European alternatives to Gmail

Gmail is Google’s email service, launched in 2004 and out of beta in 2009, and the largest mailbox provider in the world with about 1.8 billion users. A free account comes with 15 GB of storage shared with Google Drive and Google Photos, and IMAP access lets any mail client read it. Custom domains, admin controls and retention policies come with a paid Google Workspace plan.

What keeps people on it is less the inbox than the address. A Gmail address is also the login for an Android phone, a YouTube account, Play Store purchases and every site signed into with Google, so moving the mail is the easy half of leaving.

Google says it does not use the content of Gmail to show personalized ads. Since 16 October 2026 its privacy policy adds an exception: unless the user makes that data available to other Google services that support personalized ads, such as Search or Gemini through Personal Intelligence. The European alternatives below are mailboxes that carry no advertising at all.