Smart Folders — Combine folders and labels across accounts

hburaktasyurek · September 9, 2026, 12:20pm

Description

Smart Folders is an open-source Mailspring plugin for creating named, read-only virtual folders from exact IMAP folders or labels across one or more accounts.

A Smart Folder displays matching messages in Mailspring’s native thread list and reader. It does not create server-side folders or duplicate messages.

Read-only by design: the plugin never moves, copies, deletes, relabels, sends, or otherwise modifies mail. It also adds no telemetry, external service, or
secondary mail database.

Source code:

Features

Create multiple named Smart Folders in the Mailspring sidebar.
Combine folders and labels from one or more accounts.
Select sources using an account-grouped, hierarchical picker.
Use Mailspring’s native thread list and message reader.
Deduplicate overlapping sources within the same account.
Create, edit, and delete Smart Folder definitions.
Receive live updates as synchronized mail changes.
Continue using available sources when a folder or account becomes unavailable.
Work offline against mail already synchronized by Mailspring.

Screenshots

Install

Download and extract the latest release:

https://github.com/hburaktasyurek/Mailspring-Smart-Folders/releases/latest/download/mailspring-smart-folders.zip
Keep Mailspring running.
In Mailspring, choose Developer → Install a Plugin…
Select the extracted smart-folders directory.
Confirm that Smart Folders appears in the main sidebar.

No build or npm install step is required.

Compatibility

Verified with:

Mailspring 1.23.0-5b371811
macOS 26.6.2

Windows, Linux, and other Mailspring releases have not yet been tested.

Getting Help

For questions, bug reports, or feature requests:

Contribution guide:

github.com/hburaktasyurek/Mailspring-Smart-Folders

CONTRIBUTING.md

main

# Contributing to Mailspring Smart Folders

## Report bugs first

Open a [GitHub Issue](https://github.com/hburaktasyurek/Mailspring-Smart-Folders/issues) before preparing a bug-fix pull request. Describe the expected and observed behavior, reproduction steps, Mailspring version, operating system, plugin version, and whether the sources are folders or labels. Redact account names, email addresses, message content, and local paths.

## Set up and verify changes

1. Clone [hburaktasyurek/Mailspring-Smart-Folders](https://github.com/hburaktasyurek/Mailspring-Smart-Folders).
2. Run the project verification command:

   ```sh
   npm test
   ```

   The test suite uses Node's built-in test runner and has no external dependencies.
3. For a UI change, install the changed plugin directory in Mailspring using **Developer > Install a Plugin...** and manually exercise the affected sidebar, editor, and context-menu behavior. Use the tested configuration when available: Mailspring `1.23.0-5b371811` on macOS `26.6.2`.

## Protect mail and privacy

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The plugin is licensed under GNU GPL v3 only.