Gmail alternatives

Who Gmail suits

Gmail is Google's email service and its app. Google's Gmail page says that while you may see ads in a no-cost Gmail account, your emails are private. It lists Gemini in Gmail for drafting and polishing emails, and says inbox search with Gemini is available with Google AI Pro or Ultra plans. Google's guide to adding accounts says the Gmail app can also hold non-Gmail addresses such as Outlook, iCloud Mail or Yahoo.

If you're after one free, familiar place for Gmail and little else, Gmail itself is a fair answer.

Why people look elsewhere

These are reasons people commonly give. We're not claiming any of them as faults.

Some want the calendar and tasks beside the mail, so everything about a thread lives in one app instead of three.

Others want an assistant that acts. It should draft and book and file things for them. And it should stop for a review before anything leaves their account.

Then there are people who read a work Outlook address next to a personal Gmail one and want one set of habits for both.

And some just like another app's feel. It can sort and snooze the same mailbox, or search it, the way they prefer, and your Gmail account keeps the mail either way.

Alternatives worth a look

Each of these works on the Gmail account you've already got. Your address doesn't change.

• Otto puts Gmail and Outlook in one app, with a calendar and tasks. The assistant can draft a reply, find a thread, book a meeting or file a message. Anything it sends or books, and any change it makes, waits for your approval. Free covers one connected account. Plus is $6.99 a month and Pro is $19.99 a month, with a lower rate on yearly billing. It runs on the web and on iPhone.
• Spark's Free plan lists a Smart Inbox, unlimited email accounts and a calendar, plus smart notifications. Its home page says it works with Google, Outlook, Exchange, iCloud, Yahoo and IMAP accounts. AI features such as Spark +AI and the AI Assistant sit on paid plans.
• Apple Mail is already on your Apple devices. Apple's account guide says it can set up iCloud and Google accounts, as well as Microsoft Exchange and Yahoo ones, with just your email address and password.
• Outlook holds Gmail too. Microsoft's guide to adding accounts lists Gmail, Yahoo, iCloud and Exchange among the accounts it can hold.
• Shortwave is an AI mail client for Gmail and Google Workspace. Its provider guide says it works only with those. Its home page lists iOS and Android as well as Mac and Windows, and a free start with no credit card.
• Mimestream is a native Mac client. Its home page describes it as made for Mac and optimized for Gmail, and its pricing page lists a 14-day free trial.

If it's a new address you're after

Changing the app doesn't change who hosts your mail. If your reason is to leave Google's service itself, you'll need a different provider, and that's a different job from anything above. Proton Mail, for example, describes itself on its home page as an encrypted email service based in Switzerland, with a free plan that includes one email address and a tool for moving contacts and messages across.

Otto doesn't do that. It connects to the Gmail or Outlook account you already have, and your mail stays with your provider. If a new mailbox is what you're after, a provider like Proton is the better answer.

What they cost

Otto Free costs nothing. The rest are each vendor's lowest paid plan, in USD on monthly billing, taken from their own pricing pages.

Product	Lowest paid plan	Price	Notes
Otto	Plus	from $6.99/month	Pro $19.99/month; $55.99/year for Plus
Spark	Plus	from $10/month	per seat, $8.25/month billed yearly
Shortwave	Business	from $30/month	per seat

We last read these prices in October 2026. Mimestream and Apple Mail aren't in the table. Mimestream's price is on its own page, and Apple Mail has no separate plan we read. Yearly billing is cheaper where a vendor offers it. The plans also differ in what they include, so don't judge on price alone.

Where Otto fits, and where it does not

Otto fits if you want to keep your Gmail address and add a calendar and tasks, plus an assistant that waits for your approval, in an app that also opens Outlook.

It doesn't fit if you want a new address or a different provider, a native Mac or Windows app, or accounts other than Gmail and Outlook. It doesn't connect iCloud or Yahoo accounts, or generic IMAP. Free covers one connected account, and more come with paid plans.

Side by side: Otto vs Gmail with Gemini. For the wider choice there's email apps for Gmail and the roundup of Gmail alternatives. If you want the calendar and tasks next to your mail, see email with a calendar and tasks in one app.

What to test before you switch

Connect one Gmail account and run an ordinary week. That's what we'd do first. Watch for three things. Do your labels and filters behave the way you expect, and does search? Those live in Gmail, so they'll carry over. Are the calendar and tasks the app reads the ones you use, such as Google Calendar and Google Tasks? And does it ask before it sends mail, books a meeting or deletes something?

Your mail never moves, so you're free to go back to Gmail in the same minute. If you take your Gmail filters to an Outlook address, the filter converter turns them into rules.

How we checked this

Last reviewed 2 November 2026. We read Google's Gmail page and account guide, Apple's account guide, Microsoft's account guide, Spark's pricing page and home page, Shortwave's home page and provider guide, Mimestream's home page and pricing page, and Proton's Mail page. Otto is our product, so take what we say about it with that in mind. Nobody paid to be here and there are no affiliate links. We read each product's own pages on 2 November 2026 and didn't run a head-to-head test. Plans and limits change, so check the linked pages before you pay.