Teams look past Gmail when they want a mailbox outside Google, a desktop app that works offline, or a client that adds team assignment or AI triage on top of the same inbox. Most go to Microsoft Outlook or Thunderbird for a plain replacement, and to Missive or Spark Mail when the missing piece is shared mail.
Visibility in our rankings can be paid for. Payment moves a vendor's position within
the shortlist; it never adds a vendor, and it never changes a word of the review or of this page. The first three alternatives
go to challengers, vendors outside the best-known brands in a category, wherever the category has them; the
established names follow in their ranked order. How it works:
placement disclosure · editorial process.
What each alternative does differently
1. Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft's mail and calendar client for Microsoft 365 · United States
Arrives inside a Microsoft 365 subscription rather than a Google Workspace one, so the real choice is which suite you already hold. Classic Outlook on desktop handles .pst files, while the new Outlook does not import them. A standalone price was not on the pages we could fetch.
Switch from Gmail if your company already pays for Microsoft 365 and wants the mail client inside that bundle.
Pricing: Bundled with Microsoft 365 subscriptions that include desktop apps, such as Business Standard; a standalone price was not in the pages we could fetch. (none)
Full review: #5 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Microsoft Outlook →
2. Thunderbird
Free open source desktop mail, calendar and contacts · United States
A free, open source desktop app supported by donations, with no ads and no personal data collection. It is only a client: you still need a mailbox from some host, and it has no team inbox. It can read Gmail over IMAP while you decide where mail will live.
Switch from Gmail if you want a free desktop client you control and a mailbox on an independent host.
Pricing: Free and open source, funded by donations; no paid plan was listed on the pages we fetched. (open source)
Full review: #3 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Thunderbird →
3. HEY
Email and calendar service with a built-in screener · United States
Replaces the inbox itself with a screener that makes unknown senders ask for approval. It does not support IMAP or POP, so no other client can connect, and you cannot check other accounts from it. Forwarding from Gmail works. Export is an MBOX file of mail and a vCard of contacts.
Switch from Gmail if you want a mailbox that screens strangers and are happy to drop third-party clients.
Pricing: HEY for You $99 per year; HEY for Domains $12 per user per month ($10 for the first user); 30-day free trial with no credit card. (free trial)
Full review: #9 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit HEY →
4. Missive
Collaborative inbox for teams that run on email · Canada
Adds shared inboxes, assignment, comments and tasks on top of an existing mailbox, including Gmail. Pricing is per user on three tiers with a 30-day trial. It does not host your mail, so your domain, spam filtering and storage stay with whoever provides them today.
Switch from Gmail if several people answer the same addresses and you need assignment and internal comments.
Pricing: Starter $14, Productive $24 and Business $36 per user per month billed yearly, with a 30-day free trial that needs no credit card. (free trial)
Full review: #2 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Missive →
5. Spark Mail
Unified inbox app with a free tier and team plans · Ireland
A unified inbox app that connects IMAP, iCloud, Exchange, Outlook and Google accounts in one place on every device. A free tier takes unlimited accounts, while paid tiers add team features for composing and delegating mail together. Mail stays on the original provider's servers.
Switch from Gmail if you run several accounts and want one app with an optional paid team layer.
Pricing: Free plan with unlimited accounts; Plus at 8.25 euros per user per month billed yearly (10 euros monthly); Pro at 19.08 euros yearly (22 euros monthly); Enterprise by quote. (free plan)
Full review: #1 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Spark Mail →
6. Shortwave
AI-first email app for Gmail and Outlook teams · United States
Built for Gmail and Outlook accounts, it reworks the inbox around AI summaries, bundles, snooze and a natural language search that also accepts Gmail-style filters. The mail remains in Google. Plans are priced per seat, and AI usage quotas rise with each tier.
Switch from Gmail if you keep Gmail underneath but want AI search and summaries across a team.
Pricing: Business $30, Premier $45 and Max $120 per seat per month, with a 14-day free trial; AI usage quotas rise with each plan. (free trial)
Full review: #6 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Shortwave →
7. Superhuman
Fast AI-native inbox for Gmail and Outlook · United States
A paid client for Gmail and Outlook teams that stresses speed, split inbox, autocorrect and showing when a colleague is replying. It changes the interface, not the host. The pricing page we fetched showed no figures, so budget by asking for a quote.
