The 15 Most Private and Secure Email Service Providers in 2022

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Summary: The 15 Best Secure Email Providers in 2022

The last few years have seen a spate of cybercriminal activity that targets user’s email accounts. This is hardly surprising when you think of all the sensitive personal and business-related information that’s stored in your inbox.

While popular services, like Gmail, have done a lot to increase the security of your mail, they still fall short of other dedicated secure email providers. These secure email services can sometimes be difficult to find and user’s may not always understand the technical jargon surrounding encryption and security.

To solve this problem, we’ve listed the 15 best secure email providers in 2022 and explained their features in simple and plain language. The top secure and encrypted email services are:

1. ProtonMail 
2. Mailfence 
3. Tutanota 
4. Librem Mail
5. Thexyz 
6. CounterMail
7. Soverin
8. Zoho Mail
9. Hushmail
10. Kolab Now
11. Posteo
12. CTemplar
13. Mailbox.org
14. Private-mail
15. Runbox

In addition to using any of the secure email services listed above, you should always use a VPN when dealing with sensitive or personal information online. A VPN helps encrypts your activity and keeps your personal data away from prying eyes.

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To learn more about how you can secure your mail do read the rest of the article!

Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, and Outlook are some of the most popular and widely used email service providers in the world today. Most users are happy with the way these services function and have no reason to switch to another. But, the privacy and security of our emails are a growing concern for most people around the world.

In this article, we go over various ways to ensure the safety and security of your mail. This includes a list of the most secure email providers in 2022, as well as some settings you can change to make Gmail and Outlook more secure.

Which are the Most Secure Email Providers in 2022?

To make it easy for our users to switch to a secure email service, we’ve listed some of the most secure email providers below. We relied on a range of factors, such as the encryption standards, user interface, price, and location to determine which email services are the most secure.

Now let’s jump straight into the list of the most secure email providers in 2022!

1. ProtonMail

ProtonMail is the world’s largest secure email service provider, with over a million active users. Developed by a team of scientists and standards at CERN in Switzerland, ProtonMail has emerged as a leader in encrypted email services.

Encryption and privacy

It uses the latest forms of open-source end-to-end encryption, like AES, RSA, and OpenPGP, to secure your mail from prying eyes. This means that only you and the recipient of your mail can view its content. The service doesn’t track user IP addresses as well.

ProtonMail is based in Switzerland, a jurisdiction well known for its strict privacy laws. Though do keep in mind, that ProtonMail will collect and share user data if required by a legally binding order from Swiss authorities. It also offers additional features to protect your privacy, such as an anonymous mail service using the Tor network and self-destructing emails.

Usability

Proton offers one of the more refined user experiences among the secure email service providers on this list. It also offers great apps for iOS and Android, making it easier to secure your email even on mobile platforms. Proton also offers apps that extend the security of your inbox to calendar and cloud storage.

Price and features

The basic version of ProtonMail is completely free. You get 500 MB of storage and can send up to 150 messages per day. If a basic account doesn’t meet your requirements, you can consider their Plus, Visionary, and Professional packages, which offer a range of features at different price points.

For instance, the Plus plan, which starts at $4.69 (4 euros) per month, offers 5GB of encrypted cloud storage, 5 email aliases, and priority customer support. You can also send encrypted emails to users who don’t have an account with ProtonMail Plus.

2. Mailfence

Mailfence is a secure email service that has been around for a while. It was established in 1999 and uses the tagline “privacy is a right, not a feature.” This highlights the seriousness with which the email service provider takes the privacy and security of its users.

Encryption and privacy

Mailfence uses OpenPGP end-to-end encryption to protect your emails when they are in transit from you to the recipient. It also provides for symmetric password encryption, in which the sender and recipient can agree on a password to decrypt emails. This is a handy feature for users uncomfortable with handling PGP keys.

Mailfence is based in Belgium and subject to the nation’s privacy laws as well as the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). That said, Belgium is a member of the 14 Eyes alliance, which potentially makes user data vulnerable to share with other nations, such as the US and UK. The website also states that Mailfence does not track your data and share it with third parties.

