Managing email is a chore, and it seems to get worse all the time. I'm not sure why anyone would want to self-host their own email server, and have the pain of managing inbox rules and spam prevention. I much prefer outsourcing that pain to companies that are more than willing to adjust my inbox for me so that I can read the emails that are relevant, and remember to unsubscribe from those I never read. Along with trying different email clients, there are tons of good email extensions you can add to your Gmail account, so you can gain new features in the interface you already use.

5 Thunderbird

One of the best open-source email clients keeps getting better

Mozilla's Thunderbird client is still one of the best replacements for Outlook, or any other desktop-based email client. It has native apps for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android, with iOS on the way, and even better, doesn't require a subscription fee to access its features. You get support for multiple email accounts, can link it to your calendars, and has a robust suite of privacy controls.

The interface wasn't its strong suit, but that changed with the v128 Nebula update, which introduced a flat design, a card-based view to show more information at once, better menus and icons, and an overall much-improved user experience. It now works better on touchscreens, as you can change the email density to Relaxed and get enough space for your fingers on touchscreen laptops. The tagging system lets you sort those incoming emails into categories for easier organization. There are tons of extensions to add more features if you need something that the base client doesn't support, and it's designed to be private, keeping your data in your hands and not in the hands of advertisers.

4 Boomerang

Add new features to Gmail to make it even better

If you're one of the many who can't tear themselves away from their Gmail inbox, you can still add plenty of new functionality by integrating other tools. Boomerang adds a bunch of handy features, even on the free tier, like response tracking, reminders to follow up, click tracking, a pause button for your inbox, and the ability to schedule meetings without leaving your inbox. Plus, you get the Respondable feature, which analyzes your emails as you write them, giving you tips on communication styles and advanced email etiquette so you get a better chance of getting a reply.

That's all pretty awesome and can be useful even for personal accounts. But power users will want to take a look at the subscription tiers that add more advanced options for the basic features, and a whole bevy of features that anyone in sales would love to get their hands on.

3 Todoist

Link one of the best to-do apps to your email and see your productivity soar

Todoist is great for many personal and professional tasks, and handling emails is just one more thing it can do. We love it for task management, but you also get time management and plenty of powerful inbox-handling connections. These include turning emails into Todoist tasks so you have visibility everywhere you go, either by adding the extension to your email client or by forwarding emails to your Todoist account. And depending on the client you're forwarding from, you can set it to automatically archive or mark as read, so you get to that fabled Inbox Zero faster.

2 Spark

One of the best email clients for Windows, Mac, and mobile

Spark is one of our favorite email clients here at XDA, even though its truly useful features require a subscription. With deep organizational tools, it turns your inbox into a sorted to-do list, surfacing emails that need your attention while filtering out the noise. It's got a beautiful, modern interface designed to do just that, making it easier for you to focus on the important things, like how to phrase your response. The inbox unifies your multiple email accounts, it has all the modern features you'd expect for scheduling and snoozing email, and that's just in the free plan.

The free tier also gives you access to Action Center, which is like a personal chatbot that helps you with email tasks if you type them out. You can use it to archive emails, schedule them, or do any task you could do with the mouse. The subscription tier adds tons of AI tools for summarizing, sorting, or writing emails and an AI notetaker and translator, which can come in handy. And you get ways to mute threads, group emails by sender, and some powerful blocking features that might be worth the outlay on their own.

1 Canary Mail

Enable encrypted emails by default from a clean interface

This cross-platform email app enables easy encrypted emails via SecureSend so you can be sure your emails aren't being read on the way to their intended destination. Plus, you can set expiry dates for auto expiration, or yank the ability to read them at any time. Perfect if you want to let your inner James Bond out. You'll need the top tier of the subscription to use this, though, but you might fall in love with the minimalist UI and use it for normal emails, too.

You also get a clean, modern interface, the ability to unify multiple email accounts, read receipts, and other modern essentials like snoozing emails for later use. You also get a bunch of email templates, which is nice to see, and some customization to make your inbox feel a little more personal. There are also two paid tiers, which add things like an AI Copilot for writing messages, scheduling and calendar events, and an inbox cleaner. The top tier also adds PGP encryption and some advanced security features.

We're all drowning in email, but adding a few useful tools can help

Email used to be cool and useful back in the days before everything required you to subscribe to their email list, and before companies sold email lists to marketers for extra revenue. But nowadays our inboxes are a mess, and important emails get buried in tons of advertisements, blogpost announcements, and other things that we don't really need to read. Taking back control might require a small investment, but think of how much your time is worth to you, and how much of that time is being spent in your cluttered inbox. But it's also worth trying a few different options, because all email management apps or desktop clients handle things slightly differently, and you want to find one that fits how you work, not one that you have to change your habits to make work.