Proton Mail Review 2024 – How is it in Reality? (December 2024)

My work as a content creator takes me to different countries and it’s awesome how I get to do that! In my over 10 years traveling however, I realized early on that online dangers lurk everywhere. Cyber criminals are out there just waiting for that opportunity to pry into my digital life and get something valuable. 
That’s why I’m using every tool available to protect my privacy and strengthen my online security. Emails, for one, are an essential in my everyday life so a secure email service is one of my must-haves. I’ve tried several of these services and I’ll share with you my thoughts on each of them. In this post, you’ll find out if Proton Mail fits the bill for me.

Proton Mail Rapid Rundown Rapid Rundown

Proton Mail is one of the smoothest and most secure email providers on the market. It's the perfect blend of slick, modern aesthetics, and robust, impenetrable security. The moment you sign in, you'll feel right at home. There's not a single hint of it being a secure email service, but it is. 

In fact, ProtonMail is loaded with security features. Even Proton Mail Free already comes with a password manager, an encrypted calendar, and a VPN. You won’t find those in other secure email services. The paid Proton account gives you even more features. Plus it gives you more storage than other secure email providers.

One slight downside is that it requires you to provide an email upon sign-up. You'll have to enter either a current email address or a phone number. I never had to submit any of these when I signed up for other secure mail services like Hushmail or Tutanota. 

Quick Proton Mail Review
Rating	4.9
Overall rank	1 out of 7
Starting Price	€3.99/month when billed annually
Money-Back Guarantee	30-day
End-to-end encryption
Encrypted email to non-subscribers
Storage limit for individuals	15GB per user

Notable features

1. End-to-end encryption: This doesn't only apply to email. Even your calendars get end-to-end encryption.
2. Proton VPN:  Secures your other online activities. It prevents other people from spying on your connections.
3. Proton Calendar: Lets you plan and organize events on an interactive calendar. Adding and rearranging events is a cinch.

Pros and Cons

Before we get into the full Protonmail review, here's a quick snapshot of the pros and cons of ProtonMail:

Proton Mail Pricing Pricing

ProtonMail is slightly more expensive than its competitors, but you get a lot for that extra price. For instance, its cheapest plan for individuals is about €3.99/month per user when I converted it to USD today. Its closest competitors, Hushmail and Tutanota, cost about $3.30/month and €3.00/month respectively. 

However, if you consider the features in each plan, you'll see a different perspective. For instance, even free users of ProtonMail get access to Proton Calendar and Proton VPN. Other similar services don't offer these features even in their paid plans. Hushmail is one example. The ProtonMail paid plans give you those features and more. They even give you bigger storage. 

Proton mail offers several plans to choose from. There are three individual Proton Mail plans. There's also one family plan and three business plans. Check out this Proton Mail cost comparison table to compare the different plans. I omitted the Enterprise plan because it's a customizable plan. It’s for really large businesses.

Proton Mail Security and Privacy Security and Privacy

ProtonMail sets a high standard for what a secure email provider should be. It's not just that Proton Mail is loaded with security features. That's certainly a big plus. But one thing that sets it apart is its adherence to open source principles. All Proton apps are actually open source. That means they're open for scrutiny, criticism, and audits. When Proton Mail claims that a particular feature is secure, other people can verify it. 

This level of transparency minimizes vulnerabilities in the Proton Mail code. If a vulnerability exists, someone can point it out. Others can also chime in and recommend improvements. This collaborative approach strengthens the security of Proton Mail. It also builds trust and confidence among users. Let's now talk about some of the key security features that make up this email service.

End-to-end encryption

One of Proton Mail’s key security features is its end-to-end encryption. In this kind of encryption, the message is encrypted starting from the sender all the way to the receiver. It can't be decrypted anywhere along the way. When you send end-to-end-encrypted messages, only you and your recipient can view them. So even if your emails pass through Proton Mail servers, Proton staff can't read your messages.

Non-Proton Mail users can send you encrypted email using their own email service. But it won't be true end-to-end encryption. In most cases, their messages will be sent through TLS. It's the same kind of encryption used when popular web browsers connect to secure websites. You'll know your browser is using TLS when you see the lock icon. 

As hinted, this TLS-based connection isn’t end-to-end encryption. Your data will only be encrypted from your browser to the web server. Upon arrival, your data will be decrypted. This is also what happens when a user sends you email through a non-Proton mail client. The email will be decrypted upon arrival. Yes, ProtonMail servers will encrypt the email as soon as possible. However, there's going to be that split second when the email will be unencrypted. That's why it's not end-to-end. 

Zero-knowledge encryption

I like how Proton Mail stores your emails from non-ProtonMail users. As mentioned above, ProtonMail encrypts them as soon as they arrive. ProtonMail calls this zero access encryption or zero knowledge encryption. That's because they won't be accessible to anyone other than you once they're encrypted. Not even Proton staff can access them. Yes, it's not end-to-end encryption (E2EE). But it still beats storing emails unencrypted. 

