The 10 Best Outlook Alternatives for Windows, Mac, iOS and Android
Microsoft Outlook is the dominant email client in the business world, and for good reason. Its tight integration with the Microsoft Office suite and support for Exchange servers makes it the default choice for many companies. Home users appreciate its rich feature set, vast third-party app support, and availability on all major desktop and mobile platforms.
However, Outlook‘s hegemony doesn‘t mean it‘s necessarily the best email app for everyone. Maybe you don‘t need all of Outlook‘s bells and whistles and prefer a simpler, more streamlined interface. Perhaps you‘re looking for more powerful features for automation and customization. Or you may just want a more modern, attractive design. Fortunately, there are many excellent Outlook alternatives available for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android. Let‘s take an in-depth look at the top contenders.
Best for Simplicity: Mailbird (Windows) and Spark (Mac, iOS, Android)
If you find Outlook‘s cluttered interface overwhelming and just want to focus on processing your inbox as efficiently as possible, consider Mailbird (for Windows) or Spark (for Mac, iOS and Android).
Mailbird is a sleek, minimalist email client that won our roundup of the best email apps for Windows. Its clean design puts your messages front and center, with easy-to-spot action buttons for common tasks like reply, archive, delete, and label. You can customize the layout and color scheme to your liking. We especially love Mailbird‘s "Unified Inbox" which combines messages from all your accounts into a single view.
Power user features include native calendar integration, LinkedIn lookup, attachment search, and support for a huge list of third-party productivity apps like Asana, Trello, Todoist, and Evernote. Mailbird isn‘t quite as powerful as Outlook but has all the features most users need, presented in a much more user-friendly interface. ($3/month or $79 one-time from getmailbird.com, for Windows only)
Mac, iPhone and iPad users should check out Spark, another beautifully designed email app that makes processing your inbox a breeze. It shares many of Mailbird‘s features like a unified inbox, customizable swipes, and third-party app integrations.
The "Smart Inbox" automatically detects and categorizes important messages from people you know while filtering out newsletters and notifications. "Quick Replies" let you send common responses with a click. Overall, Spark has a few more advanced features than Mailbird but preserves the same simplicity and elegance. The iOS app is especially great on the go. (Free from Mac App Store, iOS App Store, and Google Play Store)
Best for Power Users: PostBox (Windows and Mac), The Bat! (Windows)
At the other end of the spectrum, some Outlook users actually want more power user features for automating and optimizing their email workflow. If you‘re willing to trade some simplicity for advanced customization and control, you have a few great options.
PostBox is a popular email app for Windows and Mac aimed at professional users. It has a highly configurable interface with tabs, favorite folders, and an advanced search that can even scan inside attachments. PostBox really shines in its rich customization options – virtually every part of the app‘s appearance and behavior can be tweaked to your liking.
But PostBox‘s real power is under the hood. Advanced features include mounds support for over 25 languages, the ability to create custom responses with dynamic placeholders, HTML template editing for power users, detailed theme control, and an open source add-on library for expanding its capabilities. PostBox even has an API so you can integrate it with your own systems and workflows.
If you‘ve pushed Outlook to its limits, need more control, and don‘t mind investing time to set everything up just right, PostBox is the power user alternative for you. ($49 with 45 day free trial from postbox-inc.com, for Windows and Mac.)
Windows users who want maximum power at the expense of all else might consider The Bat!. This idiosyncratic app has been around since 1997 and is showing its age in the UI department. However, it offers unmatched customization, automation, and security features for the true email power user.
The Bat! lets you define custom message templates, rules and filters, scripting, multiple encryption standards including OpenPGP and S/MIME, and anti-tracking features to protect your privacy. It‘s overkill for most people but will appeal to certain sysadmins, lawyers, and privacy buffs who live in their inboxes. (44.99 euros from ritlabs.com, for Windows only)
Best of Both Worlds: eM Client (Windows and Mac), Airmail (Mac and iOS)
What if you want many of Outlook‘s power features but in a simpler, more modern package? eM Client for Windows/Mac and Airmail for Mac/iOS strike a nice balance between simplicity and capability.
eM Client has an Outlook-style three pane view with messages on the right and folders/options on the left. However, the interface is much less cluttered and more customizable. It has most of Outlook‘s advanced features like custom rules, tasks, calendar, and contacts – but not Exchange support.
We like eM Client‘s unique "Quick Reply" feature which opens a smaller compose window that doesn‘t hide the original message. It also has superior privacy protection with automatic encryption of local data. ($49.95 one-time from emclient.com, for Windows and Mac)
Airmail is another great balanced option for Apple devices. Its modern design feels at home on macOS and iOS with customizable swipes, a unified inbox, and iCloud sync. But under that simple surface are power user features like rich HTML templates, advanced search operators, send later, snooze, and multi-language support.
