Email clients may seem as dated as a flip phone, but they’re actually a great way to manage your email. If you’re looking for ways to be a little more productive, a native Windows email app may be what you’re after.
I’ve used Microsoft clients for about 15 years for both work and personal use. They’re generally easy to set up: download the software, connect your email, and then select your settings. And you can connect multiple email accounts to one app, so you don’t have to toggle back and forth between different apps. Some clients are even designed to help you increase efficiency with built-in productivity tools and integration options.
But Microsoft isn’t the only game in town. Depending on how you want to use your email, there’s a Windows mail client for about any situation. For this article, I tested several dozen Windows email clients—and these are the seven best.
The 7 best email apps for Windows
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eM Client for customization
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Thunderbird for a free email client
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Mailbird for people who live in their inbox
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Windows Mail for simplicity
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Microsoft Outlook for email with a robust business platform
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Kiwi for Gmail for Gmail power users
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The Bat! for security and encryption
What makes the best email client for Windows?
How we evaluate and test apps
All of our best apps roundups are written by humans who’ve spent much of their careers using, testing, and writing about software. We spend dozens of hours researching and testing apps, using each app as it’s intended to be used and evaluating it against the criteria we set for the category. We’re never paid for placement in our articles from any app or for links to any site—we value the trust readers put in us to offer authentic evaluations of the categories and apps we review. For more details on our process, read the full rundown of how we select apps to feature on the Zapier blog.
I started my research by defining the category and clarifying what criteria I was basing my reviews on. Here’s what was most important as I tested each desktop email client.
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Compatibility with most email service providers. This was the starting point for my search and evaluation. The best mail app for Windows will allow you to connect to multiple email providers (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo!, etc).
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Ease of use. People of all technical abilities might want an email app for Windows, so I looked for apps that most users will find easy to set up and use.
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Customization. For folks who want more control, I looked for clients that provide a degree of user flexibility for look and feel. I also looked at productivity features such as chat apps, email filtering, pre-made templates, and the like. These are the tools—built-in and third-party—that can make a day spent inside your inbox less stressful and more effective.
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Support. The software should have some degree of support, whether it’s an active user community or a responsive support team.
With the criteria identified, I then searched far and wide for mail clients for Windows that have a relatively broad customer base. I poked around on each vendor’s website to review features and the support offered. For support, I wanted to know if there were recent responses to forum questions (having good support dialogue showed an active community of users and a better chance you’ll get your questions answered). From there, I downloaded each of the clients that fit the criteria and had active support communities.
I made notes on ease of setup and use for each client. For example, several clients required two clicks just to compose a new email, so I marked them as not user-friendly (tough crowd here!). For customization, I set and tested various elements like themes, inbox look/feel, alerts, and options for handling mail such as filtering. I tested and noted the productivity tools that made some clients stand out over others. And, if a client had integration capabilities, I connected it and used it with a popular app like Zoom.
After all that testing, these are the seven apps I’d recommend.
Best Windows email client for customization
eM Client
eM Client’s intuitive, modern UI makes it a pleasure to use, but it may not be to everyone’s liking. Fortunately, you get several dozen themes and the ability to customize nearly every aspect of the UI to make it your very own.
To start, pick your layout: messages on bottom, to the right, or turn them off. Common actions such as reply, forward, archive, and others are conveniently located at the top of your inbox, but you can add, delete, and rearrange what’s shown here by right-clicking on any of the actions. On the right side, you’ll get a list of previous emails with that address to make finding past conversations simple.
For most of the UI fine-tuning, go to Settings > Appearance > Themes. Click on your theme, and select Theme Editor. Want to change hovered-over buttons from your theme’s blue to purple? No problem. Spinning wheels, progress bars, links, and other elements can be changed with a few clicks too.
The handy sidebar shows contact details, past conversations, your agenda, your calendar, and any invitations you may have. These items can also be rearranged and removed. If you need to add a task to your agenda, click the checkmark icon in the sidebar, type in a task note, and select a due date with reminders. eM Client also recently added video meeting integrations with Webex, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and other providers, plus chat integration with Google Talk, Jabber, and a few others.
If you send a lot of emails with the same message, the Quick Text feature lets you create templates to populate the email body with a click. Perhaps eM Client’s Achilles heel is the absence of a mobile app. But if you use a different mobile app, eM can automatically sync to that app so that your emails are always up to date.
eM Client price: Free license available for two accounts; $49.95 one-time payment for the Pro version that includes VIP support, unlimited accounts, and commercial use.
Best free Windows email client
Thunderbird
With Thunderbird, you can specify where your email is stored locally, schedule backups, and manage server settings. It also provides some security features like end-to-end encryption that aren’t found in other clients. Because it’s open source, Thunderbird has a catalog of add-ons by various developers to help enhance the user experience. And it’s all free.
For a mail app for Windows, it doesn’t have the most modern UI—it’s modeled after Mozilla’s browser, Firefox, and uses a tab system. But you wouldn’t choose Thunderbird for its style points anyway. Still, you have options. To see them, click on the hamburger menu at the top-right. From there, you’ll be able to customize the look of the app, select privacy settings, and choose basic functions like email composition options. Themes such as Suave, Dark Fox, and Two Little Birds (shown above) provide different looks for your inbox.
With my testing, Thunderbird was a mixed bag for sending and receiving speeds. Outbound emails were received almost instantly from my web-based Gmail account. But receiving emails in the Thunderbird client took anywhere from 10 seconds to several minutes.
Click Tools > Add-on Options to see the extensions available to get more out of Thunderbird. Smart templates ($5/year) and Quicktext let you create email templates for quick responses. Send Later lets you schedule future times to send emails or send messages repeatedly using rules such as «every two days.»
Thunderbird price: Free
Best Windows email client for people who live in their inbox
Mailbird
One of the more modern and user-friendly email clients I tested, Mailbird’s array of third-party integrations makes managing both email and your most-used apps easy. When connected, the integrations share the UI with your inbox, which makes Mailbird attractive for users who don’t want to leave. Slack, Trello, Google Drive, Dropbox, and Twitter are just some of the apps with native integrations.
To get started, download the client, add your email (or connect to an existing client), and you’re ready to go. As your emails sync, you’ll be asked to select a layout and connect third-party apps. To connect, click on your app, sign in, and you’re ready to go without leaving your inbox. Each app you add appears as an icon in the sidebar for one-click access. With my Slack account connected, I just had to glance at the sidebar to see activity and quickly respond to messages.
One new feature is speed reading, which Mailbird claims will increase your email productivity by allowing you to quickly absorb sentences all at once rather than identifying individual words. First, select the speed read option in an email. Then click how fast (from 100 to 1,000 words per minute) you want the email to play back. Your email will then be flashed on the screen one word at a time at your desired speed.
One way to use your inbox without resorting to other tools is the Snooze feature. If you want to be reminded of an event such as a webinar, right-click the email, pick a date and time, and the email will appear back in your box at that moment. It will also be stored in your Snooze folder to let you see what’s coming up. With the unified mailbox feature, you can add multiple email accounts and manage all emails and folders from your one inbox.
Mailbird price: From $39/year for Mailbird Personal or a one-time $95. The Business plan ($59 annually) adds priority and Exchange support and unlimited email tracking.
Best Windows email client for simplicity
Windows Mail
I’ve used the Windows Mail app regularly since the ’90s and continue to use it as a secondary email account because it’s both free and simple to use.
Click the settings wheel to find all your available options, from personalization to notifications. You can create a signature and set up basic automatic replies. Personalization lets you create a few different themes with accent and background colors.
One feature I like is the Focused inbox—a filter that learns which emails you read regularly and places these in a separate inbox. All other emails are put in the Other inbox. You can specify Other emails to be moved to the Focused inbox by right-clicking and selecting Move to Focused. There’s also a Microsoft To Do add-on that lets you schedule tasks and create repeatable to-do lists with a few clicks from the taskbar.
You won’t really find many bells or whistles in Mail for Windows—which, for plenty of people, is perfect for your inbox.
Windows Mail price: Free
Best Windows email client with a robust business platform
Microsoft Outlook
Since the ’90s, Microsoft Outlook has been the go-to mail app for Windows for businesses large and small. It’s a sophisticated platform with many advanced features, but it’s still relatively easy to use. And when bundled with Microsoft 365—a suite of several dozen productivity apps including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and SharePoint, among others—it makes for a powerful platform. For any business that wants to buy one email client and never look back, Outlook is that platform.
Once downloaded, click Info > Options to access your settings. To start, you get a handful of themes and seemingly limitless options for organizing all of the functions within the UI. That includes customizing the horizontal top menu (the Ribbon), which contains all your commands for performing tasks. You can add any of hundreds of command options for quick access based on your preferences.
Also within the email client are pre-made templates, built-in dictation, read-aloud text, and rules for managing emails with keywords, flags, sender name, to/from field, and more. And there are hundreds of third-party integrations (called Add-Ins) to customize your experience.
