Proton Mail compared with Magpie

Proton Mail vs Magpie: an in-depth comparison

Proton Mail and Magpie both give a small business email at its own domain, with a calendar, files and passwords beside it. They are built around different things.

  1. Proton Mail is an encrypted email service from Switzerland, with a calendar, files, passwords, a VPN and video meetings in the same account. It is built for someone who wants nobody else, Proton included, to be able to read their mail.
  2. Magpie is one subscription for a small business's software, and Mail is one part of it. Beside the inbox it includes booking pages, invoicing, a helpdesk, contacts, a website and more. It is built for someone whose email is one part of running the business.

By Andrew Smales, 4 November 2026. Proton Mail checked against its own pages on 4 November 2026.

Create account
Mail Inbox with fictional Northline Studio messages and an open recording-session email.

How is Magpie different?

1. Email comes with the rest of the business

One Magpie subscription includes the areas a small business would otherwise buy one at a time:

  • Mail for mailboxes and aliases at your domain, and DNS for the domain's records
  • Helpdesk, which turns a support address's mail into conversations a teammate is assigned
  • Contacts, Meetings and Appointments for the people you work with and the times they book
  • Invoicing, with recurring invoices and online payment, and Store for selling online
  • Websites, Newsletter, Forms, Documents, Spreadsheets, Password Vault, Secure Files and the other areas, in the same team

Everything is in one account with one bill. Proton's plans cover email, calendar, files, passwords, a VPN and video meetings, and leave the customers and the money to other software.

2. A team's mail is shared work

A team mailbox such as support@ opens for every member, or for one member only when it is made private. Helpdesk assigns each customer's email to a teammate and tracks it until it is answered. A sender is one choice away from Contacts, and a PDF someone sends opens in PDF Editor.

3. Your domain's records are set up for you

When Magpie hosts your domain's DNS, it adds the MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC records for Mail itself. When the domain stays with its registrar, Magpie shows each record with Copy and checks it. Either way, the same account holds the domain's other records, its website and its certificate.

Comparing Magpie and Proton Mail

Proton Mail does more to keep mail private; Magpie does more with it once it arrives. Every line in the tables below was checked against Proton's own pages, linked from each row, and against Magpie's code and Help.

Platform

Proton MailMagpie
Email at your own domainMailboxes and aliases at the business's domain Paid plans Paid plans
Free email addressAn address without paying or owning a domain
End-to-end encryptionMail the provider cannot read
Filters, labels and categoriesIncoming mail sorted by itself
Other mail appsOutlook, Apple Mail or Thunderbird over IMAP Paid plans, through Bridge
Phone appsMail on iPhone and Android In the browser
CalendarEvents, invitations and shared calendars
Booking pagesPeople choose a time with you
Video meetingsCalls in the browser Two people
FilesEncrypted files shared by link
Documents and spreadsheetsWrite and calculate beside your mail
Password managerLogins kept encrypted
VPNPrivate browsing on any network
AI assistantAsk questions in the same account
DNS hostingHost the domain's records
Shared support inboxCustomer email assigned to a teammate Not stated
Invoicing, a shop and a websiteBill and sell from the same account
Open-source appsAnyone can read the code

Good to know: Where Magpie says No or Partly, the line under the row says what Magpie does instead. Each gap has an item on Magpie's roadmap, and the line changes on the day it ships.

Moving in and getting started

Proton Mail brings your old mail, calendars and contacts across with Easy Switch, and can keep a Gmail account's mail arriving. Magpie's Mail starts receiving when your domain's MX record points to it.

Proton MailMagpie
Bring my old email over from Gmail, Outlook or another provider Source Magpie: Mail does not copy messages from another provider. Once the domain's MX record points to Magpie, new mail arrives there, and messages already at the previous provider stay where they are.
Read and send the mail of another account, such as Gmail, from the same inbox Source Magpie: A mailbox receives mail only at its own domain's addresses and sends only from them. Another account's mail stays in that account.
Choose a light or dark look Source

Good to know: Mail in Magpie is ready when the domain is connected. Inbox shows the next setup step until there is a mailbox: adding the domain, connecting it, or adding a mailbox.

