Gmail vs Proton Mail: Is it worth switching if you care about privacy?
Gmail vs Proton Mail: Is it worth switching if you care about privacy?
https://www.popsci.com/technology/gmail-vs-proton-mail/
Publish Date: 2026-05-23 08:00:00
Source Domain: www.popsci.com
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Google launched its own email service all the way back in 2004 (remember the hype around a free 1GB of email storage space?). In the years since, it’s become the default email service for many of us—in part because of its close ties to so other Google apps, like Google Drive, Google Maps, and Google Photos.
We’ve also seen plenty of competing products launch over the last two decades, so if you’re thinking about leaving Gmail, you have plenty of other options. Apple and Microsoft are two of the big names that will gladly take over the responsibility of managing your inbox.
Then there’s Proton Mail, part of the Proton suite of products that prioritizes privacy and security. We’ve previously compared Proton Docs and Google Docs, and here we’re going to take a look at how Proton Mail stacks up against Gmail. It may be worth your while to switch, especially if you’re unsure about Google’s privacy policies.
Gmail vs Proton Mail: The basics
Both services are available on the web, and have dedicated apps for Android and iOS. Both have free options, with premium plans also available: Proton Mail gives you 1GB of storage for free, while Gmail gives you 15GB (though bear in mind this is also shared with Google Drive and Google Photos).
Paid plans start at $1.99 a month for Gmail and $4.99 a month for Proton Mail, but it’s hard to do a straight comparison, as a lot of other upgrades are included. Google gives you more AI features as well as more storage room, for example, while Proton gives you more usage across its VPN, Calendar, and Drive tools in addition to the extra cloud storage.
If you prefer to use a third-party email client like Apple Mail or Outlook, this is easily done on Gmail and only takes a few steps. With Proton Mail, it’s more involved: You need to…