Usability

Mailfence doesn’t currently offer any apps for desktop or mobile devices. It can still be accessed using the browser installed on your smartphone.  The website layout is a lot like Outlook and that should help new users get used to Mailfence quicker.

Like ProtonMail, Mailfence offers an integrated suite of tools comprising contacts, calendars, and documents.

Price and features

You can start using Mailfence’s secure email services for free. Its free plan enables you to encrypt your mail, store up to 500MB of mails and documents, and also includes two-factor authentication.

If you’d prefer larger storage, better customer support, support for POP, IMAP, and other exchange, you can check out the Entry plan, which starts at  $2.93 (2.50 euros) per month.

3. Tutanota

Tutanota started offering secure email services in 2011 and has grown to become the most secure email service provider today. It is widely used by journalists and human rights activists to encrypt their communications, a testament to its security and privacy.

Encryption and privacy

Tutanota encrypts not only your mail but your entire inbox! The only unencrypted information is the email addresses of users and senders. It offers both symmetric and asymmetric end-to-end encryption for all your mails, including those sent to external recipients. Asymmetric encryption occurs when the sender and recipient use their own private keys to encrypt and decrypt the contents of the mail.

As it is based in Germany, Tutanota has to comply with privacy by design requirements of the GDPR and the German Federal Data Protection Act. However, like Belgium, Germany is also a member of the 14 eyes alliance. Additionally, Tutanota claims to be an anonymous email service that does not track or log user data.

Usability

Tutanota is a secure email provider that offers a great suite of apps across different operating systems, including macOS, Linux, Android, and Windows. The suite also includes an encrypted calendar which helps you keep track of your engagements in a safe and secure manner.

The search functionality on Tutanota is also relatively better than other secure email services.

Price and features

Tutanota has a great free plan that comes with 1 GB of cloud storage and access to an encrypted calendar. However, search is limited on the free plan and you can only use Tutanota domains. The premium offering, which starts at $1.17 (1 euro) for a month, will give you unlimited search, multiple calendars, and five aliases.

Overall, Tutanota’s free plan is one of the options offered by any secure email provider.

4. Librem Mail

“We don’t look at your junk” is how Librem describes its suite of privacy-focused apps, of which Librem Mail is an integral component. Run by Purism, Librem Mail is one of the most well-known secure email services in the world.

Encryption and privacy

Librem uses the best-in-class end-to-end encryption standard for your mails, i.e. OpenPGP, to secure your emails. It is also entirely open-source, which means you can see exactly how its code works and which user data is being retained.

A slight concern with Librem is that it is based in the US. This means that it may have to share user data when presented with a legal order from agencies like the NSA. Additionally, America is at the forefront of the 5 eyes, 9 eyes, and 14 eyes alliances, which means that agencies in other nations can also get access to your data.

Usability

As mentioned above, Librem is actually a full suite of privacy-friendly applications. It has different apps for Chat, Social, and Mail as well as its own VPN service. All of these apps help protect your digital security. The apps are available on both Android and iOS.

You can even connect to Librem’s secure email service using free compatible apps on other devices. Though do keep in mind that Librem can sometimes be buggy and is also known to crash.

Price and features

Unlike the other secure email services listed so far, Librem Mail does not have a free version. It comes bundled with the chat, social and VPN apps for an amount of $7.99 for a month. We were unable to find details regarding encrypted cloud storage and aliases provided by Librem Mail during our research.

5. Thexyz

While not the most popular name on the list, Thexyz is a secure email provider that is certainly worth considering. It has a few unique features that differentiate it from the other secure email service providers on this list.

Encryption and privacy

Thexyz secures all emails using the highest level of TLS encryption with DNSSEC, SPF, and DKIM. It also allows for the use of two-factor authentication through YubiKey.

Even though Thexyz is based in Canada, it has voluntarily complied with GDPR and incorporates key privacy elements into its design. It also has a unique spam protection filter that will reduce the number of pesky emails you receive in your inbox.