Addresses and domains

Both host addresses, aliases and a catch-all at your own domain on a paid plan. Proton Mail also gives every account an address at proton.me, and makes stand-in addresses for websites.

Proton MailMagpie
Get an email address without owning a domain Source Magpie: Mail hosts addresses only at a domain you own and connect. Magpie gives no address at a domain of its own.
Get email at my own domain, such as me@mybusiness.com Source
Have the DNS records for my domain's email set up for me Source Proton Mail: The domain's MX, SPF, DKIM and DMARC records are shown in the settings to copy to the registrar, which has its own guide for popular registrars. Partly
Use several domains in one account Source
Add more addresses, such as sales@, for one person Source
Receive mail sent to any address at my domain Source
Forward my email to an inbox I already have, such as Gmail Source Magpie: Mail delivers only to mailboxes in Magpie. An address cannot forward to an outside inbox.
Give each website its own stand-in address, so my real one stays private Source Magpie: Aliases and a catch-all at your own domain can do part of this by hand, but nothing makes a random address for a website.
Send from any of my addresses Source

Good to know: Add common addresses in Magpie adds postmaster@, abuse@, info@, support@ and others in one step. An alias can deliver to several people's mailboxes.

Encryption and privacy

Proton Mail is built around encryption, and Proton does it better than we do today. Proton encrypts mail so that it cannot read it; Magpie's servers can read the mail they store.

Proton MailMagpie
Send email that only the person I write to can read, encrypted end to end Source Magpie: Mail does not encrypt messages end to end. Magpie's servers store messages in a form they can read.
Keep my stored email so that even the provider cannot read it Source Magpie: Mail stores messages in a form Magpie's servers can read. Password Vault and Secure Files are encrypted in your browser, so Magpie cannot open them.
Send an encrypted email to someone who does not use the same provider Source Magpie: Secure Files sends a file as an encrypted link that expires and can need a passphrase. The text of a message in Mail is not encrypted. Partly
Use PGP to encrypt email with people at other providers Source Magpie: Mail has no PGP and no encryption keys for messages.
Send an email that deletes itself after a time I choose Source Magpie: A sent message stays until the recipient deletes it. A Secure Files link can expire and allow one download instead.
Stop senders seeing when I open their email Source
Protect sign-in with a second step, such as a security key Source
Have my account watched for takeover attempts Source Magpie: Magpie asks for the second step at sign-in and can sign out every other browser, but nobody watches an account for takeover attempts.
Know my data is kept in a country with strict privacy laws Source Magpie: Magpie offers no choice of where data is kept. Its privacy policy covers transfers between countries with Standard Contractual Clauses.
See the source code of the apps that encrypt my email Source Magpie: Magpie's code is not published. Help explains how Password Vault and Secure Files encrypt their contents.

Good to know: Magpie's Password Vault and Secure Files are encrypted in your browser, so Magpie cannot open them. A Secure Files link can expire, allow one download and need a passphrase.

Reading and organizing

Both hold folders, snooze a message and hide images that would tell a sender you opened their email. Proton Mail adds labels, categories, conversation view and read receipts.

Proton MailMagpie
Sort my mail into folders Source
Put more than one label on a message Source Magpie: A message is in one folder at a time, and a star is the only other mark.
Search all my mail, by sender, date or what it says Source Magpie: Search looks in every folder except Trash and Spam, at the sender, recipients, subject and text, and can narrow to unread or with attachments. It does not search by date, and a search cannot be saved. Partly
See a conversation's messages together as one thread Source Magpie: The list shows each message on its own. An open message lists the other messages in its conversation, to open one at a time. Partly
Put a message aside until a time I choose Source
Have my inbox sorted into kinds of mail, such as newsletters and updates Source Magpie: Every message arrives in Inbox, in one list.
Ask to be told when someone has read my email Source Magpie: Mail neither asks for nor sends read receipts.

