Anybody like me with email providers?

rscaramelo · 29 Oct 2025, 04:45 AM

I can't decide on a provider and constantly change. I have wasted so much money on paid email. I use a custom domain so it makes this somewhat easier. I have accounts at Fastmail, Proton, Zoho, Infomaniak, iCloud, PurelyMail, and probably a couple others that I'm forgetting. I'm never happy. Every one of them has something I dislike or another will come up with an update that I want to try. I usually default back to Fastmail because it feels like the most complete smooth service but I always have a wandering eye.

jeffpan · 29 Oct 2025, 05:11 AM

This is quite normal.
There is an old saying here:
黑夜给了我黑的眼睛，
我却用它来寻找光明。

TenFour · 29 Oct 2025, 07:28 AM

I've tried a bunch, but try to use 30-day free trials to find out more. Though at the moment I have two subscriptions I'm not using! I keep ending up back at Gmail due to its robust array of free services and great performance. Also, I'm not sure I need domain email now that I am retired and mostly just need reliability and low or no cost.

hadaso · 29 Oct 2025, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeffpan

This is quite normal.
There is an old saying here:
黑夜给了我黑的眼睛，
我却用它来寻找光明。

It's actually a two line poem by Gu Cheng.

Twenty something years ago I was also trying many services. However for more than twenty years I am using quite exclusively Fastmail (with my own domain (the last other email service I joined was Gmail in June 2004, and used it only for backup (and also for its office document viewers back then). Fastmail's not perfect, but it's good enough for me to not look for alternatives. I don't expect any service to be perfect.

jeffpan · 29 Oct 2025, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hadaso

It's actually a two line poem by Gu Cheng.

Twenty something years ago I was also trying many services. However for more than twenty years I am using quite exclusively Fastmail (with my own domain (the last other email service I joined was Gmail in June 2004, and used it only for backup (and also for its office document viewers back then). Fastmail's not perfect, but it's good enough for me to not look for alternatives. I don't expect any service to be perfect.

Me too.

My main email is Fastmail, which has many user names as choice.
My old and official account is a gmail, which has my full name as the username.

Though I have also fullname@outlook.com, fullname@yahoo.com, and fullname@protone.me, but I didn't use them.

dryoldlime · 29 Oct 2025, 11:28 AM

Not so much that I constantly changed, but I created more email accounts both for specific purposes (at first) and for experience. Done in GMail, Yahoo, AOL, CompuServe, MyWay, GMX, mail.com, Proton, and maybe a couple of others. Yah! Also tried Lavabit, many years ago. Most comfortable seem to be GMail, Yahoo, and AOL.

TenFour · 29 Oct 2025, 07:12 PM

Two things might finally drive me away from Gmail.
1. Arbitrary and unpredictable security lock outs with no way to appeal to humans that can help you get back in. Particularly if you travel away from home.
2. More and more intrusive AI nonsense that is not helpful.

Avion · 29 Oct 2025, 07:19 PM

I have a half-dozen paid providers and a few Google Legacy accounts, and I do have a habit of swapping and changing my main email accounts around regularly - usually when I'm bored.

Still looking for that ultimate provider.

jeffpan · 29 Oct 2025, 07:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Avion

I have a half-dozen paid providers and a few Google Legacy accounts, and I do have a habit of swapping and changing my main email accounts around regularly - usually when I'm bored.

Still looking for that ultimate provider.

Do you have Hey mail?

TenFour · 29 Oct 2025, 08:32 PM

Personally, I can't justify spending either $99 or $144 per year for email with Hey. I have found I prefer to use my own methods for handling emails instead of having to change my workflow to fit an opinionated email service.

rscaramelo · 29 Oct 2025, 11:07 PM

Tried Hey but it was too weird for me honestly. A little too different. I really liked Skiff and was ready to go that way before they blew up that option.

Avion · 29 Oct 2025, 11:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeffpan

Do you have Hey mail?

The first thing that attracts me is the price - and as TenFour says, I can't justify their price for my needs.

The most expensive account that I have is with Fastmail, and, as they are now offering to renew with 60GB storage and no cheaper plans available with much smaller storage (10GB is more than enough for me, even 5GB at a pinch) for own domains, their cost is now prohibitive.

pjroutledge · 3 Nov 2025, 06:03 PM

I keep coming back to Fastmail too.

The main problem I have with Fastmail, and the reason I try other services, is Fastmail storing data in the US, along with no end to end encryption. (I would probably be ok with the US if emails were truly end to end encrypted a la Proton.)

In the end though, my so-called 'threat-model' is, basically, no real risk. So I keep coming back to Fastmail.

One other issue that is becoming an increasing pain is migrating emails when I move services. Eg I move from Fastmail to <some-other-service> and migrate my emails. Then, after a few months, I move back to Fastmail and migrate my emails from <some-other-service> to Fastmail. Now I have duplicates of the original set of Fastmail emails.

Having done this a few times (FM, Proton, Zoho, Migadu, ... ) I'm sometimes find up to 5 duplicates of older emails. It's kind of a first world problem, though. Doesn't really matter, just an annoyance.

