After the news that email services like Gmail scan users' emails for advertisement purposes, the necessity to use a private email provider has increased. Not only is it essential to have end-to-end encrypted communication, but it’s also important to have helpful features such as calendars, a contact list, or a taskbar. Both Private-Mail and ProtonMail are excellent solutions for privacy advocates, but they tackle encryption differently. Furthermore, the number of features you get from each email provider, as well as the pricing, differs, making only one of these email services the right one for you. There is one thing that they have in common though – both put their users' privacy above all else and want to provide them with a fast and easy way to send private emails.
| Main Features | Private-Mail | ProtonMail |
| Logo |  |  |
| Rating |  |  |
| Reviews | Reviews | Reviews |
| Visit | Visit Site | Visit Site |
| Coupons | Coupons | Coupons |
| Headquarters | U.S. | Switzerland |
| Founded | 2019 | 2014 |
| Main Features | Private-Mail | ProtonMail |
| Integrated Chat |  | |
| Migration | |  |
| Email Scheduling | | |
| Email Snoozing | | |
| Email Templates | | |
| Calendar | | |
| Undo Send | | |
| Spell-Checker | | |
| Filters | | |
| Email Rules | | |
| Email Archiving | | |
| Backup | | |
| Unified Email Inbox | | |
| Plugins | | |
| Privacy and Security | Private-Mail | ProtonMail |
| End-to-end Encryption | | |
| SSL/TLS | | |
| S/MIME | | |
| PGP | | |
| Two-Factor Authentication | | |
| Password Protected | | |
| Anti-Phishing | | |
| Spam Filter | | |
| Email Protocols | Private-Mail | ProtonMail |
| POP3 | | |
| IMAP | | |
| Exchange (EWS) | | |
| AirSync | | |
| Platforms | Private-Mail | ProtonMail |
| Browser Version | | |
| Windows | (Coming soon) | |
| Mac | (Coming soon) | |
| Linux | (Coming soon) | |
| Android | (Coming soon) | |
| iOS | (Coming soon) | |
| Pricing | Private-Mail | ProtonMail |
| # Email Addresses | 1 | 1 |
| # Email Aliases |
| 5 |
| # Devices | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Storage Space |
| 5GB |
| Monthly Subscription |
| $5/mo |
| Yearly Subscription | | $4/mo ($48.00) |
| Lifetime Subscription | | n/a |
| Free Trial | | |
| Free Version | | |
| Money-Back Guarantee | 7 Days | |
| Payment Methods | Private-Mail | ProtonMail |
| Visa | | |
| Master Card | | |
| American Express | | |
| PayPal | | |
| Wire Transfer | | |
| Discover | | |
| Bitcoin | | |
| Amazon Payments | | |
| Google Checkout | | |
| Customer Support | Private-Mail | ProtonMail |
| 24/7 | | |
| | |
| Live Chat | | |
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| Community | | |
| On Call | | |
| Remote Desktop | | |
Private-Mail
Private-Mail is a new addition from TorGuard, a company known for its VPN, proxy, and router services. It uses OpenPGP encryption to protect its users' communications, making the set-up of this process very straightforward. Users only need to go to settings, create their private password, and that's it. However, the receiver needs to set OpenPGP as well, and both sides need to share their password. If you only want to communicate with a few people privately, the problem is not gigantic. However, if you speak with dozens of people daily, this process may become bothersome.
Private-Mail also encrypts your inbox and provides encrypted cloud storage – a safe place to upload any document where nobody can see it. Not even Private-Mail itself has access to them. On top of that, Private-Mail offers multiple calendars and a task list to paid users, and of course, they’re all encrypted as well.
For the time being, it's only possible to access Private-Mail through a browser. However, applications for both desktop and mobile are in the making. Pricing-wise, you can use Private-Mail's free plan forever, but note that it only offers 200MB of email and storage space and limited features. To get the full extent of the service, you'll need to upgrade to a paid plan, where the standard package is the cheapest one, costing $8.95 per month.
Private-Mail Calendars Layout
Private-Mail OpenPGP Configuration
Private-Mail Encrypted Cloud Storage
ProtonMail
ProtonMail is one of the largest secure email services, providing end-to-end encrypted communication to more than one million users. This email provider couldn’t be more straightforward since traded emails inside ProtonMail's network are encrypted automatically. To exchange messages with people using other email providers, the user can create a password while writing the email. The receiver will then receive an email with a link to a temporary ProtonMail inbox where they enter the password, read the content, and send an encrypted answer. After the first communication is exchanged, the password will be saved and automatically entered in the following emails to the same address.
Unfortunately, ProtonMail's maximum security comes at the cost of some neat features. Users can't filter messages through the text included in email bodies, and there is no built-in calendar. Furthermore, the option of seeing messages as a conversation does not exist, which may scare heavy users off.
ProtonMail is available for desktop through its browser version, as well as iOS and Android. Paid users can download a piece of software that works as a bridge and lets you use popular email software like Outlook. It’s possible to use ProtonMail for free with all its features, although there’s a limitation on the number of messages (150) and storage (500MB). If you feel that’s not enough, you can upgrade to the Plus yearly plan for the low cost of $4 per month, which gives you 5GB storage space, 1,000 daily messages, and five email aliases.
ProtonMail End-To-End Encryption
ProtonMail Security Settings
ProtonMail Auto-Reply Feature
Conclusion
Both Private-Mail and ProtonMail are indeed two robust email services for privacy advocates. However, there is a clear difference between them. While ProtonMail offers more straightforward encryption than Private-Mail, the latter comes with all the features we love, such as multiple built-in calendars. ProtonMail is indeed cheaper than Private-Mail. However, with Private-Mail, you not only receive a secure email but also encrypted cloud storage. In other words, it's like combining two services in one. In the end, if you are looking for straightforward end-to-end email encryption, ProtonMail should be your choice. However, if you value the various helpful features that most email services provide nowadays, Private-Mail gives you the best balance between features and security. Still not sure what email provider to use? Read our expert reviews containing extensive information about both email services.
Best Email Services Software of 2020
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