Usability

Thexyz’s user interface is quite basic when compared to other secure email providers on the list. While it does offer apps for Android and iOS, these are fairly minimalist as well.

Thexyz also has a tool that allows you easily migrate emails from Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, and Outlook.  This makes it a breeze to switch to a private email service provider.

Price and features

Like Librem Mail, Thexyz does not have a free tier. However, its  Premium Webmail plan offers 25 GB on encrypted cloud storage, unlimited aliases, and your own domain email. All of this comes at a very reasonable price of $2.95 per month.

The features that Thexyz offers at this low price point make it one of the best overall secure email providers in the world today.

6. CounterMail

CounterMail is a Sweden-based secure email service. It has some impressive security features which make it a great option for users looking to secure their email communications.

Encryption and privacy

CounterMail uses OpenPGP end-to-end encryption with 4096 encryption bits to secure your emails. Their web servers are diskless, which means user data is hardly stored in permanent form. It is also one of the few secure email services that protects against Man in the Middle attacks.

Additionally, CounterMail has a strict no-IP-logging policy. It also stores personal data and information only in encrypted form. You can also use a USB key to encrypt emails, adding another layer of security.

Usability

CounterMail has a pretty simple and easy-to-use website. It doesn’t have the bells and whistles of other secure email providers like ProtonMail but gets the job done. There are also no native apps for Android or iOS. You can, however, get it up and running on Android using the K9 app and IMAP.

Price and features

CounterMail has interesting pricing options. All its premium plans come with 4GB of storage for your mails. You can buy more storage if required, with an additional GB of storage priced at $59. The premium plans start at $3.29/month if you take a two-year subscription.

Users can also pay an additional $15 to use their own domains with CounterMail. The website also indicates that features like end-to-end encrypted chat and time-delayed sending will be introduced soon.

7. Soverin

A secure email service provider based in the Netherlands, Soverin is one of the better all-around options for sending encrypted emails. So let’s find out how it fares on our selected parameters.

Encryption and privacy

Soverin’s website that it uses A+ grade SSL/TSL connections to secure your mails in transit. It also removes personal information, such as your IP address, from the headers of your email. The secure email service does not read the content of your email, except for automated spam prevention.

The Netherlands, where Soverin is based, is a member of the 9 eyes alliance. However, the nation is a signatory to the GDPR, and the privacy of individuals is generally respected in the nation.

Usability

Soverin has one of the most visually pleasing websites among the secure email providers on this list. The site is also easy to navigate and important information is readily available.

Unfortunately, there are no mobile apps for Soverin at the moment. Though you can integrate your Soverin inbox with the native Mail app on iOS and third-party email clients on Android.

Price and features

Soverin has just one pricing plan, which costs $3.77 (€3.25) a month. As part of this plan, you get unlimited messages and 25GB of cloud storage. Users will also be to generate unlimited virtual email addresses and a private email with this plan.

8. Zoho Mail

Zoho Mail is a secure email service provider that caters primarily to businesses. However, the security and privacy features it offers for individual mail are top-notch and fetch it a place on our list.

Encryption and privacy

Zoho stores all your encrypted messages in data centers that are located in undisclosed locations spread across the US, Europe, China, and India. It uses SSL for transport-level encryption between the device and the server. Zoho also offers some nifty security features, such as spam filtering and malware detection.

Zoho Mail also supports two-factor authentication through the Zoho OneAuth application, Touch ID, OTP, and QR, which makes it one of the most secure email services.

Usability

Zoho is known for its suite of open-source office apps. So, it’s not a surprise that Zoho Mail boasts a well-designed user interface across different devices. It has apps for both Android and iOS, which ensure that your email is secure on all your devices.

Pricing and features

Zoho Mail does not have a free plan, but its paid options are very affordable.  The Mail Lite plan costs $1 a month per user, and gives you 5GB of cloud storage, hosting for multiple domains, attachments up to 250MB, and email routing.

In addition to mail, features such as Calendar, Contacts, Files, and Reminders are all available on the same app. The Workplace plan ($3/month/user) is a great option for businesses and includes an online file manager, spreadsheets, and instant chat communication.

