Proton Mail vs Forward Email
Two of the top three encrypted email services, compared rule by rule on published facts.
In short
- Proton Mail has 85 points and Forward Email 56, 29 apart on our encrypted email services rules.
- Proton Mail earns more on encryption, trust and audits, mailbox and price; Forward Email earns more on nothing.
- Cheapest paid plan: Proton Mail $3.99/mo, Forward Email $3/mo.
- Only Proton Mail meets: automatic end-to-end encryption between its own users, encrypted mail to other providers, open-source apps, SOC 2 Type II or ISO 27001, transparency report, security key for two-factor sign-in and free plan with an encrypted mailbox.
- Only Forward Email meets: independent audit since 2024.
Proton Mail85/100 #1 of 9
Best for: People who want a free encrypted mailbox that grows into a paid one with custom domains and Outlook or Thunderbird access.
Forward Email56/100 #3 of 9
Best for: People with their own domain who want IMAP access and a low price.
Points by group
| Group | Proton Mail | Forward Email |
|---|---|---|
| Encryption of 27 | 27 | 13 |
| Trust and audits of 26 | 18 | 8 |
| Apps and access of 18 | 16 | 16 |
| Mailbox of 13 | 12 | 11 |
| Price of 16 | 12 | 8 |
| Total | 85 | 56 |
Rule by rule
What each vendor publishes, and the points it earns. Sources are on each product page.
| Rule (points) | Proton Mail | Forward Email |
|---|---|---|
| Stored mail the provider cannot read (10) | Yes 10 | Yes 10 |
| Automatic end-to-end encryption between its own users (8) | Yes 8 | Not published 0 |
| Encrypted mail to other providers (6) | Yes 6 | Not published 0 |
| Encrypted contacts or calendar (3) | Yes 3 | Yes 3 |
| Independent audit since 2024 (8) | Not published 0 | Yes 8 |
| Open-source apps (6) | Yes 6 | No 0 |
| SOC 2 Type II or ISO 27001 (4) | Yes 4 | No 0 |
| Transparency report (4) | Yes 4 | Not published 0 |
| Security key for two-factor sign-in (4) | Yes 4 | Not published 0 |
| Official apps (10) | Windows, macOS, iOS, Android 8 | Windows, macOS, Linux, Android 8 |
| Works in standard mail programs (8) | Yes 8 | Yes 8 |
| Your own domain (5) | Yes 5 | Yes 5 |
| Mail storage on the cheapest paid plan (5) | 15 4 | 10 3 |
| Export your whole mailbox (3) | Yes 3 | Yes 3 |
| Free plan with an encrypted mailbox (6) | Yes 6 | No 0 |
| Cheapest paid plan (10) | $3.99/mo 6 | $3/mo 8 |
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.
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.
Both products are scored by the same rules: how we score encrypted email services.