I also prefer labels or tags rather than folders. And labels generally don't migrate well.

Ultimately, though, I can say that the user interface and cost have never been deciding factors. It's always issues such as where data is stored, aliases (limits or implementation complexity), support for domains, IMAP, etc.

Fastmail just seems to do email so well.

TenFour · 4 Nov 2025, 05:38 AM

Quote:

The main problem I have with Fastmail, and the reason I try other services, is Fastmail storing data in the US, along with no end to end encryption. (I would probably be ok with the US if emails were truly end to end encrypted a la Proton.)

FM has a good argument for why end to end encryption hobbles email functionality. https://www.fastmail.com/features/security/

In addition, for me personally, end to end encryption would be worthless because exactly zero people I correspond with use it or would even be able to. I have never received a request to use or view someone's encrypted email.

jeffpan · 4 Nov 2025, 06:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TenFour

FM has a good argument for why end to end encryption hobbles email functionality. https://www.fastmail.com/features/security/

In addition, for me personally, end to end encryption would be worthless because exactly zero people I correspond with use it or would even be able to. I have never received a request to use or view someone's encrypted email.

I agree with you TenFour.

For xyamail.com, I can easily deploy end-to-end encryption. But i think it's useless.

29 Oct 2025, 04:45 AM	#1
rscaramelo Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2017 Posts: 148	Anybody like me with email providers? I can't decide on a provider and constantly change. I have wasted so much money on paid email. I use a custom domain so it makes this somewhat easier. I have accounts at Fastmail, Proton, Zoho, Infomaniak, iCloud, PurelyMail, and probably a couple others that I'm forgetting. I'm never happy. Every one of them has something I dislike or another will come up with an update that I want to try. I usually default back to Fastmail because it feels like the most complete smooth service but I always have a wandering eye.

29 Oct 2025, 05:11 AM	#2
jeffpan The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Hong Kong Posts: 2,531 Representative of: tls-mail.com	This is quite normal. There is an old saying here: 黑夜给了我黑的眼睛，我却用它来寻找光明。

29 Oct 2025, 07:28 AM	#3
TenFour The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: USA Posts: 2,297	I've tried a bunch, but try to use 30-day free trials to find out more. Though at the moment I have two subscriptions I'm not using! I keep ending up back at Gmail due to its robust array of free services and great performance. Also, I'm not sure I need domain email now that I am retired and mostly just need reliability and low or no cost.

29 Oct 2025, 11:28 AM	#6
dryoldlime Essential Contributor Join Date: Aug 2023 Posts: 294	Not so much that I constantly changed, but I created more email accounts both for specific purposes (at first) and for experience. Done in GMail, Yahoo, AOL, CompuServe, MyWay, GMX, mail.com, Proton, and maybe a couple of others. Yah! Also tried Lavabit, many years ago. Most comfortable seem to be GMail, Yahoo, and AOL.

29 Oct 2025, 07:12 PM	#7
TenFour The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: USA Posts: 2,297	Two things might finally drive me away from Gmail. 1. Arbitrary and unpredictable security lock outs with no way to appeal to humans that can help you get back in. Particularly if you travel away from home. 2. More and more intrusive AI nonsense that is not helpful.

29 Oct 2025, 07:19 PM	#8
Avion Essential Contributor Join Date: Sep 2022 Posts: 279	I have a half-dozen paid providers and a few Google Legacy accounts, and I do have a habit of swapping and changing my main email accounts around regularly - usually when I'm bored. Still looking for that ultimate provider.

29 Oct 2025, 08:32 PM	#10
TenFour The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: USA Posts: 2,297	Personally, I can't justify spending either $99 or $144 per year for email with Hey. I have found I prefer to use my own methods for handling emails instead of having to change my workflow to fit an opinionated email service.

29 Oct 2025, 11:07 PM	#11
rscaramelo Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2017 Posts: 148	Tried Hey but it was too weird for me honestly. A little too different. I really liked Skiff and was ready to go that way before they blew up that option.

3 Nov 2025, 06:03 PM	#13
pjroutledge Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Melbourne, Oz Posts: 167	I keep coming back to Fastmail too. The main problem I have with Fastmail, and the reason I try other services, is Fastmail storing data in the US, along with no end to end encryption. (I would probably be ok with the US if emails were truly end to end encrypted a la Proton.) In the end though, my so-called 'threat-model' is, basically, no real risk. So I keep coming back to Fastmail. One other issue that is becoming an increasing pain is migrating emails when I move services. Eg I move from Fastmail to <some-other-service> and migrate my emails. Then, after a few months, I move back to Fastmail and migrate my emails from <some-other-service> to Fastmail. Now I have duplicates of the original set of Fastmail emails. Having done this a few times (FM, Proton, Zoho, Migadu, ... ) I'm sometimes find up to 5 duplicates of older emails. It's kind of a first world problem, though. Doesn't really matter, just an annoyance. I also prefer labels or tags rather than folders. And labels generally don't migrate well. Ultimately, though, I can say that the user interface and cost have never been deciding factors. It's always issues such as where data is stored, aliases (limits or implementation complexity), support for domains, IMAP, etc. Fastmail just seems to do email so well.