Proton Mail
End-to-end encrypted email from Switzerland, with a free plan and open-source apps.
- Verified facts
- 5 of 5
- Alternatives ranked
- 6
- Approved reviews
- 0
- Visits sent from here
- 0
About Proton Mail
Proton Mail is the best-known encrypted email service. Messages between Proton users are end-to-end encrypted, and mail stored in your account is encrypted so that Proton itself cannot read it. You can also send password-protected messages to people on other providers. The company is based in Switzerland, and its apps are open source and independently audited. A free plan gives one address and a small amount of storage; paid plans such as Mail Plus and the Proton Unlimited bundle add custom domains, more addresses, more storage and access to Proton's VPN, Drive and Pass. It runs on the web, iOS, Android and desktop apps for Windows, Mac and Linux, and a Bridge app lets paid users read mail in Outlook, Thunderbird or Apple Mail. The trade-offs: search inside encrypted mail is slower and more limited, the free tier is tight, and features like third-party integrations lag behind Gmail.
Best for: Privacy-minded people and teams who want encrypted email without running servers.
Pros and cons
What works
- End-to-end and zero-access encryption by default
- Open-source, audited apps on every major platform
- Bundles with Proton VPN, Drive, Calendar and Pass
Why people leave
- Free plan has little storage and one address
- Search and third-party integrations are more limited than Gmail
- Using desktop clients needs the paid Bridge app
Top Proton Mail alternatives
See all 6- 1
Tuta66.5Encrypts more of the mailbox, including subject lines and calendar, at a lower price.
- 2
Fastmail62.6Not end-to-end encrypted, but faster search, better calendars and standard IMAP access.
- 3
mailbox.org59.6German provider with PGP support and an office suite, priced per user.
- 4
StartMail57.2Dutch private email with unlimited aliases and works with any IMAP client.
- 5
Posteo55.3A low-cost, anonymous-signup provider in Germany with standard IMAP access.
Why people left Proton Mail
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Proton Mail: common questions
Is Proton Mail free?
Proton Mail has a free plan and paid plans. Free plan: Yes (checked on Proton Mail's own site).
Is Proton Mail open source?
Yes. The source code is on GitHub at ProtonMail/WebClients.
What platforms does Proton Mail run on?
Proton Mail is available for Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android.
What are the best alternatives to Proton Mail?
The highest-ranked Proton Mail alternatives right now are Tuta, Fastmail and mailbox.org. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.