Good to know: Magpie's search looks in every folder of a mailbox except Trash and Spam, and each result names its folder. Inbox has keyboard shortcuts, and ? lists them.

Writing and sending

Both undo a send, schedule a message for later and add a signature. Proton Mail formats messages on the web and has contact groups and a writing assistant.

Proton MailMagpie
Format an email with bold, lists, links and pictures Source Magpie: On the website a message is written as plain text with pictures. The Magpie app formats a message with bold, italic, lists, quotes and links but is not yet in the App Store or Google Play. Partly
Add a signature to the emails I send Source
Take back an email just after I send it Source
Write an email now and send it at a time I choose Source
Have the addresses of people I write to fill in as I type Source
Write to a whole group of contacts at once Source Magpie: Mail's To box takes contacts one at a time. Outreach sends a campaign to everyone with a tag.
Have an AI draft or proofread my email Source Magpie: The assistant drafts in Magpie's other areas, but Mail has not been published to it yet.

Good to know: As you type an address, Magpie suggests Contacts in your team. Then it suggests people the mailbox has written to or heard from.

Spam, filters and automatic replies

Proton Mail sorts spam, runs filters, blocks senders and lists every newsletter with Unsubscribe. Magpie's mail server refuses clear spam, and the rest is sorted by hand.

Proton MailMagpie
Have spam kept out of my inbox for me Source Magpie: Magpie's mail server refuses clear spam before it is delivered, but every message it accepts arrives in Inbox, and Spam is a folder people move messages to themselves. Partly
Leave a mailing list, or block a sender, in one step Source Magpie: Mail has no unsubscribe button and cannot block a sender. A message can be moved to Spam by hand.
File, forward or delete incoming mail automatically by rules I set Source Magpie: Every message arrives in Inbox, and moving it to a folder is done by hand.
Reply automatically while I am away Source
Empty Trash and Spam by themselves after a while Source Magpie: Messages stay in Trash and Spam until someone deletes them, with Empty Trash and Empty Spam.

Good to know: Away reply in Magpie answers each sender once every 4 days, and leaves out mailing lists, newsletters and automatic mail.

Apps and access

Proton Mail has apps for phones and computers, and Bridge for other mail apps on paid plans. Magpie's Mail is used in the browser, on a computer or a phone.

Proton MailMagpie
Use my email fully on my phone Source
Be told on my phone when new mail arrives Source Magpie: On the website, unread mail shows in the account menu while a Magpie page is open, but nothing is sent to the phone. The Magpie app notifies each new message, but it is not yet in the App Store or Google Play.
Use my email in an app on my computer Source Magpie: Mail is used in a browser on a computer.
Use my email in Outlook, Apple Mail or Thunderbird Source Magpie: Mail is read and sent only on Magpie's website and in the Magpie app. There is no IMAP, POP or SMTP access for other mail apps.
Work through my email with the keyboard Source

Good to know: The Magpie app, not yet in the App Store or Google Play, reads and writes mail and notifies each new message.

Calendar, files, passwords and more

Both put a calendar, booking pages, files, documents and a password manager beside the inbox. Proton adds a VPN and larger video meetings; Magpie adds invoicing, a shop, a helpdesk and a website.

Proton MailMagpie
Keep a calendar beside my email and invite people to events Source
Answer a meeting invitation from the email it came in, and have it on my calendar Source Magpie: Mail and Calendar are not connected: an invitation that arrives by email cannot be answered or added to Calendar from the message.
Have an event repeat every week or month Source Magpie: Events do not repeat; each occurrence is added as its own event.
Let people book a time with me Source
Hold a video meeting with several people Source Magpie: Video Chat holds a timed browser call for two people. Partly
Keep files online, encrypted, and share them by link Source
Write documents and spreadsheets beside my email Source
Keep my passwords in an encrypted password manager Source
Use a VPN to keep my browsing private Source Magpie: Magpie has no VPN.
Ask an AI assistant questions in the same account Source
Send invoices and run the rest of the business from the same account as my email Source Proton Mail: Proton's plans cover email, calendar, files, passwords, VPN, meetings and an AI assistant, and no invoicing, shop or contacts list for customers.

