Terms and license

Last updated on October 29, 2026.

Kestrel is made by Anthony Laibe, an independent developer in France. These terms cover buying a Kestrel license and using the app. If something here is unclear, write to [email protected].

What a license gives you

A license lets you use Kestrel with your own mail accounts on up to three Macs at a time, for as long as it runs. It runs for a year from the purchase and renews each year until you turn renewal off. It includes every update released while it runs.

The license is yours: use it for personal mail or for work, but don’t share or resell the key. Without a license, Kestrel still opens its demo inbox, with made-up mail.

Paying

Payments are handled by Stripe through Link, which sells the license as merchant of record. Link appears on your receipt and bank statement, adds sales tax or VAT where it applies, and its payment terms cover the transaction itself.

The price is $20 a year, shown in your currency at checkout. A renewal charges the price shown when it renews; you get an email before each one. You can turn renewal off at any time from your account or from Link, and the license then runs to the end of the year you’ve paid for.

Checking the license

To activate, Kestrel sends account.laibe.cc your key, a random id for that Mac, the Mac’s name and the app’s version. It checks in again at least every 14 days, so it keeps working offline for up to two weeks. It never sends your mail. The privacy policy has the details.

To move a license to another Mac, deactivate one in your account.

When a license ends

If a license lapses, is refunded or is revoked, Kestrel stops at the license screen until you renew or enter another key. Your mail stays on your Mac and with your provider, and nothing is deleted. A license may be revoked if its key is shared publicly or its payment is reversed.

Refunds

You can get your money back within 14 days of a purchase or a renewal. The refund policy explains how.

The software

Kestrel is provided as it is. It works with services run by others, such as Gmail, your IMAP provider, Apple Intelligence, Anthropic and Cloudflare, and their own terms apply when you use them. Nothing in these terms limits the rights you have under the consumer law of the country you live in.

Apart from what that law doesn’t allow to be limited, Anthony Laibe’s liability for Kestrel is limited to what you paid for it in the twelve months before the problem.

Changes to these terms

If these terms change, the new version is published here with its date, and applies from your next renewal. These terms are governed by French law; if you’re a consumer, you also keep the protection of the mandatory laws of the country you live in.

The publisher’s details are in the legal notice.