Command
nylas email send
Send an email. Supports scheduling, GPG signing/encryption, and tracking.
Written by Qasim Muhammad Staff SRE
What does nylas email send do?
The nylas email send command sends an email through Gmail, Outlook, Exchange, Yahoo, iCloud, or any IMAP server from your terminal. It supports scheduling with natural language expressions (e.g., 2h, tomorrow 9am), GPG signing and encryption via RFC 3156 PGP/MIME, and open/click tracking with webhook delivery. Use --yes to skip confirmation for scripting and agent automation.
Usage
nylas email send --to EMAIL --subject SUBJECT --body BODY [options]Flags
| Flag | Description |
|---|---|
| --json | Output as JSON |
| --no-color | Disable color output |
| --verbose(-v) | Enable verbose output |
| --config | Custom config file path |
| --help(-h) | Show help for the command |
| --limit | Limit results (most list commands) |
| --yes(-y) | Skip confirmations |
| --to | Recipient email address |
| --cc | CC recipients |
| --bcc | BCC recipients |
| --subject | Email subject |
| --body | Email body (HTML or plain text) |
| --schedule | Schedule send (e.g. 2h, tomorrow 9am) |
| --sign | Sign with GPG |
| --encrypt | Encrypt with recipient's GPG key |
| --track-opens | Track email opens |
| --track-links | Track link clicks |
| --metadata | Custom key=value metadata (repeatable) |
| --gpg-key | Specific GPG key ID to use for signing |
| --interactive(-i) | Interactive mode |
| --list-gpg-keys | List available GPG signing keys and exit |
| --recipient-key | Specific GPG key ID for encryption (auto-detected from recipient email if not specified) |
| --render-only | Render a hosted template preview without sending |
| --reply-to | Message ID to reply to |
| --signature-id | Stored signature ID to append when sending |
| --template-data | Inline JSON object with hosted template variables |
| --template-data-file | Path to a JSON file with hosted template variables |
| --template-grant-id | Grant ID or email for grant-scoped hosted templates |
| --template-id | Hosted template ID to render and send |
| --template-scope | Hosted template scope: app or grant |
| --template-strict | Fail if a hosted template references missing variables |
| --track-label | Label for tracking (used to group tracked emails) |
Examples
The nylas email send command sends an email through Gmail, Outlook, Exchange, Yahoo, iCloud, or any IMAP server from your terminal.
Basic send
nylas email send --to user@example.com --subject "Quick note" --body "Hello!" --yesSchedule for later
nylas email send --to team@company.com --subject "Reminder" --body "..." --schedule 2hGPG signed and encrypted
nylas email send --to legal@partner.com --subject "Contract" --body "..." --sign --encryptExample output
✓ Email sent
Message ID: msg_abc123
To: alice@example.com
Subject: Q3 planningTroubleshooting
Send fails with auth error
Run nylas auth config and nylas auth login to connect an account.
GPG encrypt fails
Ensure recipient has a public key. Use nylas email send --list-gpg-keys to verify your keys.
Recommended guides
List Fastmail emails from the CLI
List Fastmail emails from the CLI through Nylas IMAP access, using app passwords, inbox filters, JSON output, and Fastmail-specific auth troubleshooting.
Why Cloud Servers Block SMTP Ports
AWS, GCP, and Azure block outbound SMTP port 25 while ports 587 and 465 stay open. Confirm the block and send email over an HTTPS API instead.
Send Email From a Docker Container
Cloud providers block SMTP port 25 from containers. Send email over an HTTPS API on port 443 with one command and no mail daemon at all.
MailerSend vs Nylas: Email Compared
MailerSend sends transactional email from verified domains. Nylas reads and syncs user inboxes across 6 providers. Compare features, pricing, and use cases.
Customer.io vs Nylas: Email Compared
Customer.io sends lifecycle emails to your user base. Nylas reads and sends from real user inboxes via OAuth. Compare use cases, pricing, and AI agent support.
Knock vs Nylas: Notifications vs Email API
Knock delivers multi-channel product notifications via workflows; Nylas provides two-way email and calendar sync. Compare scope, pricing, and agent support.
Run nylas email send --help for full help output.