A relatively new productivity suite is Viva, which is included in enterprise plans and available as separate modules for Business plans starting at $4/user/month. Click the blue Viva Insights icon on the top-right ribbon to get your insights for the day: view tasks, prepare for upcoming meetings, things like that. One I found particularly helpful is the daily briefing I got for following up on requests I’d sent. For example, I emailed a contact about trying to get a meeting last week. In the briefing email, I can click Done or Remind me, which automatically sets a reminder for the next day (or a custom date). Or click the bar graph icon above your name to see insights into your productivity. How is your day spent (e.g., meetings, email, calls)? Are you distracted by email? You’ll get productivity tips based on your most recent work patterns.
If you’re set on using the email client developed by Microsoft, it’s not going to be a compromise at all.
Microsoft Outlook price: You need to purchase or own a Microsoft 365 license to use Outlook (after a free trial). Microsoft 365 Apps for Business is $8.25/user/month. Note that Business Basic does not include the desktop client.
Best Gmail client for Windows
Kiwi for Gmail
If you want your Gmail experience replicated in an email client, Kiwi for Gmail brings that—and then some. Not only does it provide the same Gmail UI you’re used to, but it also lets you work on all your Google apps without leaving the client—no opening files in new browser windows.
Once you connect, your Google Workspace is automatically loaded into the UI on the left sidebar next to your familiar Gmail inbox. From there, it’s just a click to open Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Your new window «floats» in the client by default, meaning you can drag it anywhere on your screen without having to perform another step (in Gmail, you have to press Shift + →).
By pressing Control + Alt + Windows + M (these are all essentially right together), you can open a compose window from anywhere you are on your computer. If you need to quickly access a closed document, click on File > Recently Closed Docs.
Because it’s designed to mirror the Gmail experience, Kiwi doesn’t provide many additional productivity tools or customization options, but you can use all of Gmail’s settings to make the inbox your own. And they do offer integrations with Zoom, Grammarly, Boomerang, and a handful of others.
Kiwi for Gmail Pricing: Free for Basic license supporting one account. From $34/year for a Premium license supporting six accounts.
Best Windows email client for security and encryption
The Bat!
The Bat! is a highly secure email client and also one with tools to help you become more productive. It has more features than any other email client, with the exception of Outlook, so learning what each does will take some time. But I found many of the common features, like setting up filters, folders, and rules, were self-explanatory. For the harder bits, the company’s support and forum section are excellent.
«On-the-fly encryption» lets you set a master password when you first launch The Bat! Then all your data (messages, address books, configuration files) will be sent and stored encrypted. You’ll get a warning if an attachment has a double extension (for example, photo.jpg.exe). Executable files cannot be opened from within the client, and with the API, you can add third-party anti-virus and spam plugins.
The Bat! feels more utilitarian than some other clients (and similar to Thunderbird), but it gives you control over the layout. You can select a light or dark theme and from there, fine-tune the UI’s menu and toolbar to include only what you want. Format what appears, such as commands, the font, and the colors in messages. You can change almost any field or box you’re in by right-clicking and selecting Preferences in the menu. This will take you to options for that area/field.
The Bat! also comes with some nice-to-have, fun features. The MailTicker provides a running stock-like ticker on your screen for all unread emails. The ticker’s speed and colors can be customized, and you can drag (or hide) it anywhere on your screen. SmartBat lets you make notes on simple text files like a digital notepad or diary. And the QR code generator lets you quickly generate a code from text, emails, and just about anything else within an email.
The Bat! price: $49.99 for the Home version; $59.99 for the Professional version
What’s the best Windows mail app?
The best email app for Windows is the one you enjoy using. Find the one that best matches how you use your PC, and try it out: other than downloading the software and connecting your email, there’s not much else to do for a test drive. Keep testing until you find the one you’ll feel like spending your day using.
This article was originally published in March 2019 by Joseph Yaker.
The flow of email headed your way never abates, and you need a robust and easy-to-use Windows 10 app to help you manage it all. The Mail app that comes with Windows 10 is more than enough for a lot of people, but there are hundreds of other email apps vying for your attention. If you’ve recently moved to a work from home situation, having a proper email app is no doubt more important than ever. To help you decide which is best suited for you, we rounded up a bunch of the best out there that work with Windows 10.
Free Email
Thunderbird is a free, open-source email client from Mozilla, most famous for its Firefox web browser. It’s full of features that make it easy to navigate and use, and there are a ton of add-ons available for specialized needs. At its core, you’re getting a powerful mail tool with a tab system, built-in web search bar, smart folders, real-time contact chat, one-click address book, and more.
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Part of Office 365
Although Outlook comes bundled in most Office 365 plans, it can also be purchased separately. Outlook supports practically every email service, allowing you to keep track of all your addresses in one spot. Along with calendar and task integration, Outlook has a load of adjustable inbox rules to help keep you in the know.
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Lightweight Client
Mailbird is a lightweight client that won’t bog down your PC, but it can be fully customized to have it look exactly how you want. You can sync all of your accounts into one manageable inbox, and you can create your own quick replies, drag and drop attachments, and even search for messages just by clicking a user’s profile picture. A free trial is available, as well as monthly or lifetime subscriptions.
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Lots of Customization
With plenty of customization options — including those for behavior and appearance — and support for popular email services, you can easily make it feel like you’ve been using eM Client for years. An update added PGP encryption support for anyone who needs to send encrypted emails, plus live backup will now run while you continue working within the app. A free version without all features is available, though the Pro version is a one-time buy.
Simple User Interface
Veteran Windows users will be immediately reminded of the old days when they see the Claws Mail user interface. Don’t let its simplicity fool you; this is an able app geared toward advanced users who don’t mind setting things up on their own, and it works well on older PCs thanks to low system requirements. The retro vibe (and everything else) is completely free.
Have a Conversation
Dealing with traditional email might be starting to feel a bit antiquated, especially in the face of instant messaging apps, but Spike attempts to bridge the gap. It displays email as more of a conversation, with read and send receipts, avatars, and smart organization. Apps are available for Windows 10, macOS, iOS, and Android, and you can give it a shot for free for a personal account, with Pro accounts starting at $6 per month.
If we’re making some suggestions
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If you’re struggling to handle your flow of email in your current app, any of these options will surely help. As far as free options go, Thunderbird is an outstanding open-source app full of features that many can’t leave behind. It’s lightweight so it won’t bog down your system, it’s secure, and it’s stocked with the tools needed to get a handle on incoming and outgoing messages.
As for a paid app, Outlook (opens in new tab) has been treating us well for years. It’s the app many of us know and love, thanks to wide email service support, calendar and task integration, and many more features that work with you rather than against you.
Considering you can buy Outlook as a separate purchase or as part of an Office 365 subscription, you can get your hands on the full suite of Office software for one basic price that includes 1TB of OneDrive storage. Quite the deal.
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Cale Hunt is formerly a Senior Editor at Windows Central. He focuses mainly on laptop reviews, news, and accessory coverage. He’s been reviewing laptops and accessories full-time since 2016, with hundreds of reviews published for Windows Central. He is an avid PC gamer and multi-platform user, and spends most of his time either tinkering with or writing about tech.
We feature the best email clients that make it simple and easy to manage your emails for work or home, on your desktop or mobile device.
These days email is no longer just about sending and managing messages, but now much more about integrating additional software and apps.
Email is still central to most business applications (opens in new tab), regardless of which type of office software suite you use. For some, that means using Outlook with Microsoft Office, but for those using alternative office software (opens in new tab) there are also alternative email clients.
Email remains the primary method of communication between businesses, but there are a number of different ways in which emails can be used and stored.
The first main way is by using an email client, which will often use POP3, SMTP, or IMAP protocols to collect mail directly from a server to your PC or other computing devices. This usually means downloading and installing software for an email client to receive your emails and a server on which to store and collect your email from.
The second main way is using cloud services (opens in new tab) through a web application, which means that you don’t need to download any software or even have a server to collect email from, as everything is stored online by the web app provider. Even better is that as online communications widen, some email providers include additional collaboration tools (opens in new tab) such as video conferencing (opens in new tab) as part of the service.
While email clients may require a little more work to run, they also allow for more control over user data. In other words, only you control your emails, and third parties have no access to them unless you purposefully — or accidentally — allow it.
This can be an important consideration for business purposes, as allowing your email to run through web apps means that although it will be safely backed up, it also means the provider has control over your data, and some companies openly acknowledge that they will scan private emails at least for marketing purposes. Just remember to ensure you have a backup solution in place so you don’t lose your email data.
Therefore while consumers have tended toward the ease of use that web app emails allow, many businesses still prefer to control their own emails through an email server and email clients, in order to protect sensitive business data.
There are a number of email providers on the market, so we’ll look at the best in email clients, before taking a look at additional options, not least email web apps.
Or jump to: Best free email clients.
We’ve also featured the best email providers and best email hosting providers.