Zero-knowledge encryption isn't a common practice. Many service providers will encrypt your data while stored on their servers. However, the encryption is normally carried out using that provider's encryption keys. That means the provider can also decrypt the data. With zero access encryption, it's your keys that's going to be used for encryption. So only you can perform the decryption. 

You must however note that Proton Mail doesn't encrypt email subject lines. Email contents and attachments are encrypted but email subject lines are not. That means if Proton is asked to turn over user data to authorities, your subject lines will be visible. Proton Mail isn't the only provider that doesn't encrypt subject lines. Hushmail doesn't either. Tutanota does support encrypted subject lines though. That said, the information authorities can get from subject lines is quite limited. Still, it's something to keep in mind. 

Encrypted messages to non-Proton Mail users

You can use Proton Mail to send encrypted messages to non-ProtonMail users. Each email is locked by a mailbox password that you set when you send the email. When the recipient views your email on their email client, they'll see a link that says ‘Unlock message'. They must click that link. They'll then be redirected to the Proton Mail website. There, they'll have to enter the mailbox password to view your message. 

When you send out an encrypted email like this, it will be automatically deleted in 28 days by default. You can change the expiration date and time by clicking the ellipsis beside the lock icon. You can then specify when you want the email to be automatically deleted. 

ProtonMail doesn’t just store that email in encrypted form. In addition, it redirects the recipient to your mailbox through a TLS connection. That essentially means the email is end-to-end encrypted. I really like this feature. Not every person in your contact list is going to be a ProtonMail user. It's important to maintain secure email practices regardless whoever we send email to. ProtonMail allows us to do just that.

Proton Mail Bridge

Proton Mail offers a way to equip your favorite email client with ProtonMail E2EE. It's called Proton Mail Bridge. Proton Mail Bridge supports all popular email clients. That includes Outlook, ThunderBird, and Apple Mail. Theoretically, any email client that supports IMAP and SMTP protocols should work. This option is perfect for users who want to stick with their old email client but want to boost email security.

Unfortunately, Proton Mail Bridge falls under Proton Mail's premium features. That means it's only available to paid users. You couldn't even give it a test run. I'm pretty sure some users would prefer to test how well it syncs with their email client before deciding to buy. Mac users, for instance, may want to test its integration with Apple Mail first. Other Proton technologies like Calendar, VPN, and Pass are already found in the free plan. So I don't understand why Bridge is treated differently.

Features and Capabilities

When you sign up to Proton Mail, you don't just get a secure email service. You're not limited to email features and capabilities. Rather, you get instant access to the entire Proton product family. That includes Proton Calendar, Proton Drive, Proton VPN, and Proton Pass. Let's take a quick look at these Proton technologies. 

Proton Calendar

All popular email services like Gmail and Outlook come with an integrated calendar. It just makes perfect sense. Email and calendar services work hand-in-hand and are a big part of our daily workflows. For instance, you can create an event on Calendar and then set a reminder via email notification. Or you can add a meeting invite received through email to your calendar. So seeing Proton Calendar accompanying ProtonMail is a big plus for me.

Proton Mail's security extends to Proton Calendar. What you're seeing below is actually an encrypted calendar when stored. That means all the information you put in that calendar will be confidential. Only you and whoever you share that calendar with can view it. 

Proton Drive

Proton Drive is a secure cloud-based file storage that comes with the Proton Mail service. You can use it to store document files, image files, and even video files. Everything you store on Proton Drive is encrypted. Not even the folks at Proton can view them. Moreover, you can share the files you store in a secure manner. You can share them with a password-protected link that expires on a certain date. 

Free users are initially given only 500MB of storage space. You can easily unlock 1 GB of storage by performing a few tasks. 1 GB isn't too bad. Other email providers like Tutanota offer 1GB in their free plan as well. And others, like Hushmail, don't have an integrated file storage service at all.

However, some people may find even 1 GB to be quite limited. For example, I typically create 15 to 25-minute videos for my Food Ranger YouTube channel. Now, a 15-minute HD video can easily reach 1.5GB, so I can’t store even a single video with a free plan.

Yes, most people aren't vloggers and won't be storing videos in the cloud. Still, it's easy to reach that 1 GB limit, especially if you upload image files or files that have images on them. This storage space is shared among 3 Proton technologies. That is, ProtonMail, Proton Drive, and Calendar. So that capacity can really fill up quickly. If you do decide to get ProtonMail, go for a paid plan to unlock greater storage and other premium features. 

