---
title: Best Encrypted Email Services
canonical: https://saasranked.com/best/encrypted-email-services/
facts_checked: 2026-10-08
---

# Best Encrypted Email Services

Keep your mail unreadable to the provider and to anyone who breaks in, without giving up your own address, domain or mail program. 9 encrypted email services ranked by points out of 100 from 16 published rules. Method: https://saasranked.com/best/encrypted-email-services/how-we-score/

| # | Product | Points | Encryption | Trust and audits | Apps and access | Mailbox | Price | Cheapest paid plan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | [Proton Mail](https://saasranked.com/software/proton-mail.md) | 85 | 27/27 | 18/26 | 16/18 | 12/13 | 12/16 | $3.99/mo |
| 2 | [Tuta Mail](https://saasranked.com/software/tuta-mail.md) | 73 | 27/27 | 14/26 | 10/18 | 10/13 | 12/16 | $3.36/mo |
| 3 | [Forward Email](https://saasranked.com/software/forward-email.md) | 56 | 13/27 | 8/26 | 16/18 | 11/13 | 8/16 | $3/mo |
| 4 | [mailbox.org](https://saasranked.com/software/mailbox-org.md) | 49 | 16/27 | 8/26 | 8/18 | 7/13 | 10/16 | $1.12/mo |
| 5 | [Atomic Mail](https://saasranked.com/software/atomic-mail.md) | 47 | 24/27 | 0/26 | 8/18 | 5/13 | 10/16 | $5/mo |
| 6 | [StartMail](https://saasranked.com/software/startmail.md) | 44 | 16/27 | 4/26 | 10/18 | 10/13 | 4/16 | $4.99/mo |
| 7 | [Posteo](https://saasranked.com/software/posteo.md) | 43 | 19/27 | 4/26 | 8/18 | 2/13 | 10/16 | $1.12/mo |
| 8 | [Runbox](https://saasranked.com/software/runbox.md) | 36 | 0/27 | 10/26 | 8/18 | 10/13 | 8/16 | $1.86/mo |
| 9 | [Hushmail](https://saasranked.com/software/hushmail.md) | 24 | 6/27 | 0/26 | 10/18 | 4/13 | 4/16 | $4.99/mo |

## 1. Proton Mail

Best for: People who want a free encrypted mailbox that grows into a paid one with custom domains and Outlook or Thunderbird access. Proton Mail suits people who want zero-access storage, a free starter mailbox and open-source apps. Mail Plus at $3.99 a month adds a custom domain and Bridge for desktop mail programs. The catch: Bridge is paid-only, the Linux app is still beta, and no outside audit of the mail apps dated 2024 or later is named on the vendor's open-source page.

## 2. Tuta Mail

Best for: People who want contacts and calendar encrypted too, and are fine using Tuta's own apps instead of a mail program. Tuta suits people who want everything encrypted, including contacts and calendar, in open-source apps on all five systems. Revolutionary adds 20 GB and custom domains for about €3 a month. The catch: Tuta's own table shows no IMAP access, and the one outside pen test it names has no date.

## 3. Forward Email

Best for: People with their own domain who want IMAP access and a low price. Forward Email suits people who already own a domain and want a cheap mailbox that works in Thunderbird or Outlook. Stored mail sits in encrypted databases tied to a password, and a Cure53 penetration test report is published. The catch: the free plan cannot send, its code uses a source-available licence rather than an open-source one, and the Android app is a direct download and the iOS build must be sideloaded.

## 4. mailbox.org

Best for: People who want to read their mail in Thunderbird or Outlook and switch on encryption themselves. mailbox.org suits people who want a low-cost mailbox that works in standard mail programs, with encryption they switch on. Standard at €3 a month adds 20 GB and a custom domain. The catch: encryption is opt-in and applies to new incoming mail, and it has no free plan or official mail app.

## 5. Atomic Mail

Best for: People who want a free encrypted mailbox and apps on four systems. Atomic Mail suits people who want a free encrypted mailbox they use only in its own apps and browser. Between its users the sender picks Atomic Encryption and handles no keys; external recipients get a password-protected message. The catch: no IMAP access yet, no custom domain on personal plans, and no named outside audit.

## 6. StartMail

Best for: People who want 20 GB, their own domain and encrypted mail to anyone. StartMail suits people who want 20 GB, unlimited aliases, their own domain and IMAP access, with OpenPGP built into webmail. It publishes a current transparency report. The catch: there is no free plan, only an Android app, no named outside audit, and its webmail code is closed source.

## 7. Posteo

Best for: People who want a cheap mailbox that works in standard mail programs. Posteo suits people who want a low-cost mailbox that opens in Thunderbird or Outlook over IMAP, with optional encryption of stored data. Its transparency report is current, and it holds a German BSI certificate for secure mail transport. The catch: encryption is opt-in, mail between Posteo users is not automatically end-to-end encrypted, and there are no native apps or custom domains.

## 8. Runbox

Best for: People who want a low-cost private mailbox in Norway that works in any mail program. Runbox suits people who want an inexpensive mailbox in Norway with IMAP, custom domains and a public transparency report. It does not document zero-access storage, only encryption in transit and on disk, and its help pages cover PGP through add-ons. There is no free plan and no native app, and no audit or certificate is named.

## 9. Hushmail

Best for: People who want simple encrypted replies to anyone and IMAP access. Hushmail suits people who want encrypted mail they can send to anyone and read in Outlook or Apple Mail over IMAP. The catch is the design: webmail encryption runs on Hushmail's servers, and unencrypted messages are stored unencrypted. The vendor's pages name no audit, transparency report or open-source code. The Personal plan has no custom domain.