The best email clients of 2023 in full:
Why you can trust TechRadar
Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
Best option for Office integration
Reasons to buy
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Trusted by businesses worldwide
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The ‘gold standard’ of email clients
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Integrated with Microsoft Office
Microsoft’s Outlook is the de facto email client for most businesses and enterprises and has been around for decades, with its origins dating back to MS-DOS. Obviously, it has tight integration with other Microsoft services, and that takes email beyond the simple exchange of messages.
Outlook has the advantage of being fully integrated with the Outlook Calendar, making it a snap to share calendars to coordinate meetings. This integration also extends to Outlook Contacts. Outlook is supported for the Windows platform, but also across the mobile platforms of iOS and Android as well.
Microsoft Outlook is available as part of the Microsoft Office suite, which can be purchased as the standalone Office 2016, or the subscription-based Microsoft 365.
Read our full Microsoft Outlook review.
Best full-featured alternative email client
Reasons to buy
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Supports chat
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Boasts encryption
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Modern interface
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For Windows and Mac
eM Client has been around for nearly 10 years now, and throughout that long development, it’s evolved into the best alternative email client for Windows.
It offers a wide array of features, including a calendar, contacts, and chat. Support is provided for all the major email services including Gmail, Yahoo, iCloud, and Outlook.com. The latest version also offers PGP encryption, live backup, basic image editing capabilities, and auto-replies for Gmail.
There is a free tier, but you need the Pro version for commercial use, and that also gives you VIP support and unlimited accounts (the free product is limited to two email accounts). The Pro version has a one-time license fee.
eM Client makes it easy to migrate your messages from Gmail, Exchange, iCloud, and Outlook.com – just enter your email address and the client will adjust the appropriate settings for you. eM Client can also import your contacts and calendar, and it’s easy to deselect these options if you’d prefer to manage them separately.
There’s an integrated chat app too, with support for common platforms including Jabber and Google Chat, and the search function is far superior to those you’ll find in webmail interfaces.
Read our full eM Client review.
Best for general app integrations
Reasons to buy
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Loads of built-in apps
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Affordable
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Customizable interface
Reasons to avoid
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Lacks filters support
Mailbird is an email client that promises to “save time managing multiple accounts,” and to make your email “easy and beautiful”. It comes in two main versions: Personal and Business.
While beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, as they say, it’s undeniable that Mailbird Business offers many free themes to make email a more enjoyable and customizable experience.
Unlike some more Microsoft-centric email clients, Mailbird Business supports a diverse range of integrated apps, including WhatsApp, Google Docs, Google Calendar, Facebook, Twitter, Dropbox, and Slack, all making for a better-streamlined workflow. However, one downside to bear in mind here is that there’s no support for filters or rules to organize your inbox.
Mailbird Personal is available for free, with Mailbird Business available as a subscription or a one-time lifetime license.
Read our full Mailbird review.
4. Inky
Best anti-phishing email client
Reasons to buy
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Built around security
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Finds phishing emails that other clients miss
Reasons to avoid
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Less focus on non-security features
Inky is an email client that focuses on security, using AI and machine learning algorithms to block all manner of phishing attacks that might otherwise get through.
This client uses an ‘Inky Phish Fence’ that scans both internal and external emails to flag phishing attempts. The proprietary machine learning technology can literally read an email to determine if it has phishing content, and then is able to quarantine the email or deliver it with the malicious links disabled. It also takes things a step further and offers an analytics dashboard, which allows an administrator to see patterns of attacks based on dates, or targeted users.
The Inky email client does offer a free trial, but sadly, pricing details aren’t made available on the Inky website. However, the site does note that pricing is per mailbox per month on a subscription, with volume discounts available.
Read our full Inky review (opens in new tab).
Best for time-saving tools that’ll improve email habits
Reasons to buy
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Great calender and scheduling
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Smart productivity tools
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For Windows only
Hiri is a paid-for premium email client that is designed primarily with business users in mind (it currently only supports Microsoft email services including Hotmail, Outlook, and Exchange), but home users will also appreciate its productivity-boosting features.
If you find yourself spending too long managing, reading, and replying to emails, Hiri is the email client for you. It includes a smart dashboard that lets you see how many unread messages you have at a glance and how long you should wait before checking them (after all, how many really need an instant reply?)
The Compose window is designed to save you time too, offering only the essential options (no fancy formatting) and including the subject line at the bottom so you don’t have to write it until you know how to summarize the message.
These little touches make Hiri a truly exceptional client. If Microsoft is your email provider of choice, it should be well up your list. Hiri is available to buy annually or via a lifetime license for a one-time fee. Both options offer a 7-day free trial.
Read our full Hiri review.
Best free email clients:
Google’s webmail juggernaut needs no introduction
Reasons to buy
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Streamlined interface
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Workspace option gives you lots of power
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Good spam filtering
Reasons to avoid
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Paid plan isn’t as cheap as some
First released back in 2004, Google’s Gmail has become the market leader in free email services with more than a billion users across the globe.
Gmail’s stripped-back web interface is a highlight. Most of the screen is devoted to your inbox, with a minimum of the toolbar and other clutter. Messages are neatly organized via conversations for easier viewing, and you can read and reply to emails with ease, even as a first-time user.
There’s plenty of power here. Dynamic mail makes Gmail more interactive, with the ability to take action directly from within the email, like filling out a questionnaire or responding to a Google Docs comment. Messages can be automatically filtered into tabbed categories like Primary, Social, and Promotions, helping you to focus on the content you need. Leading-edge spam blocking keeps your inbox free of junk, you can manage other accounts from the same interface (Outlook, Yahoo, any other IMAP or POP email), and there’s 15GB storage for your inbox, Drive, and photos.
You can also access Gmail offline, although you’ll need Google Chrome for that to work. Furthermore, there is a neat snooze feature that allows you to, well, snooze an email for a specified amount of time (it also automatically labels that email as important).
Other features are more questionable. Instead of organizing messages into folders, for instance – a simple metaphor that just about every user understands – you must filter them using a custom labeling system. This works, and has some advantages, but isn’t popular with all users. Still, Gmail is an excellent service overall, and a good first choice for your email provider.
Google also offers a paid business version of Gmail available in the shape of its Google Workspace (formerly G Suite) product.
This more professional product drops the ads and allows using a custom email address on your domain (yourname@yourcompany.tld). Business-oriented migration tools can import mail from Outlook, Exchange, Lotus, and more. Storage space doubles to 30GB on the Basic plan, and you get unlimited group email addresses, 99.9% guaranteed uptime, and 24/7 support.
Google Workspace is Google’s answer to Microsoft 365, so of course, you also get apps for working with documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. Shared calendars keep you better organized, there’s video and voice conferencing for online meetings, and again, there’s 24/7 support to keep your system running smoothly.
Read our full Gmail review.
2. Mail and Calendar
The email client that’s good enough to come with Windows
Reasons to buy
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Built into Windows 10
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Integrates with Windows Calendar
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Supports multiple email providers
Reasons to avoid
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Less well-featured
While Outlook is a stalwart of the business world, Microsoft has long realized that it is overkill for many home users, so there’s a lightweight email client built into Windows. Way back when, this client was Outlook Express, but it has since evolved and in the latest version of Microsoft’s desktop operating system, it’s known as Mail and Calendar.
For any Windows user, the Mail and Calendar client is an obvious choice, as when you log into Windows 10 with a Hotmail, Live, or Outlook.com address, the account is already added to the email client.
It can also work with other popular accounts, including Yahoo, Gmail, and iCloud. Mail and Calendar has a useful feature known as Quick Actions, which, for example, allows the user to easily flag or archive a message. It’s also integrated with the Windows Calendar app.
Read our full Mail and Calendar review (opens in new tab).
Mozilla’s free but capable email client
Reasons to buy
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Free
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Customizable
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Privacy and security plugins
Reasons to avoid
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Not cloud-based
Mozilla’s Thunderbird is an email client worth considering as an alternative to Outlook and paid-for programs. As you’d expect from the people who brought you the Firebox browser, Thunderbird is a well-developed piece of software.
It’s free to download and installation is easy. Once running, you’ll find it contains all the features you’d expect from an email client. However, what makes Thunderbird different is that there are additional customization options. You can install addons to provide additional features and functionality, and there are some especially neat ones for privacy and security.
Additionally, there are different themes available to download so you can personalize your email experience in a way that you usually can’t with Outlook and others.
So if you’d prefer a free but capable email client you can tweak to give what you need, and change the look from the standard vanilla, Thunderbird from Mozilla could be well worth a look.
However, for those used to a cloud-based email system they can use on the go from any device, Thunderbird can seem a little limited.
Read our full Thunderbird review.
4. Spike
Give your inbox the WhatsApp treatment
Reasons to buy
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Supports unlimited email accounts
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Helpful chat-style interface
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Offers encryption
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For mobile and desktop
Spike is a versatile email client, available for iOS, Android, Windows, and Mac, with a handy web app for those occasions when you don’t have time to spend installing software.
