saasrankedSoftware, ranked on the facts

Web Hosting & Domains

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.

Facts checked 8 Oct 2026 · How we score encrypted email services

Not scored yet: Mailfence.

In short

  1. 1
    Proton MailPeople who want a free encrypted mailbox that grows into a paid one with custom domains and Outlook or Thunderbird access
    85/100
    $3.99/mocheapest paid plan
  2. 2
    Tuta MailPeople who want contacts and calendar encrypted too, and are fine using Tuta's own apps instead of a mail program
    73/100
    $3.36/mocheapest paid plan
  3. 3
    Forward EmailPeople with their own domain who want IMAP access and a low price
    56/100
    $3/mocheapest paid plan
  4. 4
    mailbox.orgPeople who want to read their mail in Thunderbird or Outlook and switch on encryption themselves
    49/100
    $1.12/mocheapest paid plan
  5. 5
    Atomic MailPeople who want a free encrypted mailbox and apps on four systems
    47/100
    $5/mocheapest paid plan
  6. 6
    StartMailPeople who want 20 GB, their own domain and encrypted mail to anyone
    44/100
    $4.99/mocheapest paid plan
  7. 7
    PosteoPeople who want a cheap mailbox that works in standard mail programs
    43/100
    $1.12/mocheapest paid plan
  8. 8
    RunboxPeople who want a low-cost private mailbox in Norway that works in any mail program
    36/100
    $1.86/mocheapest paid plan
  9. 9
    HushmailPeople who want simple encrypted replies to anyone and IMAP access
    24/100
    $4.99/mocheapest paid plan

How the points add up

Points earned out of the points available in each part of the method.

ProductEncryption
of 27		Trust and audits
of 26		Apps and access
of 18		Mailbox
of 13		Price
of 16		Total
Proton Mail271816121285
Tuta Mail271410101273
Forward Email1381611856
mailbox.org168871049
Atomic Mail240851047
StartMail1641010444
Posteo194821043
Runbox010810836
Hushmail60104424

Each encrypted email service in brief

1. Proton Mail

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.

Best for: People who want a free encrypted mailbox that grows into a paid one with custom domains and Outlook or Thunderbird access. Prices, facts and sources

2. Tuta Mail

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.

Best for: People who want contacts and calendar encrypted too, and are fine using Tuta's own apps instead of a mail program. Prices, facts and sources

3. Forward Email

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.

Best for: People with their own domain who want IMAP access and a low price. Prices, facts and sources

4. mailbox.org

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.

Best for: People who want to read their mail in Thunderbird or Outlook and switch on encryption themselves. Prices, facts and sources

5. Atomic Mail

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.

Best for: People who want a free encrypted mailbox and apps on four systems. Prices, facts and sources

6. StartMail

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.

Best for: People who want 20 GB, their own domain and encrypted mail to anyone. Prices, facts and sources

7. Posteo

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.

Best for: People who want a cheap mailbox that works in standard mail programs. Prices, facts and sources

8. Runbox

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.

Best for: People who want a low-cost private mailbox in Norway that works in any mail program. Prices, facts and sources

9. Hushmail

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.

Best for: People who want simple encrypted replies to anyone and IMAP access. Prices, facts and sources

Every fact, side by side

Each row is one rule of the method and the points it is worth. "–" means the vendor does not publish it, which earns nothing.

Rule (points)Proton MailTuta MailForward Emailmailbox.orgAtomic MailStartMailPosteoRunboxHushmail
Stored mail the provider cannot read (10)YesYesYesYesYesYesYes–No
Automatic end-to-end encryption between its own users (8)YesYes––YesNoNo–No
Encrypted mail to other providers (6)YesYes–YesYesYesYes–Yes
Encrypted contacts or calendar (3)YesYesYes–––Yes–No
Independent audit since 2024 (8)––Yes–No––––
Open-source apps (6)YesYesNo––No–Yes–
SOC 2 Type II or ISO 27001 (4)Yes–NoYes–––––
Transparency report (4)YesYes–Yes–YesYesYes–
Security key for two-factor sign-in (4)YesYes–––––––
Official apps (10)4 of 55 of 54 of 50 of 54 of 51 of 50 of 50 of 51 of 5
Works in standard mail programs (8)YesNoYesYesNoYesYesYesYes
Your own domain (5)YesYesYesYesNoYesNoYesNo
Mail storage on the cheapest paid plan (5)1520102999204215
Export your whole mailbox (3)Yes–Yes––––Yes–
Free plan with an encrypted mailbox (6)YesYesNoNoYesNoNoNoNo
Cheapest paid plan (10)$3.99/mo$3.36/mo$3/mo$1.12/mo$5/mo$4.99/mo$1.12/mo$1.86/mo$4.99/mo

Head to head

We read each vendor's own pages, record every fact with its source and date, and score it by the rules on how we score encrypted email services. A tie goes to the lower price. Paid or free mailboxes for individuals whose vendor offers end-to-end or zero-access encryption. Used in a browser on Windows. Business email hosting, mainstream webmail and forwarding-only services are left out. "On at least one plan" counts only plans for individuals. Vendor claims about speed or quality are shown on product pages but never scored. Prices are in US dollars before tax.