Posteo vs mail.com
Posteo wins on privacy, they tie on price and mail.com wins on features. Every fact below was checked on or before 25 October 2026.
Should you pick Posteo or mail.com?
- Posteo suits you best if you want your mail kept in Germany; email from a company that doesn't make money from adverts; and open-source apps anyone can check.
- mail.com suits you best if you want a mailbox that costs nothing; a free plan before you pay anything; and more room (65 GB, against 4 GB).
| Feature | Posteo | mail.com |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 4.5 | 2.5 |
| Privacy | 4.5 | 0.0 |
| Price | 5.0 | 5.0 |
| Features | 3.0 | 4.0 |
| Cheapest plan | Posteo €1 a month | Free Free |
| Free plan | No | Yes, with adverts |
| Storage | 4 GB | 65 GB |
| Your own domain | No | No |
| End-to-end encryption | Optional (PGP or encrypted storage) | No |
| Company based in | Germany | United States |
| Your data is kept in | Germany | United States |
| Founded | 2009 | 1995 |
| Free trial | No, €1 a month from the start | Free |
| Funded by advertising | No | Yes, or its parent company is |
| Works in any mail app | ✓ IMAP and SMTP | ✓ IMAP and SMTP |
| Calendar and contacts | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Aliases | Yes (posteo.de only) | Up to 10 addresses |
| Open-source apps | ✓ Yes | No |
| Sign up without ID | ✓ Yes | No |
| White label | No | No |
| Reader offer | None | None |
| Last checked | 22 October 2026 | 25 October 2026 |
Want to add another? Open this in the compare tool.
Where they differ
- Posteo's cheapest plan is Posteo (€1 a month); mail.com's is Free (Free).
- For free, Posteo gives you no free plan, and mail.com a free plan (with adverts).
- Posteo comes with 4 GB of storage and mail.com with 65 GB of storage.
- Posteo keeps your mail in Germany, while mail.com keeps it in the United States.
- Posteo is based in Germany and mail.com in the United States, so different privacy laws apply.
- Posteo offers optional encryption (PGP or encrypted storage); mail.com doesn't encrypt mail end to end.
- Only mail.com is part of an advertising business.
- For extra addresses, Posteo has yes (posteo.de only) and mail.com has up to 10 addresses.
Questions people ask
Which is more private, Posteo or mail.com?
Posteo scores 4.5 out of 5 for privacy and mail.com 0. Posteo gives you your mail kept in Germany, email from a company that doesn't make money from adverts and open-source apps anyone can check.
Which is cheaper, Posteo or mail.com?
mail.com costs nothing to start (Free). Posteo's cheapest plan, Posteo, is €1 a month.
Do Posteo and mail.com work with my own domain?
No, neither lets you use your own domain, so your address stays on theirs.
Where do Posteo and mail.com keep my email?
Posteo keeps it in Germany. mail.com keeps it in the United States.
Price changes and news
I haven't seen either change its price since I started checking on 22 October 2026.
The latest headlines: Posteo news · mail.com news.
Also worth a look
Posteo vs mailbox.org · mail.com vs mailbox.org · Posteo vs Proton Mail · mail.com vs Proton Mail · Posteo vs Tuta · mail.com vs Tuta
Switching between them
Moving to Posteo · Moving from Posteo. Or see all my switching guides.