Email Body Templates#
When you compose a new email, reply to a message, or forward one, NeoMutt assembles a template for the message body before opening your editor. This guide shows you how to control each part of that template.
Body Layout#
The template is built from several blocks. Their order depends on the action you’re performing and your settings.
New Email#
┍Greeting
│ (your cursor starts here)
┕Signature
Reply#
┍Greeting
│Attribution Intro
│> Quoted original message
│Attribution Trailer
┕Signature
Reply ($sig_on_top enabled)#
┍Greeting
│Signature
│Attribution Intro
│> Quoted original message
┕Attribution Trailer
Forward (inline)#
┍Greeting
│Forward Intro
│Original message text
│Forward Trailer
┕Signature
Forward (inline, $forward_quote enabled)#
┍Greeting
│Forward Intro
│> Quoted original message
│Forward Trailer
┕Signature
Greeting#
The $greeting line is placed at the very top of every message — new, reply, or forward.
It supports expandos that reference the recipient, so you can personalise it.
set greeting = "Hi %n,"
This produces, for example:
Hi Alice,
Attribution (Replies)#
When you reply to a message, NeoMutt wraps the quoted original text between two attribution lines.
Attribution Intro#
$attribution_intro is placed before the quoted text.
The default is:
set attribution_intro = "On %d, %n wrote:"
This produces something like:
On Mon, 31 Mar 2025, Alice wrote:
Attribution Trailer#
$attribution_trailer is placed after the quoted text.
By default it is empty.
Set it if you’d like closing text after the quoted block:
set attribution_trailer = "-- end of quoted message from %n --"
Attribution Locale#
$attribution_locale controls the locale used when formatting dates in $attribution_intro and $attribution_trailer.
This affects how the %d expando renders:
set attribution_locale = "de_DE.UTF-8"
With this setting, the date in the attribution intro would be formatted according to German conventions.
Quoting (Indent String)#
$indent_string is the prefix added to each line of the original message when quoting it in a reply.
The default is > :
set indent_string = "> "
A reply then looks like:
On Mon, 31 Mar 2025, Alice wrote:
> Thanks for getting back to me.
> I'll review the document tonight.
Forwarding#
Forward Subject#
$forward_format controls the Subject line of forwarded messages.
It does not affect the message body:
set forward_format = "[%a: %s]"
This produces a subject like [alice@example.com: Meeting notes].
Forward Intro and Trailer#
$forward_attribution_intro and $forward_attribution_trailer wrap the forwarded message body, similar to how attribution lines wrap replies:
set forward_attribution_intro = "----- Forwarded message from %f -----"
set forward_attribution_trailer = "----- End forwarded message -----"
The result:
----- Forwarded message from Alice Langley <alice@example.com> -----
(original message text)
----- End forwarded message -----
Both expandos also honour $attribution_locale for date formatting.
Forward Quoting#
By default, forwarded text is included verbatim.
Set $forward_quote to prefix each line with $indent_string, just like a reply:
set forward_quote = yes
Signature#
$signature points to a file (or a command) whose contents are appended to the message:
set signature = "~/.signature"
Signature Separator#
$sig_dashes (enabled by default) inserts the standard -- separator line before your signature.
Disable it if your signature file already contains the separator or you don’t want one:
set sig_dashes = no
Signature Placement#
By default the signature goes below the quoted text.
Enable $sig_on_top to place it above the quoted text, between the greeting and the attribution — this is the “top-posting” style:
set sig_on_top = yes
Putting It All Together#
Here is a complete example for replies in bottom-posting style:
set greeting = "Hi %n,"
set attribution_intro = "On %d, %n wrote:"
set attribution_trailer = ""
set indent_string = "> "
set signature = "~/.signature"
set sig_dashes = yes
set sig_on_top = no
The resulting reply template:
Hi Alice,
On Mon, 31 Mar 2025, Alice wrote:
> Thanks for getting back to me.
> I'll review the document tonight.
--
Bob
And a top-posting configuration:
set sig_on_top = yes
Hi Alice,
--
Bob
On Mon, 31 Mar 2025, Alice wrote:
> Thanks for getting back to me.
> I'll review the document tonight.
Which Options Apply Where#
Config Variable |
New Email |
Reply |
Forward |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
||
✓ |
||||
✓ |
||||
✓ |
✓ |
|||
✓ |
✓ 1 |
Only when |
||
✓ |
||||
✓ |
||||
✓ 2 |
Controls the Subject line, not the body |
|||
✓ |
||||
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
||
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
||
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
📷 Screenshot Needed
Subject: Reply template in the editor
Description: The NeoMutt editor showing a reply message with the greeting (“Hi Alice,”), attribution intro (“On …, Alice wrote:”), quoted original text prefixed with “> “, and the signature block below, separated by “– “.
Highlights: Each labelled section of the template: greeting, attribution intro, quoted text with indent string, and signature with sig-dashes separator.
📷 Screenshot Needed
Subject: Forward template in the editor
Description: The NeoMutt editor showing a forwarded message with the greeting, forward attribution intro (“— Forwarded message from …”), the original message body, the forward attribution trailer (“— End forwarded message —”), and the signature.
Highlights: The difference from a reply — forward intro/trailer
instead of attribution intro/trailer, and unquoted body text (with
$forward_quote disabled).
📷 Screenshot Needed
Subject: Signature placement — top vs bottom
Description: Two side-by-side NeoMutt editor views of the same reply:
one with $sig_on_top = no (signature after the quoted text) and one
with $sig_on_top = yes (signature between the greeting and the quoted
text).
Highlights: The position of the “– “ separator and signature text relative to the quoted block.
See Also#
Compose Flow — the full step-by-step composition sequence
Forward and Bounce Mail — forwarding methods and MIME vs inline
Format Strings — how expandos like
%nand%dwork