Among my preferred email providers, Proton Mail and Tutanota offer the biggest storage. Both Proton Mail and Tutanota offer 500 GB for their most expensive individual plan. For Proton Mail, that's the Unlimited Plan. And for Tutanota, it's the Legend Plan. 

Proton VPN

Proton VPN is a fast, reliable, and secure VPN. It hides your IP addresses and browsing data, allowing you to browse the web in private. This will substantially reduce the risk of you being spied on or tracked. Note that only premium users can benefit from ProtonVPN's high speed connections. Free users only get medium-speed connections, so this is another reason to go for a paid plan

Even if ProtonMail is a secure email service, you can still benefit from the security features of a VPN. You can use a VPN to encrypt your other connections, not just email. You can use it to bypass geo-blockers that might also block access to Proton Mail servers. You can also use it to add a layer of protection and make Proton Mail safer, especially when you're on public Wi-Fi.

Proton Pass

Proton Pass is Proton Mail’s built-in password manager. It can generate a strong password for you when you sign up for a new account on any website. It will also save that password, along with your email address/username in its vault. The next time you visit that site, Proton Pass can auto-fill your login info and let you login in an instant. 

I noticed multiple flaws and deficiencies when I tested Proton Pass. Yes, it’s easily accessible right from within Proton Mail, and that’s great. 

But once I got inside it, I hit a blank wall. I'm familiar with other password managers like NordPass, 1Password, Dashlane, and Bitwarden. So I started looking for common features found in a password manager's web app. But I couldn't find them. I couldn't even find any password vault or password generator. These are basic features. Turns, out I still had to download either a Proton Pass app or browser extension. 

And then after I installed the extension and started using it, I encountered more issues. I had difficulty saving login credentials. I must have done something wrong. Still, you have to consider that I just followed the usual steps I take with other password managers. If those steps work with those tools, it should work for Proton Pass as well. 

Proton Pass was just launched earlier this year, so I’m willing to chalk those up to growing pains. I still think it's awesome for ProtonMail to have a built-in password manager. You can even use it to create a strong password for your Proton email account. That will make your Proton Mail safe against brute force attacks.

Proton Mail mobile apps

ProtonMail's mobile apps give you quick access to this email client on your mobile device. ProtonMail mobile apps are available on both Android or iOS. Both interfaces are clean and user-friendly. These apps make it incredibly easy to send encrypted emails on the go. 

My daily email routine usually begins with a quick scan of my inbox on my email service's mobile app. I do this because it's much faster to delete unimportant emails on the mobile app than on the browser. You simply swipe away. So I’m loving how Proton Mail supports this swiping feature.

In fact, the ProtonMail mobile app’s swiping actions are customizable. You can choose what happens when you swipe to the right or to the left. So, for example, you can set it so that ProtonMail deletes the email when you swipe from right to left. And then you can let it archive the email when you swipe from left to right. Interestingly, both swipes default to Archive, so you might want to change that. 

Custom email domain

You can have your own personal email address through what is known as a custom email domain. When you subscribe to Proton Mail, you're initially given a generic email domain. That's usually @proton.me or @protonmail.com. So, for example, your Proton address might be peterpin@proton.me.

Now, let's say you have a business and its name is Some Biz Name. You'll probably want to use a personalized email address like peterpin@somebizname.com. That will give you a more unique identity and is much better for branding purposes. This is where Proton Mail custom email domains come into play.

To take advantage of the Proton Mail custom email domains feature, you need two things:

1. A custom domain purchased from a domain name registrar like Bluehost or Hostpoint.

2. A paid Proton Mail account.

This feature isn’t available in Proton Mail Free. But if you're a business owner, professional, or freelancer, I recommend you upgrade to a paid plan. A custom domain will make your email address more recognizable.

Proton Mail aliases

Proton Mail offers multiple ways of using email aliases. If you’re not familiar with email aliases, they're like real-world aliases. So, for example, your name is John Doe but people also call you Deer Man or Do Re Mi. Email aliases work just like that. They're email addresses associated with your real email address. 

Other people or services don't have to use your real email address to communicate with you. Instead, they can get in touch with you through your Proton Mail alias. You can submit a different email alias to each service you sign up with. Those services won't know your real email address. This can reduce your digital footprint. It would make it much harder for other people to track you or put together a profile of you to market to.

Proton Mail aliases come in three forms:

1. Additional addresses like johndoe@proton.me or johndoe@somebizname.com
2. +Aliases like johndoe+shopping@proton.me or johndoe+social@proton.me
3. Hide-my-email aliases like facebook.absolve197@passinbox.com or youtube.irrigate197@passinbox.com

Here’s a diagram showing how Proton Mail aliases relate to your email address.

You can already get 10 hide-my-email aliases via Proton Pass with Proton free. That might seem like a pretty good deal at the start. But once you get the hang of it, you'll want more email aliases. The only way to scratch that itch is to upgrade. Premium accounts give you unlimited hide-my-email aliases!