It’s billed as the first ‘conversational’ email app, which essentially means it presents messages and replies in bubbles in real-time, in a style that looks very much like WhatsApp. This works particularly well for the type of short emails that you’re likely to send to friends and family, making it refreshingly simple to keep track of long email chains that would usually be a mess of nested messages.
Spike is free for personal use, with support for an unlimited number of email accounts and up to 10 ‘group chat rooms’. If you’re sick of trawling through messy lists of replies, it’s a breath of fresh air.
For business users, there’s a nominal fee per email account, and enables both voice and video meetings.
Best for collaboration
Reasons to buy
+
Excellent interface
+
Impressive free version
+
Communications platform
Reasons to avoid
—
Not email
Slack isn’t an email client as much as online communication and collaboration tool that aims to replace the need for email.
It’s an incredibly smart platform, and you can get it on mobile and desktop devices. It allows for the sending of direct messages (DMs) and files to a single person or a group of employees, and there’s the ability to organize conversations into different channels (perhaps for specific projects, one for technical support, general chat, and so forth).
The app also supports video calling. You can use the feature to talk to your colleagues about projects and work in-depth, without having to type everything into a DM. While this isn’t a replacement for cloud storage services, you are able to drag, drop and share files with your colleagues directly within Slack. It’s also compatible with services such as Google Drive, Dropbox, and Box.
To round things off, Slack even has a free version, although unsurprisingly it has limitations (in terms of the number of messages stored, overall storage space, and so forth).
Read our full Slack review.
Also check out these secure email providers
We’ve recently been testing out the leading secure email providers (opens in new tab). Check out reviews below to find out more about each service provider:
- Hushmail (opens in new tab)
- Tutanota (opens in new tab)
- Protonmail (opens in new tab)
- SecureMyEmail (opens in new tab)
- Mailbox.org (opens in new tab)
- Posteo (opens in new tab)
- Mailfence (opens in new tab)
- Runbox (opens in new tab)
- CTemplar (opens in new tab)
Which email client is best for you?
When deciding which email client to download and use, first consider what your actual needs are, as sometimes free platforms may only provide basic options, so if you need to use advanced tools you may find a paid platform is much more worthwhile. Additionally, free and budget software options can sometimes prove limited when it comes to the variety of tools available, while higher-end software can really cater for every need, so do ensure you have a good idea of which features you think you may require.
How we tested the best email clients
To test for the best email clients we first set up an account with the relevant software platform, whether as a download or as an online service. We then tested the service to see how the software could be used for different purposes and in different situations. The aim was to push each email client to see how useful its basic tools were and also how easy it was to get to grips with any more advanced tools.
Read how we test, rate, and review products on TechRadar (opens in new tab).
What is DMARC?
- By: Peter Goldstein, chief technology officer and co-founder, Valimail (opens in new tab).
IT professionals navigating the email security landscape often find themselves quickly immersed in recommendations, best practices, and acronyms. When it comes to email authentication though, one name unequivocally stands out above the rest: DMARC.
Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC) (opens in new tab) is an email authentication tool and reporting protocol that protects an organization’s email domains, brands, and employees against domain spoofing (aka exact-domain impersonation). DMARC builds on the previously known email authentication standards of SPF (Sender Policy Framework) and DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail). While these standards are considered effective, they both have shortcomings, most notably around aligning the authentication method to the domain used in the “From” field of an email— what most people actually see.
Hackers love to exploit this security gap through impersonation-based email phishing and use it as their weapon of choice (opens in new tab).
DMARC at enforcement (opens in new tab) is considered the gold standard against domain spoofing because it requires alignment for every email, meaning the “From” field of the email is aligned with what has been verified by either SPF or DKIM.
But that’s just the tip of the iceberg for DMARC’s benefits and power. DMARC also provides critical insights that help to authenticate the email source. With DMARC, domain owners can set a policy that specifies what mail receivers, like Gmail or Yahoo Mail, should do with incoming messages that do not align — meaning messages that appear to come from the domain but fail authentication. DMARC offers three policies:
- None: Tells mail receivers to deliver mail as usual, even when it fails authentication. This provides visibility only. Protection, also known as enforcement, is achieved with a Quarantine or Reject policy.
- Quarantine: Tells mail receivers to put messages that fail authentication into a spam or junk mail folder.
- Reject: Tells mail receivers to reject (and delete) messages that fail authentication.
Finally, DMARC provides a reporting mechanism that enables the mail receivers to provide domain owners with visibility into who uses their domain to send email, where the email originated and its authentication status. This reporting functionality empowers domain owners to fine-tune their email authentication policies to permit only trusted senders to send email on behalf of their organizations.
With phishing attacks on the rise and email as the backbone of many companies’ communications, more organizations adopt DMARC enforcement to extend emphasis on confidence and trust to the safety and security of their email.
Remember this: Cybercriminals always look for the easiest way in. If DMARC is in place and enforced for a particular domain, attackers are forced to either use other complicated and time-consuming impersonation techniques or pick a different target.
5 ways to use email signatures to boost customer satisfaction
Maria Dahlqvist Canton, Head of Global Marketing at Exclaimer, discusses five ways to use email signatures to boost customer satisfaction.
Email communication has its advantages – namely being able to send data and documents to hundreds of people at the click of a button – but it can sometimes feel as though it lacks the personal touch and interactivity that an in-person conversation offers.
Misinterpreted emails can leave customers, other recipients, and even senders, feeling disengaged or leave the interaction with a negative view of the company or the individual.
That’s why I’m sharing my top tips on how to use email signatures to both improve and engage customers in online business communications.
Focusing on the user experience
Giving the customer their say
Adding a personal touch
Helping them along
A uniformed response
Using email on the go? Check out the best smartphones here.
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Brian has over 30 years publishing experience as a writer and editor across a range of computing, technology, and marketing titles. He has been interviewed multiple times for the BBC and been a speaker at international conferences. His specialty on techradar is Software as a Service (SaaS) applications, covering everything from office suites to IT service tools. He is also a science fiction and fantasy author, published as Brian G Turner.
What Makes a Great Email Program for Windows?
Because there are so many email clients out there, choosing the best email app for Windows 10 can feel overwhelming. Luckily for you, we’re here to help you identify what features to look for in mail programs so you can select the best option based on your needs.
When comparing mail apps for Windows 10, you want to make sure you choose an option that is compatible with a variety of email providers, especially if you use a combination of providers for your personal and business email addresses. For example, if you use Gmail for your work mail and Yahoo! for your personal inbox, you may want a program that easily supports both without any effort needed. You should also look for an application that’s easy to set up and use, but leaves room for customizations.
Of course, any program that also integrates with other applications you use on a daily basis or offers other perks that can boost your productivity and save you time is always a plus. For example, some of the best free email programs for Windows also offer integrations with Dropbox, Google Calendar, and other common business applications. Having all the tools you need in one place saves you time and helps maximize your productivity, especially if they also offer email apps for Android or iOS in addition to your Windows device.
Top Free Email Programs for Windows 10 and 11
There are literally dozens of email programs out there that help you combine multiple inboxes in one centralized location. However, all of the best email programs listed below have one thing in common: you can use them for free.
When compiling this list, we didn’t just look for free email programs — we also looked for programs that are easy to set up, compatible with nearly any email provider, and offered some other features that made it stand out from the pack. While some offer unique tools and integration options, others make it easier to do everything straight from your inbox. In other words, at least one of these free email programs for Windows 10 and 11 will meet your needs — it just depends on what you’re looking for.
1. Mailbird — Perfect for App Integration and Putting It All in One Place
Just because email has been around for a very long time doesn’t mean that programs should have a conservative user interface and look as if they were designed for Windows XP. Mailbird is a powerful, beautiful, customizable, and intuitive program that lets you manage multiple accounts at the same time, so there’s just one inbox to check every morning, instead of two, three, or even ten.
It’s available in 17 languages, supports convenient keyboard shortcuts, has snooze and attachment search functionality, and includes unique Mailbird filters. Furthermore, Mailbird integrates with apps like Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Dropbox, Google Calendar, Asana, Todoist, and many others.
Mailbird is a free email app for Windows 10 and 11, however, the free version of Mailbird offers significantly less features than their paid tiers.
In fact, the free version of Mailbird does not support more than one inbox at a time, and it only allows integration with a few other applications. Therefore, to really take full advantage of all that Mailbird has to offer, users must pony up the cash for one of their paid versions.
Mailbird is fairly easy to set up, and mostly walks you through the steps during your first session. However, you can go in and add a new address at any time by going to Menu → Options → Accounts. From there, you can add a new account or make changes to already existing accounts.
