ProtonMail

End-to-end encrypted email based in Switzerland

Visit Website 🇨🇭 Switzerland

Open Source Free Tier Email

Privacy Score

Grade A

Last reviewed: Jan 2026

How we score

View Score Breakdown

Data Residency (30%)

EU Only

Where is your data stored? EU-only storage gets full points.

Open Source (20%)

95/100

Is the code open source and auditable?

90/100

How clear, comprehensive, and user-friendly is the privacy policy?

Trackers (15%)

100/100

How many third-party trackers are used? Fewer is better.

85/100

How fair and user-friendly are the terms of service?

Replaces

Gmail Outlook

Developer Info

API Available

Yes Good

Self-Hosting

Not yet reviewed

License

GPL-3.0 Open Source

Compliance

GDPR

Migration Guides

Step-by-step guides to help you switch to ProtonMail:

How to Switch from Gmail to ProtonMail

From Gmail

Easy 30 minutes

Pricing

Free tier available, paid from €3.99/month

ProtonMail is a secure email service founded in 2013 by scientists who met at CERN. Based in Switzerland, it benefits from strong Swiss privacy laws and is outside US and EU jurisdiction.

Key Features

End-to-end encryption: Messages are encrypted before leaving your device
Zero-access architecture: ProtonMail cannot read your emails
Swiss privacy: Protected by Swiss data protection laws
Open source: Client apps are open source and audited
No tracking: No ads, no tracking, no profiling

Privacy Highlights

ProtonMail uses PGP encryption and stores all data in encrypted format on servers located in Switzerland. The company has a strong track record of protecting user privacy and has been used by journalists and activists worldwide.