These are the best secure email services I recommend in 2026

All those free and popular email services like Gmail aren’t as private as you think. The companies behind them have access to your email account, so they can technically view every email you have ever sent and received. While we have to trust that large, reputable companies follow their own privacy rules and don’t do that, they are definitely scanning all your emails automatically to provide popular features like Smart Reply and automatic sorting. Some even use that data to train their AI models, and all of them are required to hand over data to the government when asked.

Your email should be your business. Period. And that’s where secure email services come in. These differ from those offered by Big Tech because they use end-to-end encryption. They are completely secure, so the companies that own them can’t see your emails even if they wanted to.

If you’re privacy-focused and want to make sure you are the only one with access to your account, keep reading. You’ll find the five best secure email services of 2026 below that don’t just have your privacy in mind, but also offer great design and all the features most people actually need.

Tuta Mail

Tuta Mail is about as private as it gets. Based in Germany, a country with some of the world’s strictest privacy laws, Tuta offers end-to-end encryption to ensure you are the only one with access to your data. That means no scanning or tracking of your emails — Tuta simply doesn’t have the keys to read them. The company even goes a step further, utilizing its TutaCrypt protocol, which is resistant to attacks from future quantum computers.

Not only is Tuta secure and ad-free, but it’s also sustainable. The servers that hold your data are powered by 100% renewable energy. The UI is clean and simplistic, making it very easy to navigate, and it includes 2FA (Two-Factor Authentication) for that extra layer of security.

It’s available on the web as well as on Android and iOS, and you can even download dedicated desktop apps for Windows, macOS, and Linux. Despite its minimalist design, the provider offers plenty of features, including a dedicated encrypted calendar app and built-in protection against spam and phishing.

Tuta Mail is free to use, though storage and features are limited on the basic plan. It’s a great way to try out the service, but you’ll likely want to upgrade to a premium version eventually to unlock more storage and custom domains. Paid plans start at roughly $3 per month.

StartMail

StartMail promises to keep your data safe thanks to end-to-end encryption, with a firm policy of no tracking, no profiling, and zero ads. Based in the Netherlands, it is best known for its unlimited disposable addresses, which let you create on-the-fly aliases to protect your main email address. You can even set these to expire automatically in as little as one hour — perfect for one-time signups.

What’s particularly interesting is that StartMail lets you send an encrypted email to anyone, even if the recipient doesn’t use encryption. You can achieve this by setting a password they’ll need to use to open your mail and reply securely. It’s a great way to bridge the gap between your secure inbox and your friends still on Gmail.

You also get all the standard security features you’d expect in 2026, including 2FA, advanced spam filters, and malicious link detection. There are also several customization options available, including a built-in dark mode, so you can personalize the look and feel of your inbox to suit your preferences.

StartMail works seamlessly with popular email clients like Thunderbird and Apple Mail, but you can also use the company’s own responsive webmail service. While there is still no dedicated mobile app, the web interface is optimized for smartphones, and you can easily add a shortcut to your home screen in the form of a Progressive Web App (PWA). You can try it out for free for seven days, with premium plans starting at around $5 per month.

Mailbox

Mailbox is technically more than just an email provider — it’s a full productivity suite. Besides a secure, privacy-first email account, you also get access to cloud storage, video conferencing software, and an online office suite for word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations.

Sticking to email, Mailbox offers end-to-end encryption along with other security features like robust spam filters and virus protection. You also get up to 25 email aliases on their standard plan, 2FA support, and unique features like the ability to set expiration dates for download links.

The company is based in Germany, which has some of the world’s strictest data protection laws, and is fully GDPR-compliant. While it supports external email clients like Thunderbird, it doesn’t have its own dedicated mobile app in the Play Store. Instead, you can use its webmail client or save it to your home screen as a Progressive Web App (PWA), which provides an app-like experience with notifications.

Mailbox starts at just around $1 per month on an annual plan, but you’ll likely want to move up to the Standard tier for around $3 per month. This higher plan gets you substantially more storage (10GB for mail and 5GB for cloud) along with access to the full office suite. There are a variety of ways to pay, including the ultra-private method of putting cash in an envelope and mailing it to the company’s HQ in Berlin — a feature most rivals don’t support.

Mailfence

Mailfence firmly believes that privacy is a right, not a feature. It guarantees that no one will have access to your account but you, as not even the company can go through your emails. In addition to end-to-end encryption, there are also no ads, no tracking whatsoever, and no spam.

The company is based in Belgium, which has — much like Germany and Switzerland — very strict privacy laws. Their plans start at around $3 per month and include access to a full productivity suite where you can store, share, edit, and create documents securely. There’s also 2FA for an extra layer of security and dedicated apps for both Android and iOS.

Sustainability is also high on Mailfence’s priority list, as its servers are powered by 100% green energy. The company is fully GDPR-compliant and even accepts payments in cryptocurrency for those who want to remain anonymous. Before you part with your money, you can try it out with a free plan. While it’s limited to 1GB of total storage (500MB for email and 500MB for documents), it’s more than enough to take the service for a spin and see what it’s all about.

The base subscription plan I mentioned gives you 5GB of email storage, and if you need more, you can upgrade to a higher-tier plan that offers 10GB.

These are the five best secure email services I’d recommend, although there are a few other options out there. Which ones did I miss? Let me know in the comments.