9. Hushmail

Hushmail is a secure email provider with a strong focus on providing simple, easy-to-use encrypted email for individuals and businesses. Active since 1999, Hushmail now operates out of Vancouver, Canada.

Encryption and privacy

Hushmail prides itself on its seamless and integrated end-to-end encryption. Mails that you send to Hushmail users are automatically encrypted. For mails to other recipients, you can simply toggle a button to encrypt your mail.

Canada is a member of the 5 eyes alliance, which can be cause for concern for a private email service like Hushmail. But this shouldn’t be an issue for most users, especially if you use a VPN to change your IP address and encrypt your online activity.

Usability

Hushmail’s web app is easy to use, even for users who are not familiar with encryption keys. It has recently launched an app for iOS and you can use it on Android with your preferred client via IMAP/POP.

Pricing and features

The pricing plans on Hushmail are categorized as per different requirements for businesses and individuals. So they have plans for healthcare, small business, law, and personal.

The personal plan starts at $49.98 annually and features 10GB of cloud storage. It also gives users the tools to design and use secure web forms and digital signatures.

10. Kolab Now

Kolab Now is a full-featured suite of productivity applications, which includes a secure online email service. It does well on several of our parameters, making it one of the most secure email providers in 2022.

Encryption and privacy

Kolab Now is a fully open-source secure email provider, which adds an element of trust to its operations. It has configured perfect forward secrecy, which ensures that your encryption keys are frequently changed to limit damage in case the system is compromised. The private email service supports PGP encryption, though this is not enabled by default.

In terms of privacy, Kolab Now is based in Switzerland, which is a nation well known for its stringent privacy laws. While authorities can lawfully request access to data, such instances are rare.

Usability

Kolab Now’s private email service is available only in the form of a web client. This means that there are currently no apps for either Android or iOS. That said, you can use IMAP, SMTP, or ActiveSync, to get your account up and running on any of your devices.

Pricing and features

Kolab Now is a paid service and has no free tier. It has two different plans, “just email” and “full kolab”. The former starts at around $5/month and will get you 5GB of storage and access to Kolab Now’s suite of apps, which includes Calendar, Files, Tasks, and Notes.

The ability to share emails and email folders is a great addition for teams and families that regularly share email content. You can try these features before purchasing a subscription by using Kolab Now’s free trial.

11. Posteo

Posteo is a Berlin-based secure email provider that has been around since 2009. The service prides itself on being green, secure, and ad-free.

Encryption and privacy

Posteo provides comprehensive encrypted mail services, ranging from access encryption, hard disk encryption, and transport-level encryption. Of course, S/MIME and PGP encryption for incoming and outbound emails are not in-built and users will have to configure themselves.

As we’ve stated earlier, Germany is a member of the 14 eyes alliance, which means your data may be shared with other member nations. However, Germany has a track record of respecting the right to privacy, which is why some of the best secure email providers operate out of this jurisdiction.

Usability

Posteo’s website has a clean interface with lots of information. Users can easily learn about its services and offerings in just a few clicks. You can categorize emails into folders for easy sorting and organization.

Posteo is available only as a web client. To use it on your mobile devices, you can either run the web client in a browser or configure your third-party email client with Posteo using IMAP or POP3.

Price and features

Posteo functions exclusively as a paid service, and there is no free option. There is a single Posteo subscription plan which starts at $1.17 (1 euro) per month and comes with 2 GB of storage, attachments of up to 50 MB, and unlimited filtered addresses.

A downside of Posteo is that it does not support custom domains.

12. CTemplar

CTemplar is one of the most secure email providers on this list and promises “armored email” which protects the human right to privacy.

Encryption and privacy

CTemplar provides end-to-end encryption for all mails sent to other CTemplar email accounts. Sending an encrypted message to other services, like Yahoo! Mail and Gmail, requires a few additional steps, which are explained on its website.

CTemplar is based in Iceland, which is a privacy respecting jurisdiction. It is also not a member of the 5/9/14 eyes alliances. It’s also one of the only secure email providers which prevent JavaScript-based attacks.