Pricing: In addition to its limited free email client version, Mailbird offers a personal version for a one-time fee of $79 (or $3.25/month) and a business version for $399 (or $4.92/month). These versions allow you to hold unlimited email accounts, plus the paid tiers include integration with social media accounts and business applications like Asana.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Beautiful and highly functional user interface
- Unified inbox that lets you manage emails accounts from a single window
- Affordable price
- Third-party app integrations
- Snooze functionality
👎🏼 Cons:
- No automation features or bulk email cleanup functionality
2. Mozilla Thunderbird — The Best Free-To-Use Option Out There
If you believe in open source email software and look for new free email clients for Windows 10, Mozilla Thunderbird is a great choice. This open-source cross-platform and free email client, news client, RSS, and chat client is developed by the Mozilla Foundation, and its strategy is modeled after that of the Mozilla Firefox web browser.
Thunderbird lets you manage accounts that use IMAP, SMTP, and SSL/TLS protocols, and it has a whole host of useful extra features to convince you to give it a try. Its one-click address book allows you to quickly and easily add people to your address book, so you never have to look up an address on the internet ever again.
An automatic attachment reminder displays whenever you forget to include an attachment before hitting send. And you can open multiple tabs in the same window to minimize desktop clutter.
Of course, if you’re worried about Thunderbird lacking in integrations and add-ons since it’s free and open source, then let me put those fears at ease. Believe it or not, Thunderbird offers lots of handy add-ons, not to mention the open source functionality gives developers the opportunity to code their own custom add-ons if you can’t find what you need.
To get started with Thunderbird, download the application, then navigate to Tools → Account Settings → Account Actions → Add Mail Account. Once you’ve added all of the addresses you’d like to support within Thunderbird, you can begin testing out all of its other features.
Pricing: As you’ve already read, Thunderbird is the only completely free email app for Windows 10 and 11 on our list. There are no hidden fees and no catches — it’s all free and it’s all ready for you to test out!
👍🏼 Pros:
- Free and open source
- Tabbed user interface
- Automatic attachment reminders
- Support for various third-party online services and extensions
👎🏼 Cons:
- Doesn’t have full support for Microsoft Exchange Server
3. eM Client — The Best Free Email Client for Windows 10 in Terms of Customization
eM Client is one of the best email programs for Windows 10 and 11 that gives you everything you need for managing emails effectively, and contacts in just one application. Its developers understand that email is a communication tool that works best when it’s integrated with other applications and services.
While you can use eM Client as a stand-alone email program for Windows, it shines the most when you take advantage of its calendar management system that lets you manage your appointments in a beautiful and highly customizable interface, comprehensive contacts with several views and exhaustive fields, and built-in chat functionality for instant communication with friends and colleagues alike.
You can try eM Client for free, but you have to pay for eM Client Pro to unlock all of its features. eM Client is primarily a Windows email program, but there’s also a beta version of eM Client email client for Mac computers, which you can try for free.
To get started with eM Client, download the application. Then, to add your addresses in, navigate to Menu → Accounts → +Add Account. It’s that simple!
Pricing: In addition to the free email client version, eM Client offers a paid version for just $49.99 as a one-time fee. This paid version gives you the ability to connect unlimited addresses, and many other great features.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Comprehensive features with integrated chat
- Easy to set up
- Built-in translation tool
👎🏼 Cons:
- Free version is very limited
4. Windows Mail — A Simple Free Email Program With A Focused Inbox
Windows Mail is the default email program in Windows 10 and Windows 11, and you shouldn’t dismiss it just because you use Outlook at work and dislike it with passion. In fact, Mail and Outlook have very little in common.
Overall, Windows Mail is a lightweight Windows mail app designed with simplicity in mind. While this means Mail can’t do much, but the little it does works great, and it’s just a few clicks away.
Within the settings, you can personalize your inbox a bit, set a custom signature, and program basic auto replies as needed. Additionally, Windows Mail app also offers a feature called «focused inbox.» This filter of sorts that puts the emails you read most often in their own separate inbox so you can easily retrieve your most important messages without sifting through everything else.
Since Windows Mail is already included in your Windows 10 or 11 operating system, you can just search for the program. Then, once you open it, just go to Settings → Manage Accounts → Add Account to add in all of the addresses you’d like to manage from Windows Mail.
Pricing: Windows Mail app is completely free to use, no strings attached.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Free and included with Windows 10 and 11
- Beautiful user interface
- Easy to use
- Support for email signatures
👎🏼 Cons:
- No support for rules and filters
- Limited functionality
5. Mailspring — An Ideal Solution for Anyone Who Searches Their Inbox Regularly
Mailspring is a modern, elegant email client for Windows, Mac, and Linux. The application looks and feels exactly the same across all supported operating systems, making it perfect for users who use a different operating system at home and a different operating system at work. All IMAP/SMTP email accounts are supported, and adding a new account is a simple matter of entering your username and the correct password.
It would be beyond the scope of this article to name all features Mailspring has to offer, but we can’t neglect to mention its advanced search feature with support for Gmail-style search queries. This feature alone makes Mailspring an easy choice for people who need to frequently find a specific message.
Other noteworthy features include a beautiful signature editor that lets Mailspring users create stunning email signatures—no coding required. If you receive messages in different languages, Mailspring can automatically translate them for you into English, and it can also catch all spelling mistakes so that you don’t embarrass yourself by sending a message with an easily avoidable spelling mistake.
To start using Mailspring, go to Preferences → Accounts to set everything up. Then you can go to Preferences → General to customize your inbox view and select a theme.
Pricing: Mailspring offers a free version that is full of features, but their Pro version adds contact profiles, link tracking, actionable inbox insights, and more, all for just $8/month.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Elegant user interface
- Snoozing support
- Integration with Gmail
- Unified inbox
👎🏼 Cons:
- You must have a Mailspring ID
- Doesn’t let you display messages as plain text
6. Claws Mail — A Free Program With Lots of Options for Plugins and Customization
Let’s not beat around the bush: Claws Mail is far from attractive. In fact, we would dare to call it one of the least visually appealing email programs for Windows 10 and Windows 11. But if you can get past the dated user interface, there’s a lot that Claws Mail can offer.
For starters, it can double as an RSS aggregator, so you can use it to automatically check websites for updates. If you don’t care about RSS feeds because you use your Windows email program for email only, you should know that Claws Mail does everything the best free email client for Windows 10 should do and more. It has extensive search and filtering capabilities, supports GPG and SSL, features templates for messages, and provides a great plain-text editing experience.
Even though Claws Mail has been around for nearly 20 years, it’s still just as actively developed as when it was first released. Claws Mail developers are always quick to fix any known bugs, and they listen to users when it comes to requests for new features. For these and other reasons, Claws Mail is one of the best email tools for Windows 10.
To start using Claws Mail, you’ll need to download it from the website. Be advised, you may also need to download additional plugins before you’re fully operational, depending on what features you’d like to have.
Pricing: Like the other open source email programs for Windows 10 on this list, Claws Mail is completely free to use.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Open source and free
- Support for plugins
- Handles multiple email accounts
👎🏼 Cons:
- Adding email accounts is somewhat complicated
- Outdated user interface
7. Postbox — A Powerful App for Busy Professionals
If you’re looking for a modern email program for Windows 10, you’ve just found it. Postbox was created to simplify inbox management and make email more enjoyable to use. Its secret weapon? A beautiful user interface that doesn’t overwhelm the user with a ton of features yet makes it easy to access all important functions.
Postbox works with Gmail, iCloud, Yahoo, AOL, Office 365, Outlook, Fastmail, ProtonMail, and other IMAP or POP email accounts. Regardless of if you use it to manage a single email account or twelve, you can always view all unread messages at the same time or find specific old messages with a single search query.
Reading new email messages is just one part of the overall experience, and the people behind Postbox know this. To help you write messages more efficiently, Postbox features support for pre-canned responses, and it also comes with over 300 pre-formatted clips that let you add pro-styling to your messages without any HTML or CSS. You can try Postbox for free, and its pricing starts at $19 per user.
To set up a new account in Postbox, go to the File, then select New → Mail Account and enter the needed info to set it up. Once you plug all of your addresses in, you’re ready to start taking advantage of all of Postbox’s features.
Pricing: Postbox Express is a free version of Postbox. However, for the full version of Postbox, users must pay a one-time fee of $49.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Modern user interface
- Powerful search functionality
- Pre-canned responses
- Multiple free themes to choose from
👎🏼 Cons:
- No native support for Microsoft Exchange
8. The Bat! — The Best in Terms of Security and Encryption Features
The Bat! is one of the oldest Windows 10 email programs that are still in development. It was first released in 1997, and there are currently two versions of the email software: a Home version and a Professional version.
Both versions of The Bat! are designed from the ground up to protect your messages against unauthorized third parties using multiple encryption streams, including robust end-to-end encryption (E2EE). In addition to encryption, The Bat! also ignores all scripts and executable code included in messages and checks attached file extensions to catch all malware.
