Best email clients
Mail apps for desktop, phone and web, plus privacy-focused and independent email providers, from free webmail to encrypted and open-source options.
32 apps, ordered by visits from AppBreakup and how often our research lists each one as an alternative. Open any app to see its alternatives.
All email clients
- Alternatives to Spark
Cross-platform email app from Readdle with a smart inbox, AI writing and shared team inboxes.
Free plan + paidmacOS, Windows, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Proton Mail
End-to-end encrypted email from Switzerland, with a free plan and open-source apps.
Free plan + paidOpen sourceWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Thunderbird
Free, open-source email, calendar and contacts app for Windows, Mac, Linux and Android.
Open sourceWindows, macOS, Linux, Android - Alternatives to Fastmail
Independent, ad-free paid email with calendars, custom domains and masked addresses.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to mailbox.org
German privacy-focused email and office suite with low per-user plans and custom domains.
PaidWeb - Alternatives to Superhuman Mail
A premium, keyboard-driven email client with AI features for Gmail and Outlook accounts.
PaidWeb, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android - Alternatives to BlueMail
Free email app for iOS, Android, Mac, Windows and Linux with unified inbox and PGP.
Free plan + paidWindows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Tuta
Open-source encrypted email and calendar from Germany, formerly called Tutanota.
Free plan + paidOpen sourceWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Gmail
Google's free webmail and mobile mail app, and the email service most people already have.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Canary Mail
Cross-platform email client with PGP encryption, read receipts and an AI copilot.
Free plan + paidmacOS, Windows, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft's email and calendar app, covering free Outlook.com accounts and Microsoft 365 work mail.
Free plan + paidWeb, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Mailspring
Open-source desktop email client for Mac, Windows and Linux with optional Pro features.
Free plan + paidOpen sourcemacOS, Windows, Linux - Alternatives to Airmail
A customisable email client for Mac, iPhone, iPad and Vision Pro with many app integrations.
Free plan + paidmacOS, iOS - Alternatives to Posteo
- Alternatives to Mimestream
A native macOS email client built specifically for Gmail and Google Workspace accounts.
PaidmacOS - Alternatives to eM Client
A full-featured Windows and Mac email client with calendar, tasks, PGP and Exchange support.
Free plan + paidWindows, macOS - Alternatives to HEY
37signals' paid email service that screens new senders and sorts mail into the Imbox, Feed and Paper Trail.
PaidWeb, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Apple Mail
The free mail app built into macOS, iOS and iPadOS that works with iCloud, Gmail and Exchange.
FreemacOS, iOS - Alternatives to Zoho Mail
Ad-free business email on your own domain, with a free plan for small teams.
Free plan + paidWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Shortwave
An AI-first email client for Gmail with an agent that searches, sorts and drafts for you.
PaidWeb, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android - MaAlternatives to MailMate
A keyboard-driven IMAP email client for macOS with Markdown composing and powerful search.
Free plan + paidmacOS - Alternatives to Geary
A lightweight open-source email client for the GNOME desktop, built around conversations.
Open sourceLinux - Alternatives to Mailfence
Belgian secure email suite with OpenPGP encryption, calendar and documents, plus a free plan.
Free plan + paidWeb - Alternatives to StartMail
Private, ad-free email from the Netherlands with unlimited aliases and easy encryption.
PaidWeb, iOS, Android - Alternatives to NeoMutt
A command-line email client for the terminal, forked from Mutt with extra features.
Open sourceLinux, macOS - EdAlternatives to Edison Mail
A free multi-account email app for iPhone, Android and Mac with fast unsubscribe and sender blocking.
Free plan + paidmacOS, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Missive
A team email client with shared inboxes, internal chat, assignments and SMS in one app.
PaidWeb, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Mailbird
A desktop email client for Windows and Mac with a unified inbox and built-in app integrations.
Free plan + paidWindows, macOS - Alternatives to FairEmail
Open-source, privacy-focused email app for Android with very detailed settings.
Open sourceAndroid - Alternatives to Spike
Email shown as chat, combined with team channels, docs and AI in one workspace.
Free plan + paidWeb, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android - Alternatives to Roundcube
Free, open-source webmail you install on your own server to read IMAP mail in a browser.
Open sourceSelf-hostableWeb, Self-hosted - Alternatives to Yahoo Mail
Free, ad-supported webmail with mobile apps and an optional paid ad-free tier.
Free plan + paidWeb, iOS, Android
Our picks by need
Best for most people
SparkBest for a free option
ThunderbirdBest for open source
Proton MailBest for self-hosting
RoundcubeBest for Mac
Superhuman MailBest for Windows
BlueMailBest for Linux
TutaBest for iPhone and Android
FastmailPopular comparisons
Common questions
What are the best email clients?
Based on how often our research lists them as alternatives and visits from AppBreakup, the leading email clients right now are Spark, Proton Mail, Thunderbird, Fastmail and mailbox.org.
Are there free email clients?
Yes. Spark (free plan + paid), Proton Mail (free plan + paid), Thunderbird (open source), BlueMail (free plan + paid) and Tuta (free plan + paid) have a free option, out of 23 free or freemium apps we track.
Which email clients are open source?
Proton Mail, Thunderbird, Tuta, Mailspring, Geary and NeoMutt, and 2 more.