Mailfence vs Protonmail: Which One is Better?
More and more users try to protect the information they store or receive in email service, and one of the ways to do that is to use a secure email service. The most popular examples of such services are Maildence and Protonmail. They have proven their security and gained an excellent reputation among users, but there is still a dilemma about which service to choose. Let’s compare Mailfence vs Protonmail, their features, benefits, and drawbacks to see what exactly differs them from each other and which service is better.
Table of Contents
What is Mailfence
Mailfence is an email service created for people who want to feel protected sending and receiving mail. This is a perfect alternative to customary Gmail but its main benefit is user privacy preserved.
Mail fence has received this name probably because it acts as a fence that secures your anonymity when you send or get emails. This is a Belgium company founded back in 1999, so there is no sense to doubt its reliability, stability, and honesty. The company does not guarantee users a perfect email service, but it claims to have made a lot to improve it. The team has checked the line of code multiple times, put a lot of effort to find a non-American SSL certificate, and created a fully encrypted email solution that operates directly in the browser.
What is great about Mailfence, is a possibility to use if for free with some minor limitations and no access to premium features. Users can get a fully encrypted email service with the storage of up to 500Mb of emails and documents each, the possibility to collaborate in one group only, and use email support. More advanced plans have much higher limits as well as can opt for priority support not only by email but also by phone, have access to the mail on mobile devices using an app, benefit from POPs, IMAPs, SMTPs, custom email domain DKIM, SPF, and many other features. Fees are also quite applicable ranging from €2.50 to €25 per month. Payment is accepted by Visa, MasterCard, PayPal, and even cryptocurrency.
Mailfence Features
- State-of-art security to protect user privacy;
- No tracking, ads, spam, etc.;
- Privacy protection is guaranteed by strict Belgian law and only local judges with an order can request some information according to it;
- SSL encryption without US involvement;
- Fully interoperable with any OpenPGP service;
- Digital signatures;
- A functional key store under a user’s full control;
- Mobile compatibility;
- POPS, IMAPS, SMTPS;
- Own domain name;
- Access to 3rd-party mailboxes;
- Documents storage;
- Calendar;
- Groups creation and management;
- Messages can be protected with a password;
- 2FA;
- IP addresses are removed from email headers;
- Customizable option for businesses;
Pros:
- Great and friendly customer support;
- Reasonable pricing;
- Support for cryptocurrency;
- A lot of features;
- Years of experience and trust;
- The simplicity of use;
- User-friendly updated interface;
- Constant improvement.
Cons:
- Does not store user’s emails encrypted in any other way except for PGP;
- IP address logging;
- Inability for the community to make changes to the code.
What is ProtonMail
ProtonMail is a secure email service based in Switzerland that guarantees everyone secure communication. Swiss privacy laws are ones of the strictest in the world, so it is not surprising that the service aimed at keeping user privacy is registered there. ProtonMail was developed in 2013 by a group of people who wanted to use a more secure and private Internet. The service has global support thanks to multiple donations made by people as well as the open-source nature of its apps and nowadays, millions of users take advantage of it.
Protonmail can be also used for free or users can purchase one of three plans with a bigger number of features to develop this service further. A free version offers up to 500 Mb storage and can be used only by one person. There is a limit in the number of messages per day – 150 – and limited support as well. Paid plans ranging from €5 to €30 a month offer a wider functionality including unlimited messages, priority support, custom domains, autoresponder, catch-all email, and others. Users can purchase extra storage, domains, and addresses too.
What about ProtonMail security? It is rather strong thanks to email end-to-end encryption. However, it is not the only thing to impress you. The service features 4096-bit SSL certificates and full disk encryption. All the data is stored in the company servers located in Switzerland, while the primary datacenter is located in a bunker 1000 meters under the Swiss alps.
Protonmail features:
- Android, iOS, and web version;
- End-to-end encryption;
- Email account creation does not require any sensitive data;
- ProtonMail Bridge to encrypt and decrypt emails as well as integrate with IMAP and SMTP programs;
- Digital signatures;
- Contacts page and their import and export;
- Calendar encryption;
- Sending self-destructing messages: they are deleted immediately after being read;
- Address verification;
- Support for PGP;
- Proton VPN;
- Encrypted search;
- Conversation view.
Pros:
- Open-source code;
- 24/7 6 days a week customer support;
- It is the only secure email service to be extensively audited and peer reviewed;
- Resistant to large scale DDoS attacks;
- Modern interface design;
- Possibility to send encrypted emails to users who do not utilize Protonmail;
Cons:
- No encryption of email subject lines;
- Supports verification by phone number.
Mailfence vs Protonmail
Privacy-conscious users understand how important it is to have an email service that protects your anonymity and guarantees the security of communication. Naturally, it is better to choose trusted leaders of the market, but what to do if there are two similar services that will not disappoint you? Which one to choose if you have to compare Mailfence vs Protonmail – the two best and most secure email services? Probably, it is necessary to look at what makes them different and analyze how important one or another feature is for you.
Security
Both services used SSL and end-to-end encryption to guarantee privacy to users, but they should consider some differences between them.
It goes without saying that Swiss privacy laws are very strict, but there is no exact information of how free from US and EU influence Protonmail is. Moreover, it does not encrypt the subject line in the emails but does that in Calendar, Contacts, etc.
Mailfence encrypts everything in the emails sent and all its servers are located in Belgium. This country is a member of the Fourteen Eyes intelligence alliance but it also maintains a Transparency Report and Warrant Canary for users to check all legal requests for information received for 6 months.
Fees
Both Mailfence and Protonmail offer free versions for users, but they should come to terms with some restrictions. Protonmail does not support groups and has a limited number of messages per day in the free and first plan being almost twice more expensive than Mailfence. At the same time, even free users can use Protonmail mobile apps, while this option is available only for paid plans in Mailfence.
Development
Mailfence is developed by one company that takes full control over the service. Protonmail features an open-source code that can be improved by everyone and it makes this email service more flexible and innovative.
Sign-up
Protonmail requires phone verification from users that may be strange when it comes to privacy matters, while users of Mailfence can create an account using another email address and confirming it with an authentication message.
Mobile support
Mailfence does not offer users mobile applications for faster access. In fact, it has a responsive website version only and it can be called a drawback. Protonmail has two functional apps for Android and iOS-powered mobile devices that are free to use.
Features
There is some difference in the features offered by both secure email services. Mailfence allows importing users’ private keys for PGP or using unencrypted messages, while there is no such opportunity in Protonmail. Moreover, Mailfence supports group communication, while the Protonmail interface is often blamed for a slow response.
Conclusion
Have you compared the main differences and come up with the solution which email service to choose? This detailed analysis of both private emails makes it possible to conclude that Mailfence can be a good choice for people who prefer a wider range of features and lower fees, while Protonmail is a synonym to absolute security.