Airmail has a unique "actionable unsubscribing" feature which detects newsletters and lets you block future sends with a click (Outlook makes you hunt for an unsub link). It‘s also more extensible than Outlook with a long list of app integrations that cover almost any workflow. ($9.99/year from airmailapp.com, for Mac and iOS)
Best Free Alternatives: Thunderbird (Windows, Mac and Linux), Spark (Mac, iOS, Android)
You don‘t have to pay for a great Outlook alternative. If you can‘t spare the cash for a premium app, there are a couple excellent free options available.
Thunderbird is a free, open-source email client from the creators of Firefox. It works on Windows, Mac and Linux. Thunderbird has been around for almost 20 years and is still actively developed with new features and fixes added regularly.
Feature-wise, Thunderbird actually compares quite favorably to Outlook. It has a tabbed interface, multiple layout options, advanced search and filtering, add-ons for extensibility, and built-in encryption. The UI looks a bit dated but is highly customizable. It‘s easily the best free alternative to Outlook. (Free from thunderbird.net, for Windows, Mac and Linux)
As mentioned above, Spark is an outstanding free email app for Mac, iPhone, iPad and Android. While a couple power user features like email templates are locked behind the Premium subscription ($7.99/mo), the free version has everything most users need including the excellent Smart Inbox, Quick Replies, customizable swipes, send later, reminders, and third-party app integrations.
Spark doesn‘t have a Windows app (one is planned for the future), but if you‘re in the Apple ecosystem, it‘s hard to beat for a free email client. (Free from Mac App Store, iOS App Store, and Google Play Store)
Best for Security and Privacy: Canary Mail (Mac and iOS)
All the email apps covered here have some security and anti-spam features, but if you‘re especially concerned about email privacy, consider Canary Mail. This security-first client for Mac and iOS uses PGP end-to-end encryption, spam filtering, avatars validation, and read receipts blocking to maximize the security of your email communication.
Canary Mail lets you send password-protected, self-destructing emails and blocks remote email trackers. It even watches the haveibeenpwned.com database and alerts you if your data was involved in a breach. A unique feature called Bulk Cleaner automatically finds and helps you unsubscribe from unwanted newsletters.
Despite the focus on security, Canary Mail has an elegant, modern design with customizable swipe actions, natural language search, a focused inbox view, snooze, send later, templates, and a calendar. It‘s an excellent choice for privacy-conscious users who don‘t want to compromise on features and usability. ($19.99/year from canarymail.io, for Mac and iOS)
Most Innovative Interface: Unibox (Mac)
Finally, if you‘re willing to completely rethink your relationship with email, check out Unibox. This unique client for Mac does away with the standard folder-based, chronological inbox in favor of a people-centric approach.
In Unibox, your messages are grouped by sender with a list of contacts on the left and the full conversation with the selected person on the right – kind of like a chat app. You can still star/tag important messages and do advanced searches, but the focus is on your interaction with people rather than sorting messages.
This model won‘t work for everyone – it‘s not great for power users managing massive inboxes. But if most of your email communication is back and forth with a limited number of individuals, Unibox‘s innovative interface might help you stay more organized and in touch. ($13.99 one-time from Mac App Store)
How to Choose the Best Outlook Alternative for You
As you can see, there are many excellent alternatives to Outlook for all major platforms. Which one is best for you depends on your unique needs and preferences. Here are some questions to ask yourself when evaluating the options:
- What platforms and devices do I use for email? (Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, web, etc.)
- Do I prefer a simple, uncluttered interface or do I need lots of organizational features?
- Which advanced features and integrations are most important to me? (calendar, tasks, encryption, templates, etc.)
- How much customization and automation do I need?
- What is my budget? Can I afford a premium app or do I need a free option?
- Am I willing to learn a new interface paradigm or do I prefer something more traditional?
If simplicity is your top priority or you find Outlook‘s interface overwhelming, go with Mailbird (Windows), Spark (Mac/iOS/Android) or Airmail (Mac/iOS).
For maximum power user features and customization, check out PostBox (Windows/Mac) or The Bat! (Windows).
If you want the best balance of power and simplicity, eM Client (Windows/Mac) and Airmail (Mac/iOS) are great options.
To maximize your email privacy and security, consider Canary Mail (Mac/iOS).
If you can‘t afford a premium app, Thunderbird (Windows/Mac/Linux) and Spark (Mac/iOS/Android) are the top free options.
And if you‘re willing to completely rethink your email workflow, give Unibox (Mac) a try.
Whichever Outlook alternative you choose, all of the apps covered here will help you communicate smarter, faster and more securely without the cost and complexity of Microsoft‘s behemoth. Happy emailing!