The Bat! certainly isn’t a sleek-looking email program for Windows 10 and 11, but its clunky user interface isn’t nearly as unintuitive as it may appear to be at first. It’s just that The Bat! is geared toward more advanced users who are already familiar with most of the features it supports. As a new user, you may feel somewhat lost at first, but we recommend you give it a few days before you give up on it.
Unfortunately, since The Bat! Is a lot more technical than the other programs on this list, you’ll probably want to read over their configuration guide before you get started. However, once you get the hang of it, The Bat! Is fairly easy to set up and use – assuming you don’t let your free trial expire.
Pricing: The Bat! is only free for a limited time (30 days). After that time, you’ll have to pay $49.99 for the Home version or $59.99 for the Professional version.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Open source and free
- Strong security
- End-to-end encryption
- Powerful filters
👎🏼 Cons:
- Clunky user interface
- Geared toward more experienced users
9. BlueMail — Ad-Free Inbox Options on Any Device, Anytime
BlueMail by Blix is a cross-platform email program that works just as well on Windows as it does on Linux, Mac, and iOS. In fact, BlueMail is known as one of the best email app for iPhone as well as for Windows.
You can use it to manage an unlimited number of inboxes in a people-centric fashion. To help you combat inbox clutter, BlueMail automatically clusters similar emails together so that you can spend less time on inbox management and more time on what actually matters.
If you have sensitive eyes, and you’d like to give them the opportunity to rest a bit, you can activate BlueMail’s night mode with a single click. BlueMail can even switch between day and night mode automatically to always deliver a comfortable viewing experience.
What really makes BlueMail one of the best free email programs for Windows 10 is the fact that the free version doesn’t contain any ads and includes all main features except those that target business users.
If you’re ready to get started with BlueMail, go to Various Account Settings → Add Account. Keep in mind that there are some automatically built-in set ups for Gmail and other common addresses. Otherwise, you’ll have to manually add in your address and the relevant settings before you can see your messages displayed.
Pricing: The majority of BlueMail’s features are included in the free version. However, you can pay $4.49/month for the business version or $6.99/month for the enterprise version. These versions net you bonus features like app integration, corporate configurations, and branding options.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Works across all major platforms
- People-centric approach to email management
- Integrated calendar
👎🏼 Cons:
- Occasional sync issues
10. Spike — Modernize Your Email to Collaborate on a Whole New Level
Spike is a relative newcomer to the email software game, but it has done an excellent job of adapting to today’s email standards and becoming a great email client for Windows 10. The application has a sleek appearance and easy-to-use interface and has a web-based option in case you need to access your inbox from another computer on which you can’t install software.
Spike makes emails feel more like text messages, with real-time reply bubbles for casual conversations. However, this doesn’t mean that it can’t be used for professional email management as well, since it allows unlimited email accounts and up to 10 group chat rooms for collaborative efforts.
Spike also includes a savvy notes section and a to-do list that allows you to prioritize certain tasks and messages. The intuitive nature of the program makes it a great Windows email client for both personal and professional email users.
After downloading Spike, just sign in with one of the addresses you’d like to use in Spike. Then you’re ready to get started with the program.
Pricing: Even the free version of Spike includes support for unlimited addresses in a unified inbox. However, Spike offers a paid version for just $12/year that includes additional storage, unlimited message history, and additional features.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Intuitive GUI
- Sophisticated filtering
- Modern appearance
- Unlimited inboxes
👎🏼 Cons:
- Professional version is not free
- Text message appearance can get cluttered for longer messages
Clean Email Can Improve Any Email Program
Are you familiar with the concept of Inbox Zero? This rigorous approach to email management is aimed at keeping the inbox empty—or almost empty—at all times. If you consider yourself to be a tidy and organized person, achieving Inbox Zero is most likely right up your alley.
Although Clean Email isn’t an email client, it is a bulk email organizer that can help you reach your goal of achieving inbox zero. In fact, Clean Email is a useful tool that can help you cut down on your inbox clutter with its powerful filters and rules that automatically move emails into relevant groups that you can then manage in bulk.
For example, you can tell Clean Email to delete all marketing emails that clutter your inbox, label emails from coworkers accordingly, or move all emails from a particular sender to a separate folder. You can also mark all emails as read and instruct Clean Email to apply certain actions automatically to new emails as they arrive.
Before you even know it, there won’t be a single unread email in your inbox, and you’ll be able to enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing that your emails are organized as well as they can be. Clean Email is compatible with Gmail, Outlook, AOL, and all other major email providers.
👍🏼 Pros:
- Free to try
- Easy to use
- Supports all major email services
- Powerful filters and rules
- Automation features
Best Free Email Programs for Windows 10 and 11 — FAQs
Which are examples of email client programs?
Email clients for Windows 10 and 11 are email software programs that can be installed on a Windows operating system. Some examples include Microsoft Outlook, Windows Mail, Mailbird, and Spike. These email programs allow you to access your inboxes and messages without logging into a particular website.
Does Windows 10 have an email program?
Windows 10 comes equipped with the Mail application, which allows you to link any of your mail accounts, whether personal or professional. It might not be the best email client for Windows 10, but it certainly gets the job done for those who don’t need too many bells and whistles.
What is email software used for?
Email software is used to help users access, organize, and filter their messages without going to a website. It can also provide additional security and offer a more intuitive user interface than many standard web-based email programs.
What is the best email program to use with Windows 10?
The best Windows 10 mail app will be different for each person, but Mailbird has a variety of features that allow users to access their messages while maintaining a clean inbox and managing several accounts.
What is the best free email software?
Mozilla Thunderbird is one of the best free mail apps for Windows 10. It is completely free and offers lots of handy add-ons. This makes it among the best free email clients for any device.
Is there a free alternative to Microsoft Outlook?
If you exclusively use Microsoft products but don’t want to shell out the premium for Outlook, you should test out Windows Mail, the default email program for Windows 10 and Windows 11. It is one of the best free email programs for Windows 10 on the list.
Is there a free email in Windows 10?
All Windows computers include a program called Windows Mail pre-installed. However, Windows 10 Mail app is only a simple mail server that allows you to view emails from your Gmail or other email clients through its desktop application.
Is Mailbird really free?
While Mailbird does offer a free use version, however, it is not a completely free email program. Some of the more advanced features are limited or completely excluded from the free version.
Is the Windows 10 Mail program any good?
Windows Mail is a very basic program. While it easily connects to Gmail, Yahoo!, and other mailboxes, it might not be the best email app for Windows 10 as it offers very little in terms of bells and whistles compared to some of the other free email programs out there.
Is there a better email program than Outlook?
Although Outlook is a very popular paid email client program, there are other great options out there. Notable alternatives include Mailbird, eM Client, and Shift.
Almost every professionals and business profiles rely upon email to connect with customers. So, it won’t be wrong to say that emails are still used as the primary mode of communication in the corporate environment even after the existence of such easy-to-use apps.
Usually, most email services available on the internet have a dedicated email client for windows. These email clients eliminate the need to access the web-based panel. Moreover, an email client for Windows has its own set of advantages.
For example, you can manage multiple accounts from different email services through a single user interface with a dedicated email client.
So, email clients end the hassle of installing updates every next day, switching accounts, opening a web browser, etc.
Also Read: How to Trace the Sender’s IP & Location In Gmail
This article will discuss some of the best email clients for Windows 10. The great thing about these email clients is that users don’t need to pay anything for using them.
1. Kiwi for Gmail
Gmail is the most popular email service, but it doesn’t offer any desktop client. The Kiwi for Gmail is an email client that brings the Gmail experience to your Windows desktop.
Kiwi for Gmail is an email client that allows you to use Gmail and Google’s office suite outside the browser as a standalone application. You can link your Gmail account with this email client and can get added features.
Other than that, Kiwi for Gmail can also integrate with various plugins like Grammarly, Zoom, BlueJeans, and more. Overall, Kiwi for Gmail is an email client for Windows that you shouldn’t miss.
2. Inky
If you are looking for an email client that can assure email security, look no other than Inky. Inky is a very secure email client for Windows designed to block phishing attacks.
The great thing about the email client is that it scans internal and external emails to find potential phishing attempts. In addition, Inky brings all the email management features you expect from a dedicated email client.
3. Bluemail
If you are searching for a full-fledged email and calendar app for your Windows, then look no other than Bluemail. Bluemail is a beautifully designed, universal email app available for Windows users.
Guess what? Bluemail is capable of managing an unlimited number of mail accounts. In addition to that, Bluemail supports all popular email services you can think of.
Bluemail is also available for Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS users.
4. Mozilla Thunderbird
If you are looking for an open-source, cross-platform email client for Windows, give Mozilla Thunderbird a try. It’s one of the best and most lightweight email apps available for the Windows 10 operating system.
Compared to other email clients, Mozilla Thunderbird offers you better features and customization options. It can be used to manage multiple email accounts by combining archive, inbox, or sent folder.
5. Zoho Mail
Zoho Mail is probably the best & most trusted business email solution on the list. One can use Zoho Mail to get a custom domain-based special email for business purposes.