Usability

CTemplar’s website has a slick and clean interface that makes navigating the different sections a breeze. You can also find all the information you need about this email provider through its blog posts and FAQ.

The service is also available through apps for Android and iOS. The developers have communicated that they’re working on apps for Windows, Linux, and macOS as well.

Pricing and features

CTemplar has one of the most comprehensive free plans on our list. You get 1 GB of storage, unlimited folders, and all the essential security features without spending any money. For increased storage and advanced features, like delayed delivery and catch-all domains you’ll need to shell out at least $8/month.

Like Posteo, CTemplar is also powered by green energy, which is great for the environment!

13. Mailbox.org

Another secure email provider based out of Germany, Mailbox.org has been around for a while and is one of the more established names in the business.

Encryption and privacy

Mailbox prides itself on providing security in a convenient manner. It offers easy-to-use PGP encryption for your emails through its inbuilt interface or plug-ins like Mailvelope.

Additionally, all of Mailbox.org’s services require mandatory SSL/TLS encryption. It also employs algorithms that use perfect forward secrecy to prevent future decryption of recorded data traffic.

Finally, your IP address and other personal information are completely removed from email headers.

Usability

We had no issues in using the Mailbox.org website, which is currently the only way to access this email provider. While it doesn’t have apps for mobile devices, it does feature some great in-built productivity tools like an address book, documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. Due to these services, Mailbox.org is one of the few real substitutes for Google and its suite of apps.

Pricing and features

Mailbox.org does not have a free version. Its paid plans start at $1.17 (1 Euro) a month, in which you get 2 GB of email storage, 3 aliases, and limited support. With the Standard plan, you can increase the email storage to 10 GB and also get access to custom domains, secure video conferencing, and the online office suite.

Be sure to use Mailbox.org’s 30-day free trial to check out its features before purchasing a subscription.

14. Private-Mail

Private-Mail is a feature-rich encrypted email service based out of the US. It lands a spot on our list due to its ability to seamlessly sync your mail and files across devices.

Encryption and privacy

Private-Mail uses the latest and most secure open-source encryption standards, like AES and OpenPGP, to secure your mail at each stage of the delivery process. This means that no one, including the email provider, can view the content of your mails as only you hold the private keys.

Private-Mail is based in the United States, which we know is a leading member of data sharing alliances like the 5 eyes. This does raise concerns regarding the security and privacy of encrypted emails sent using this email service.

Usability

Private-Mail scores very highly on our usability parameter. It has well-designed and feature-rich apps for Android, iOS, and Windows. Moreover, it allows you to seamlessly sync files, calendars, and contacts across devices using Private-Mail Files and its Secure-share feature.

Usability is further boosted by its Keyring Management functionality, which helps you store, organize and change your private keys.

Pricing and features

There is no free version of Private-Mail. Even the standard plan, which starts at $8.95/month, is expensive compared to other email providers on this list.

However, the high price is justified when you consider everything that the standard plan includes. You get five aliases/disposable email addresses, 10 GB of encrypted mail and cloud storage, and priority support.

15. Runbox

Runbox is a security-focused email provider based in Norway. It’s been around for more than two decades now and has built a reputation as one of the best secure email providers. You can also get a Norwegian IP address if you want.

Encryption and privacy

Runbox protects your mail when it’s being transferred between you and their servers and between their servers and other email services. The email provider uses a combination of SSL, PGP, perfect forward secrecy, and two-factor authentication to make this happen.

Norway is a very privacy-friendly jurisdiction, which provides a high level of certainty that the contents of your email will be read only by you and the recipient. It’s also important to note that Runbox does not encrypt emails stored on its server. But this is not a major concern due to Norway’s robust privacy framework.

Usability

Runbox’s website is visually appealing and gives users relevant information about their products and services. They have also recently launched a webmail client, Runbox 7.

While there are no apps or clients for Runbox, you can use easily it on your desktop or mobile devices using SMTP, POP, and IMAP.

