diff --git a/main.go b/main.go
index f9c8c75..99286c3 100644
--- a/main.go
+++ b/main.go
@@ -88,6 +88,9 @@ func main() {
 	if config.DataDir == "" {
 		home, _ := os.UserHomeDir()
 		config.DataDir = filepath.Join(home, ".message-center")
+	} else if strings.HasPrefix(config.DataDir, "~/") {
+		home, _ := os.UserHomeDir()
+		config.DataDir = filepath.Join(home, config.DataDir[2:])
 	}
 	os.MkdirAll(config.DataDir, 0755)