Ease of Use and Setup

Proton Mail makes its mark not only as a secure email provider but also in the ease of use and setup of its apps. With Proton Mail, setting up a secure email account is a breeze. Even those who aren't tech-savvy will find the process uncomplicated and quick. Once it's installed, the setup process is likewise straightforward. Then when you ultimately use Proton Mail, you'll find the experience remarkably intuitive.

To give you a glimpse of what it's like to use Proton Mail, here are some common workflow examples.

Proton Mail account creation

The Proton Mail account creation process is pretty straightforward. The process I’ve outlined below is just for the free account. However, the steps for a ProtonMail paid account should be about the same. The only difference in a paid plan would be that you'll be asked to specify a payment method. Here are the general steps.

1. Go to the pricing page and click the appropriate “Get Proton…” button. 
2. Enter a username and password. 
3. Enter an email or a phone number. ProtonMail will send a verification code to either of these two. Once you get the verification code, you can enter that code on the next screen to verify. 

This is the part that many privacy advocates are complaining about. Other top secure email services don't request this information during sign up. That means, it shouldn't be necessary. Many of us worry about getting spammed or getting involved in a data breach. So it's understandable to be cautious about sharing personal contact information. If you're not comfortable with this step, check out Hushmail or Tutanota. They don't require this information.

4. Enter a display name. This is different from the username you entered earlier. Your display name is the name people will see when they receive your email messages. 
5. Enter a recovery phone number and/or email address. 

Using the Proton Mail web app

The Proton Mail web app is easy to use. It's got all the usual sections found in a typical email account. It's got Inbox, Sent, Trash, Spam, and so on on the left side of the screen—just like any popular email client. So you can hit the ground running as soon as you log in. And while the speed isn't as fast as, say, Gmail, it's fast enough for me. 

I usually prefer to compose email messages on the web app than on the mobile app. The web interface obviously has a much larger screen real estate. But aside from that, I also like using a full-sized keyboard. It's much faster composing emails that way. That said, I usually check emails on the mobile app first. Check out the section on Proton Mail mobile apps to see why.

Proton Mail has the most visually appealing web app of all secure email services, in my opinion. It's definitely more lively than Hushmail or Tutanota. If you don't like the default Proton theme, you can change it in Settings in the upper-right corner of the screen. 

Organizing Proton Mail messages using labels

I receive over a hundred emails per day, so the presence of a labeling feature on Proton Mail is a big plus for me. The ability to label emails keeps my inbox organized. In turn, it boosts my productivity, as I can prioritize messages that are more important.

Creating and using labels on Proton Mail is easy. Creating a label can be done in 3 quick steps. And then once a label is available, you can easily select emails and tag them with the right label. If you just want to show emails under a particular label, just click their label on the left panel of your screen.

Setting up Proton Mail 2FA

Whenever an online service I sign up for supports 2-factor authentication, I make it a point to enable it. It makes me feel more secure. I'm glad Proton Mail offers 2FA even in the free version. What's more, setting up Proton Mail 2FA is super easy. I probably completed the set up in about a minute.

I was able to set up Proton Mail 2FA on the web app. Here are the general steps I took to complete the setup process.

1. I clicked the gear icon on the upper right side of the inbox page.
2. When the menu appeared, I clicked ‘Go to settings’.
3. I then went to the ‘Account and password’ section and then switched on the Authenticator app toggle switch

4. I was asked to enter my Proton Mail password. I complied and then clicked the ‘Authenticate’ button.
5. I was then asked to scan the QR code with my authenticator app. I normally use either the Microsoft Authenticator or the Google Authenticator for this purpose.
6. After that, I was asked to enter the code shown for Proton on my authenticator app’s screen. 

That’s it. Like I said, I completed everything in about a minute. 

Customer Support

Proton Mail offers extensive customer support options. This includes live chat, phone, email, and a Help Desk system through Zendesk. Their customer support team is available 24/7, so they can respond regardless of your time zone. Just bear in mind that only premium users are entitled to priority support. If you're using a free version, you'll only get limited support. This means you'll be given lower priority if your request coincides with that of a paid user.

You can also get help through their social media accounts. They're most active on Twitter and Reddit. But they have accounts on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Mastodon, and Youtube as well. If you have a technical question, you'll get a better response from the Reddit community. 

We're now at the end of this Proton Mail review. Before we part ways, I'd like to invite you to our FAQ section. Many readers find golden nuggets of wisdom there, so feel free to scroll down a little bit more.

Proton Mail FAQ FAQ

As you explore the Proton Mail platform, you might have some queries or concerns. This section might just have the answers you're looking for. It's meant to address common questions that may have popped up along your journey. Let's dive in!