Switch from Gmail if your team lives in the inbox all day and values speed over a low seat price.
Pricing: Per-user subscription; the pricing page we fetched showed only a title, so we cannot state a price or a free plan. (none)
Full review: #12 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Superhuman →
8. Mimestream
Native macOS email client built on the Gmail API · United States
A native macOS client written around the Gmail API rather than IMAP, so it can use Gmail features that a generic IMAP client does not. Mac only, billed per user per year, with group plans and a 14-day trial. It cannot take you away from Google.
Switch from Gmail if your team is on Macs and wants a faster app while staying on Gmail.
Pricing: Individual $49.99 per year or $4.99 per month; Group plans for teams add central billing and seat management; 14-day free trial with no credit card. (free trial)
Full review: #10 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Mimestream →
9. Fyxer AI
AI assistant that organizes, drafts and takes notes · United Kingdom
An assistant that sorts mail, drafts replies and takes meeting notes, connected to a Google or Microsoft account. It does not replace the inbox, it works beside it, and the 14-day trial uses your work email. Priced per person per month, well above a bare mail client.
Switch from Gmail if your real problem is time spent sorting and drafting, not the mailbox itself.
Pricing: Pro $37 per person per month on annual billing ($49 monthly); Team $64 per person annual ($99 monthly); Enterprise by quote; 14-day free trial. (free trial)
Full review: #11 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Fyxer AI →
10. eM Client
Desktop mail, calendar, contacts and tasks, bought once · Czech Republic
A desktop client for mail, calendar, contacts and tasks that you can buy once or rent yearly. The free tier is limited to home use with two accounts. It talks to Gmail and others by standard protocols and has no shared inbox or server component.
Switch from Gmail if you prefer paying once for a Windows or Mac client instead of a per-seat subscription.
Pricing: Free for home use with 2 accounts; Personal 49.95 euros per year or 74.95 euros once; Business 59.95 euros per year or 89.95 euros once. (free plan)
Full review: #7 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit eM Client →
11. Mailbird
Windows and Mac unified inbox with app integrations · United States
A Windows and Mac inbox that merges several accounts and connects over 45 apps such as calendars and chat tools. It has a free tier for one account, a yearly plan and a one-time license. It does not host mail and offers no team assignment.
Switch from Gmail if you want a lifetime-license desktop client that gathers several mailboxes in one window.
Pricing: Free for 1 account; Premium 4.03 euros per user per month billed yearly; or pay once 99.75 euros per user, with extra add-ons priced separately. (free plan)
Full review: #8 of 12 in our ranking ·
Visit Mailbird →
Questions and answers
Can I export my mail from Gmail?
Yes. A user can use Google Takeout, and an administrator can use the Data Export tool for the whole organization. Google states that downloading does not remove the data from its servers. Takeout also offers delivery by emailed link, Google Drive or Dropbox, in zip or tgz files.
Can another email client read Gmail without moving mail?
Yes, over IMAP, and over POP for a single computer. Google tells you to use the Sign in with Google option in the client, since sharing your Google password with third-party apps is no longer supported. Gmail allows up to 15 clients on one account at once.
What happens to my mailbox if I cancel Google Workspace?
Google states that data from core services such as Gmail is excluded from the Data Export tool if the subscription is canceled or suspended. In practice this means you export first and cancel last. Keep the old subscription running until the new host receives mail.
Does Gmail forward everything to a new address?
Not everything. Google says automatic forwarding sends all new messages except spam, and that you can choose what happens to the Gmail copy. To forward only some mail, turn off automatic forwarding and create a filter with the Forward it option.
Is there a limit on how much mail I can send a day?
Yes. Google Workspace limits messages per day and recipients per message, and a user who passes a limit cannot send for up to 24 hours. Receiving continues. Trial accounts have lower limits that rise only after the domain has paid a cumulative 100 US dollars.
Will third-party addresses keep working inside Gmail?
Not for long. Google is ending Gmailify and POP fetching from other accounts, with existing users supported until January 2027, and Send as for third-party addresses stops from that month. Workspace aliases and other Gmail addresses you own are not affected.