The email service also includes a few migration tools that make it easy to transfer emails from other email services. On top of that, Zoho Mail encrypts your email to safeguard your data from the email trackers.
However, to get the maximum benefit of Zoho Mail, you must purchase the pro version.
6. Mail & Calendar
Mail & Calendar is another best free email client you can use. The great thing about Mail & Calendar is that users no longer need to go anywhere to set up and get their inbox running.
The great thing about the free email client is that it allows users to connect to Yahoo, iCloud, Rediff, Gmail, and many other popular email services that support IMAP and POP.
7. Mailbird
It is a third-party online email client that provides many features. The great thing about Mailbird is that it’s free to use, and you can manage multiple email accounts. It doesn’t matter which email service you use.
Mailbird covers everything. Not just that, but Mailbird also features a combined inbox known as ‘Unified Inbox.’ The combined inbox has a dark theme and offers different backgrounds that users can set.
8. MailSpring
It is an open-source email client that is rich in features. The great thing about the powerful email client is that it supports IMAP and SMTP email provides. That means the client covers Gmail, Outlook, iCloud, and other major email service providers.
However, the free email client comes with some limitations. You can’t connect more than four email accounts with MailSpring.
9. eMClient
If you are looking for a powerful and best email client for windows, then eMClient might be the best option. The interface of eMClient is beyond amazing and also houses a dark theme that looks fantastic.
With eMClient, you can manage different email accounts, contacts, calendars, etc. Not just that, but eMClient also got the support of PGP encryption so you can send your emails securely.
10. Outlook
Well, OutLook serves as an all-in-one solution for all your email needs. It has everything that you need to manage your email accounts effectively.
The email client for Windows also has a built-in calendar that you can use to mark important dates.
These are the best email clients for Windows 10, which you can use today. These are the free email clients that you can use without paying anything. So, what’s your opinion on this? Share your views in the comment box below.
We are living in a modern age of information where emails have a huge impact on our daily work life – they are among the most reliable forms of communication in the world of business.
However, keep in mind that communicating via emails isn’t all rainbows and unicorns.
If you’re using multiple email accounts, you must have been aware of how hard and overwhelming it can get to manage your chaotic inbox from a web-based interface.
An email client can come in extremely handy, especially if you want to manage and sync all your emails from multiple accounts in one unified Inbox.
A number of email clients available in the marketplace come only with a blend of basic features, while a few paid ones support exceptional things like data encryption, phishing protection, auto-backups, direct messages, etc.
While shortlisting the best email client for Windows 10, it is important that you pay close attention to the productivity-boosting features that it claims to provide.
To help you decide which is right for you, we made a comprehensive list of the best Windows email clients 2021 has to offer.
Before we move on to them, let’s take a glimpse at the email client usage data of some of the most popular email service providers:
Email Client Market Share
According to the Litmus Email Analytics report, here are the top leading email clients used by people around the world (Statistics as of 1 December 2020):
- Apple iPhone – 38%
- Gmail – 27%
- Apple Mail – 12%
- Outlook – 9%
- Yahoo! Mail – 5%
- Samsung Mail – 2%
- Apple iPad – 2%
- Google Android – 1%
- Windows Live Mail – 0%
- Outlook.com – 0%
These email clients can be used for both personal and commercial purposes. Now, without further ado, we present you our choices for the best email programs for Windows 10. Let’s check them out.
Best Free & Paid Desktop Email Clients For Windows In 2021
Below are some of the best email clients for Windows 10 available in the industry. Let’s scroll through the list!
1. Gmail (Free)
Supported platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, Mobile, and Web
Google’s webmail juggernaut, Gmail first came into existence in 2004 and now after almost 16 years still ranks among the world’s leading free email services available today.
Gmail is available completely free of charge for personal use, but if you want to enjoy additional business-oriented collaboration tools, you can purchase a G Suite license for a cheap price, starting at $6 per user.
Read More: 11 Best Email Marketing Software To Grow Your Business
Notable Offerings:
- 15GB of free storage space
- Automatically blocks spam messages to keep your account clutter-free
- It lets you manage multiple accounts through a single inbox, including non-Gmail ones such as Yahoo, Outlook, etc.
- Social and marketing messages are neatly sorted into different categories
2. Mailbird (Paid)
Supported platforms: Windows 7, 8 and 10
In today’s competitive marketplace, Mailbird is one of the world’s best Windows email clients, trusted by millions of users for managing multiple accounts effortlessly.
An intuitive and beautifully designed interface that comes with a lot of useful features and lets you connect with all of your favorite apps (Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Google Docs, etc.) from one screen.
Notable Offerings:
- Unified inbox
- Email speed reader
- Connect via Linkedin in just one-click
- The excellent attachment search option
- Powerful inline reply feature
- Multi-language support
- Round-the-clock email support for free
3. Microsoft Outlook (Paid)
Supported platforms: Windows, Mac, Mobile, and Web
Microsoft Outlook, originally known as Hotmail, is a globally renowned email client program, used by many of the world’s largest corporate firms to stay connected and conduct business.
The program is a part of the office 365 suite, and can either be used as a standalone service or work with Microsoft SharePoint and Exchange Server for a wide spectrum of users in an organization.
Notable Offerings:
- Easy access to emails and calendar
- 15GB of mailbox storage with 5GB of OneDrive space
- Office app integrations (Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)
- Data encryption and protection from ransomware and dangerous links
- Create and register domains for your email accounts
4. eM Client (Paid)
Supported platforms: Windows and macOS
Developed in 2006, eM Client is another famous name in the world of best email apps for Windows and Mac devices.
What’s great about this software compared to its competitors is that it includes a unique sidebar option that provides quick access to the communication and attachment history, live chat, and agendas.
Notable Offerings:
- The application has a modern, user-friendly interface
- Fast and customizable search options
- Supports PGP encryption to provide the utmost security
- Automatically takes a complete backup of your data while you’re working
- Multilingual support
5. Thunderbird (Free)
Supported platforms: Windows, Mac, and Linux
The perfect combination of potent features and an easy-to-use interface makes Thunderbird one of the best email programs for Windows 10 available in the current marketplace.
Developed by Mozilla Foundation in 2003, Thunderbird attempts to make the email experience better for you by bringing lightning-fast speed and top-notch security together in one place.
Being a free email client, it focuses on ease of use instead of providing a jumble of needless features.
Notable Offerings:
- Tabbed email option to let you open multiple emails at the same time
- Quick filter toolbar to help you filter your emails instantly
- It lets you optimize your inbox by archiving your messages
- Amazing attachment reminder option
6. Hiri (Paid)
Supported platforms: Windows, Mac, and Linux
Hiri is a business-centric premium email client service that was launched in 2012 as an effective alternative to other best email apps (such as MS Outlook and Thunderbird) of that time.
It’s easy to use and configure and has a highly responsive interface that makes it one of the best Windows email clients of all time.
Read More: 15 Best Social Media Apps For Your Business Marketing
Notable Offerings:
- Task list to ensure you never forget your important emails
- Split your emails effectively with Action/FYI filters
- Decent subject lines
- Snooze emails for a later time
7. Inky (Paid)
Supported Platforms: Windows, Mac, Mobile
INKY is a cloud-based email client program that’s designed primarily to protect your emails against phishing attacks with the help of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning.
The intuitive and seamlessly designed interface with top-notch security solutions against emerging phishing threats makes INKY one of the best email clients for Windows 10 and older editions.
Notable Offerings:
- Easy-to-use, modern dashboard that provides you with complete visibility
- Blocks malware, spyware, and other harmful infections
- Next-generation email protection with computer vision, AI, and machine learning algorithms
- INKY is easy to integrate into Exchange, Office 365, and G Suite
8. Mailspring (Free)
Supported platforms: Windows, Mac, and Linux
One of the most prominent options for the best email clients for PC is Mailspring. It offers a host of features, including link tracking, quick search, customizable themes and layouts, and many others.
The interface of the program is clean and is available in 9 languages, including French and Russian. For a free email client program, Mailspring definitely offers more than it should.
Notable Offerings:
- It supports all popular email service providers (such as Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, etc.)
- It lets you create beautiful signatures with your pictures
- Automatic spell-check features to easily spot misspelled words
- Advanced search, Undo and dark mode theme options
9. Spike
Supported platforms: Windows, Mac, Web, Android, and iOS
If you are looking for the best email client for Windows 10, you should definitely consider exploring the features of Spike’s conversational email app. Unlike other desktop email clients, it focuses on a unique concept that allows users to manage emails via a messenger chat app-like format.
Notable Offerings:
- Conversational email format
- Saves a lot of time by allowing you to communicate in real-time
- Live, group chat options
- Voice and video calls
- Powerful file management features, including drag and drop
10. Claws Mail (Free)
Supported platforms: Windows and Linux
Anyone unsure about where to look for managing multiple email accounts should try out Claws Mail. It offers a wide array of features despite the fact that it’s a free tool. That’s why Claws Mail has become a quite popular name among a wide spectrum of Windows users. And that’s the main reason behind it being rated as the best Windows email client program.