Pricing and features

Runbox is a paid email service, with its most basic plan starting at $19.95 for a year. For this price, you get 2 GB of email storage space, 200 MB of file storage, and the ability to host 1 account on your custom domain. The basic plan also allows users to create 100 aliases, which is a pretty unique offering.

How to Use Popular Email Providers in A Secure Manner

At the end of the day, popular email services like Gmail and Yahoo! Mail provide unmatched convenience and usability. With Gmail, you even get access to a full suite of productivity apps like Docs and Sheets. While some of the secure providers listed above are catching up in terms of functionality, most of us would still prefer using a popular service like Outlook.

We’ve identified a few measures you can take to make your email account more secure and private, even without switching to a secure email service provider. These are:

1. Use a password manager to set secure passwords. Be sure to change your passwords often. Also, don’t keep the same password for different email services.
2. Enable two-factor authentication. In simple terms, this means combining something you know (your password or PIN) with something you have (an authenticator app) to add an additional layer of security.
3. Check which third-party apps and devices have access to your email account on a regular basis. Revoke the ones the apps and devices you no longer use. This reduces the potential vulnerability of your account.
4. Occasionally check your filters and forwarding addresses to ensure that your private emails aren’t being forwarded to any addresses not authorized by you.
5. Use a VPN to encrypt your internet activity when accessing the mail service of your choice. This will hide sensitive information, such as your IP address and location, from your service provider, as well as any other prying eyes online. We recommend ExpressVPN as it’s fast, has a vast network of servers, and does not log users’ IP addresses.

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These steps should help you continue to use your favorite email service provider without being overly concerned about the security and privacy of your inbox.

Why Do You Need a Secure Mail Service?

There’s a whole lot of private and confidential information stored in your inbox. On a personal level, this includes emails from friends and family, travel booking confirmations, shopping receipts, and other subscription-related information. From a professional standpoint, your inbox can contain highly secret and confidential communications and proposals.

All this information is a treasure trove for hackers and scammers looking to make a quick buck. We’ve all received at least one suspicious-looking mail that’s actually a phishing attack or has links with malware in it. As our lives become more digital, the frequency of such attacks and scams will only increase. So it’s vital that you protect your email by choosing a secure service.

Moreover, traditional and popular mail service providers, like Gmail and Yahoo, can use this information to target you with advertisements and to improve their other services, like Search. This means they have access to all sorts of information about you — information you might not want to share with them.

Finally, the emails you send using these service providers are not always protected by end-to-end encryption. This means that your ISP, email service provider, and government agencies may be able to read the contents of your mail.

If any of the above concerns resonate with you, then you should consider switching to one of the secure email service providers listed above.

How to Choose a Good Secure Email Service Provider

It can be difficult for users to understand and differentiate between the services offered by secure email providers. To simplify this process, we’ve identified the important features that you should look out for in a secure email provider:

• Encryption standards – you should check whether the provider offers end-to-end encryption. Specifically, you should take note of the standard of encryption, with OpenPGP being the gold standard.
• Location – the country in which your provider is based is important because domestic privacy laws determine how easily government agencies can access confidential mail in your inbox. Additionally, nations have entered into alliances, such as the 5 eyes, to share data between them.
• Usability – the user interface and cross-device functionality that a service provider offers, are important as they determine how easily and seamlessly you can secure your mail across devices.
• Price and features – before deciding which secure email provider to use, you should assess the plans they offer and the different features provided in each plan. Be sure to check if the providers offer a free plan or a money-back guarantee.

Concluding Thoughts

With the increasing digitization of our lives, it’s important to ensure that personal information and data on the web are secure. Your inbox contains sensitive information relating to commercial and personal aspects of your life, which can reveal a lot about you.

To ensure that these are affordest the highest level of security, you can switch to one of the secure email providers listed above. If you wish to continue using your preferred email service, consider taking the steps listed in the previous section to make it more secure.

Check out the articles listed below to learn about keeping yourself secure on the internet:

• How to Browse the Internet Anonymously 
• How to Create a Strong Password
• How to Hide or Change Your IP address