

Overview

Pebble is a desktop mail client built with Rust, Tauri, and React. It keeps mail data, the search index, attachments, rules, and application settings on your device by default.

The app is designed around a few practical ideas:

• Your mailbox should stay readable, fast, and quiet.
• Email workflows should be local-first instead of cloud-dashboard-first.
• Privacy controls should be explicit, visible, and easy to override per message.
• Search, snooze, rules, and a Kanban board should work together instead of living in separate tools.

Pebble currently supports Gmail, IMAP, POP3, and experimental Outlook accounts.

Highlights

Local-first privacy

• Local SQLite database for messages, folders, labels, rules, and settings.
• Local Tantivy full-text index for fast search.
• Attachments are stored on disk under the app data directory.
• OAuth tokens and credentials are encrypted with a per-device key.
• No telemetry.
• Network requests are limited to features you configure: mail sync, translation, and optional WebDAV settings backup.

Mail workflow

• Unified inbox across multiple accounts.
• Gmail, IMAP, POP3, and experimental Outlook support.
• Threaded and message-list views.
• Archive, delete, star, mark read, batch actions, and restore flows.
• Snooze messages and bring them back later.
• Full-text search and advanced filters.
• Rules engine for automatic organization.
• Email CSS rendering with embedded style support.
• Option to allow invalid TLS certificates for self-hosted mail servers.

Productivity tools

• Local address book with search, favorites, notes, multiple labeled email addresses, and one-click contact actions from message participants.
• Recipient autocomplete that prioritizes saved contacts and falls back to recent correspondents.
• vCard (.vcf) import and export for moving contacts between Pebble and other address books. Re-imports merge by normalized email; existing non-empty local names and notes take precedence over imported values.
• Kanban board with Todo, Waiting, and Done columns.
• Command palette and keyboard-first navigation.
• Built-in translation providers with bilingual reading and customizable shortcuts (T to translate selection, Ctrl+Shift+T to toggle bilingual view).
• Dark and light themes with wallpaper background support.
• English and Chinese UI.
• Optional local file export/import and WebDAV backup for contacts, settings, rules, Kanban cards, Kanban notes, and separately encrypted account secrets.
• Automatic scheduled WebDAV backup with configurable interval.

Platform integration

• Native macOS traffic-light window controls.
• Register as default email client on Windows (Settings > General).
• Tray mode keeps mail sync running while the window is hidden.
• Start hidden to system tray option.
• mailto: protocol handler for composing mail from external apps.

Screenshots

Inbox

Kanban

Dark Mode

Settings

Tech Stack

Layer	Technology
Desktop shell	Tauri 2
Backend	Rust
Frontend	React 19, TypeScript
State	Zustand, TanStack Query
Database	SQLite via rusqlite
Search	Tantivy
Styling	Tailwind CSS and app CSS
Localization	i18next

Getting Started

Install

Download prebuilt desktop packages from the Releases page.

On Arch Linux, Pebble is available from the AUR as pebble-bin:

yay -S pebble-bin
# or
paru -S pebble-bin

Prerequisites

• Rust stable
• Node.js 18 or newer
• pnpm 8 or newer
• Tauri system dependencies for your platform

Profile Storage

By default, Pebble stores the database, search index, attachments, logs, imported backgrounds, and local interface preferences under the system app data directory.

You can opt into a custom or portable profile directory before Pebble starts:

• Set PEBBLE_PROFILE_DIR to an absolute path.
• Put pebble-profile.txt next to pebble.exe; the first line can be an absolute path or a path relative to the executable directory.
• Create a pebble-profile directory next to pebble.exe to store Pebble data beside the app.

The selected directory is used on the next app launch.

Development Setup

git clone https://github.com/QingJ01/Pebble.git
cd Pebble

pnpm install
cp .env.example .env

pnpm dev

The development command starts the Vite frontend and the Tauri desktop app.

Build

pnpm build
pnpm build:windows
pnpm build:macos
pnpm build:linux

Desktop bundles are written under target/release/ and target/release/bundle/. On Linux, install the Tauri system dependencies first; pnpm build:linux produces AppImage, deb, and rpm packages under target/release/bundle/. macOS bundles are unsigned unless you provide your own signing setup. After copying an unsigned macOS build to /Applications, run the following command before opening it:

sudo xattr -cr /Applications/Pebble.app

OAuth Configuration

Pebble can connect to Gmail and Outlook through OAuth. IMAP accounts use the IMAP/SMTP credentials configured in the app.

Copy .env.example to .env, then fill the provider values you need.

Variable	Description
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID	Google OAuth client ID. Use a Desktop app client when possible.
GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET	Optional for PKCE flows. Add it if Google rejects token exchange with client_secret is missing.
MICROSOFT_CLIENT_ID	Microsoft public/native app client ID.
MICROSOFT_CLIENT_SECRET	Optional. Leave empty for public/native Microsoft apps.

Useful Scripts

Command	Purpose
pnpm dev	Run the Tauri desktop app in development mode.
pnpm dev:frontend	Run only the Vite frontend dev server.
pnpm test	Run frontend tests with Vitest.
pnpm build:frontend	Type-check and build the frontend.
pnpm build	Build the desktop app for the current platform.
pnpm build:windows	Build the Windows NSIS installer.
pnpm build:macos	Build unsigned macOS .app and .dmg bundles.
pnpm build:linux	Build Linux .AppImage, .deb, and .rpm packages.
cargo test -p pebble-mail	Run the mail crate tests.
cargo check	Check the Rust workspace.

Project Structure

…

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
J / K	Move through messages
Enter	Open the selected message
E	Archive
S	Toggle star
R	Reply
A	Reply all
F	Forward
C	Compose
/	Focus search
T	Translate selected text
Ctrl+Shift+T	Toggle bilingual view
Esc	Close, cancel, or go back

Shortcuts can be reviewed and customized in Settings.

Pebble Web

Looking for a self-hosted web version? Pebble Web provides the same features as the desktop app, accessible from any browser via Docker.

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/QingJ01/Pebble-Web/main/docker-compose.yml -o docker-compose.yml && docker compose up -d

Pebble Web shares the same Rust core crates and React frontend. Deploy it on your own server and access your email anywhere.

Status

Pebble is under active development. It is usable for day-to-day testing, but mail clients handle sensitive data and provider behavior varies. Keep backups of important mail, and verify account actions against your provider when testing new builds.

Contributing

Issues and pull requests are welcome.

For code changes, please keep patches focused and include tests for behavior changes when practical. Before submitting, run the relevant checks:

pnpm test
pnpm build:frontend
cargo check

License

Pebble is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0.

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Built by QingJ.

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