Notable Offerings:
- A lightweight program with a user-friendly interface
- Anti-spam and anti-phishing protection
- Multiple templates for emails
- Email archiving, customizable toolbars, themes, and search filters options
11. Loop Email (Paid)
Supported platforms: Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS
Are you still searching for the best email clients for Windows 10? If you’ve come this far, you should definitely give Loop Email a shot. It’s packed with a lot of tempting features that not only allow you to chat with your coworkers but also let you email your clients in the most efficient manner. Loop Email makes working remotely simple and that’s why it is considered one of the best email apps for Windows.
Notable Offerings:
- Manage multiple email accounts with its easy-to-use features
- It lets you integrate virtual assistants
- It seamlessly works with your existing email services such as Gmail, Outlook, etc.
12. Postbox – The Power Email App (Paid)
Supported Platforms:- Windows and macOS
Now, next on this rundown, here is one of the powerful email apps – Postbox. It is the perfect bet for professionals. Effortlessly, you can manage all your email accounts in one place i.e, Postbox. The impressive but simple and clean user interface of Postbox makes it easy to understand the functionality, even for beginners as well. Moreover, Postbox lets you personalize templates directly to the recipients. Undoubtedly, it is one of the best email apps for both Mac and Windows. Write like a pro with PostBox – The Power Email App.
Notable Offerings:
- Natively integrated with OneDrive and Dropbox.
- Equipped with the in-built HTML editor.
- Allows you to create personalized templates.
- Attarctive and simple UI.
- Comes with a professional-class composition tool that enhances writing efficiency and style as well.
- Task list to make sure all-important emails.
13. Mail and Calendar (Free)
Supported Platforms:- Windows
The last name on this list of the best email clients is Mail and Calendar. This is a free alternative from the house of Microsoft. With the help of this tool, even a beginner can easily manage all the emails received. Additionally, the interface of the software is quite simple and minimalistic. The app works in integration with other platforms like Microsoft Outlook, MS Office 365, Gmail, Yahoo, and more.
Notable Offerings:
- Easy to use.
- Shows all emails unitedly.
- Interface Customization options.
- Multiple handy features and buttons.
- Easy to access and maintain multiple accounts.
- Shows important emails at the top.
Also Read: Best Email Extractor Online Tools
Manage Your Multiple Email Accounts with Best Email Clients
Now that you know how to manage all your contacts and emails from multiple accounts through a unified inbox, we advise you to compare different email apps from the aforementioned list and choose the one which is best suited for you.
We hope our curated list helped you sort out the best email client for your Windows 10 PC.
So, which email client did you end up getting? Let us know in the comments section below!
Раньше почти все пользовались десктопными почтовыми клиентами. А с повышением доступности интернета все как-то про них забыли. Если вы решили всё-таки вернуться к полноценным приложениям, в этой статье вы найдёте несколько современных почтовых клиентов.
eM Client
В этом приложении есть масса полезных фишек, которые делают eM Client одним из лучших почтовиков для Windows. Простой и понятный интерфейс помогает быстро разобраться, что к чему. А ещё он полностью настраиваемый под ваши пожелания и задачи.
Кроме этого, есть поддержка PGP-шифрования, автоматический бекап писем, автоответчик. Есть интеграция с различными менеджерами задач и встроенный календарь.
«Из коробки» поддерживаются почтовые сервисы iCloud, Gmail, Exchange и Outlook.
Скачать (есть бесплатная версия, платная от $49.95 разово)
Microsoft Outlook
Для тех, кто предпочитает проверенный временем продукт, нацеленный на эффективность работы с почтой. В Microsoft Outlook есть все инструменты, необходимые при работе с почтой.
В едином интерфейсе можно работать сразу с файлами, календарями и почтой. Есть автоотправка сообщений и возможность отфильтровывать письма по их важности. По умолчанию поддерживаются почтовые сервисы Gmail, Yahoo и iCloud.
Скачать (бесплатно, платная версия от $69.99 за год в пакете Microsoft 365)
Zoho Mail
Zoho — это набор бизнес-сервисов наподобие Google Workspace. Конечно же, у них есть и крутой почтовый клиент.
Среди отличительных черт Zoho стоит выделить упор на совместную работу. Можно подключить почту к собственному домену и управлять почтовыми адресами самостоятельно. Есть поддержка заметок, контактов, календарей и задач.
Для переезда из Google Workspace и альтернатив есть специальные инструменты миграции. Вся почта шифруется по умолчанию, а данные хранятся в соответствии с GDPR.
Поскольку в первую очередь это бизнес-продукт, в административной панели можно найти массу соответствующих инструментов. К примеру, управление пользователями, настройками и многим другим.
Скачать (платный тариф от $1 в месяц)
Mailbird
С одной стороны, это минималистичный почтовый клиент, но в нём можно найти множество полезных функций. Сразу «из коробки» Mailbird предлагает подключить и объединить почту и контакты из различных сервисов.
Есть возможность изменять внешний вид клиента с помощью цветовых тем. Есть интеграция со сторонними сервисами: Twitter, Dropbox, Google Calendar и многими другими. Поддерживается автоматическое наполнение контактных данных из LinkedIn.
Скачать (стоимость от $2.28 в месяц)
Mailspring
Здесь тоже можно найти множество полезных штук. К примеру, объединение почтовых ящиков в один. Поддерживаются такие сервисы, как Yahoo!, Gmail, iCloud Office 365, а также протоколы IMAP/SMTP.
Из интересных возможностей стоит выделить встроенный редактор подписи, автопереводчик, проверку грамматики и кастомизацию интерфейса с помощью тем.
Скачать (есть бесплатный тариф, платный от $8 в месяц)
Postbox
Если вы ищете незахламлённое приложение для работы с почтой, Postbox может вам понравиться. Здесь также можно объединить несколько почтовых ящиков в один.
При этом разработчики не забыли дать возможность настроить интерфейс. Письма можно организовывать с помощью тегов, по контактам или добавлять к ним напоминания.
Есть встроенный редактор кода, с помощью которого можно править HTML-вёрстку писем. Также есть поддержка сервисов OneDrive, Box и Dropbox.
Скачать (есть бесплатная версия, платная $29)
Front
Этот почтовый клиент отлично подойдёт для совместной работы. Обрабатывать почту (и даже одно и то же письмо) можно всей командой. При этом все участники могут обсуждать действия между собой.
Есть возможность объединения писем из различных сервисов, а также интеграция с более чем 50 сторонними сервисами.
Скачать (есть бесплатный тариф, платный от $19)
Hiri
Этот почтовый клиент поддерживает интеграцию с Exchange/Office 365. Hiri предлагает современный интерфейс с множеством возможностей.
Из интересного выделю поддержку Active Directory для глобального управления доступом пользователей к почте. Есть встроенный календарь, напоминания, задачи и многое другое.
Скачать (от $39 в год)
Loop Email
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Ещё один почтовый клиент, который поможет при совместной работе над почтой. Есть общий почтовый ящик со всеми письмами, над которыми необходимо работать.
С помощью Smart Inbox можно автоматизировать выбор приоритетной почты. Также есть режим Focus, в котором отображаются только необходимые вам письма.
В Loop Email можно быстро переключаться между письмами, файлами и сообщениями.
Скачать (от $10 в месяц)
Spike
Есть поддержка многих популярных почтовых провайдеров. Главная фишка Spike — работа с почтой в виде обычной переписки, как в мессенджерах. Если вам нужен такой подход, то вот, пожалуйста.
Кроме этого, есть возможность создавать шаблоны писем, добавлять упоминания других пользователей, правила обработки почты и многое другое.
Скачать (есть бесплатный тариф, платный от $5 в месяц)
Thunderbird
Закончить эту статью я хочу двумя почтовыми клиентами, про существование которых многие забыли. Первый — Thunderbird. Лёгкий, настраиваемый почтовый клиент с поддержкой плагинов.
По умолчанию Thunderbird не предлагает многих привычных возможностей, из-за чего может сложиться впечатление, что нормально работать с почтой невозможно. Для того чтобы расширить возможности, нужно установить плагины. В итоге вы сможете получить идеальный почтовый клиент.
Скачать
The Bat!
Один из самых навороченных и старых почтовых клиентов. К сожалению, из-за этого разобраться с приложением не так просто.
Из важного выделю поддержку шифрования писем и защиту от вирусов. Поддерживаются протоколы шифрования PGP, GnuPG и S/MIME. Есть крутая система фильтров и многое другое.
Скачать (от $49.99)
Теги:
Windows
macOS
eM Client
Microsoft Outlook
Zoho Mail
mailbird
Mailspring
Postbox
Front
Hiri
Loop Email
Thunderbird
The Bat!
Spike