[Compare · Email-First Hosting]

HEY vs Proton Mail

HEY
7.0/ 10
Higher score
Proton MailIndie
9.0/ 10
Across 4 measured dimensions: HEY wins 0, Proton Mail wins 2 (2 tie / n/a)
[01]

Side by side.

8 dimensions
MetricHEYProton Mail
Score
Winner: right
7.09.0
Δ 90 days
— flat— flat
Parent & badge
Winner: right
37signals
IndependentIndie
Founded
20202014
Best for
People who agree with 37signals' philosophy of email as a workflowPrivacy-first users who want zero-access encryption by default
Price per mo
Winner: right
$8.25/ mo$3.99/ mo
Renewal multiplier
——
Tagline
Opinionated workflow, $99/yr, no IMAPSwiss end-to-end encrypted mail, free tier is real
[02]

What works, what doesn't.

Per provider
HEY4 pros · 4 cons
+ Pros
  • ✓Screener kills cold/marketing email at the door
  • ✓Imbox/Feed/Paper Trail workflow is genuinely novel
  • ✓Built by 37signals — long-term commitment to product
  • ✓Flat $99/year, no per-mailbox seat math
– Cons
  • ✗No IMAP, ever — you can't use your own client
  • ✗Annual billing only, no monthly option
  • ✗Custom domain requires separate $99 plan
  • ✗Migrating out is intentionally difficult
Proton Mail4 pros · 4 cons
+ Pros
  • ✓Genuine end-to-end encryption, Swiss jurisdiction
  • ✓Free tier with 1GB is actually usable
  • ✓Custom domain support on Mail Plus
  • ✓Independent ownership, non-profit foundation backed
– Cons
  • ✗IMAP requires the Bridge desktop app
  • ✗E2E only between Proton users
  • ✗Search of encrypted mail is slow
  • ✗Pricier than Migadu/Posteo for similar storage
Make the call

Pick one and go.

Both links are affiliate. Score doesn't move because of it.

VisitHEY ↗Score 7.0VisitProton Mail ↗Score 9.0
← Read full HEY review·Read full Proton Mail review →
[03]

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