Good to know: Every Magpie area is in the same team and on the same bill. A contact's page lists their invoices, bookings and proposals.

Business, storage and plans

Both give each person a mailbox and a business several domains. Proton Mail has a free plan, more storage and retention policies; Magpie has a shared support@ mailbox and Helpdesk.

Proton MailMagpie
Give each person in my business a mailbox of their own Source
Share a mailbox, such as support@, with the team Source Proton Mail: Groups on the Workspace plans deliver one address to everyone in the group, each in their own inbox. Partly
Give each customer email to a teammate and track it until it is answered Source Proton Mail: Proton's business pages list email groups and shared calendars, and do not mention assigning a customer's email to someone. Not stated
Have plenty of room for my email, and buy more when it fills Source Magpie: Each mailbox has 5 GB, and more cannot be bought. A full mailbox stops receiving until messages are deleted permanently. Partly
Keep email for a set time for legal records Source Magpie: A message deleted permanently is gone, and Mail keeps no record that members cannot change.
Use email without paying Source Magpie: Mail needs a paid plan, Pro for Personal or the Team plan for a team. Magpie's Free plan includes the other areas, not Mail.

Good to know: A Magpie team has up to 25 members on the Team plan, and each mailbox has 5 GB.

Price comparison

How Proton Mail charges

Proton charges by plan. For one person: Proton Free, Mail Plus, or Proton Unlimited, which adds the VPN, Proton Pass and more storage. For a business, per user: Mail Essentials, Workspace Standard or Workspace Premium. Each adds storage, domains and more of Proton's apps. Proton Scribe is an add-on on most plans and included in Workspace Premium. Prices are on Proton's pricing pages, in your currency.

Proton Mail's pricing page

How Magpie charges

Magpie charges by plan, Free or a paid plan, for everything in the account. Mail needs a paid plan: Pro for Personal, or the Team plan for a team. The Team plan is one price, not a price per mailbox. The plan sets how many people the team has, not which areas you can use. Prices are on Magpie's pricing page.

Magpie's pricing page

On top of the planProton MailMagpie
Email without payingProton Free: one proton.me address, 1 GB, 150 messages a dayNot included; the Free plan covers the other areas
Email at your domainEvery paid plan: 1 domain on Mail Plus, 3 on Proton Unlimited and Mail Essentials, up to 20 on Workspace PremiumPro or the Team plan, with several domains
How a business paysPer user, per monthOne Team plan for up to 25 people
Storage1 GB free, 15 GB on Mail Plus, 500 GB on Proton Unlimited, 15 GB to 3 TB a user on business plans5 GB a mailbox
Other mail appsBridge, on paid plansNot available
VPN and password managerProton Unlimited and Workspace Standard and abovePassword Vault included; no VPN
Writing assistantProton Scribe, an add-on on most plans and included in Workspace PremiumNot in Mail
Booking pages, invoicing and a helpdeskBooking pages in Proton Calendar, 25 on the Workspace plans; no invoicing or helpdeskIncluded

When to choose Magpie or Proton Mail

  • Want your business email beside bookings, invoices, a helpdesk, contacts and your domain's DNS, in one subscription for the whole team? Go with Magpie.
  • Want email that nobody else can read, Proton included, with a free address, filters and labels, apps for every device and a VPN? Proton Mail is the right choice.

Recommendations by kind of business

For a journalist, a lawyer, a therapist or anyone whose mail must stay private
Proton Mail. Proton encrypts mail end to end between its users, stores the rest so it cannot read it, and sends password-protected email to anyone. Magpie does not encrypt mail end to end.
For one person who wants a private address
Proton Mail. Proton Free gives an address at proton.me without a domain or a payment. Magpie's Mail needs your own domain and a paid plan.
For a service business with a support@ address
Magpie. Helpdesk assigns each customer's email to a teammate, with internal notes, and the same team has the bookings, invoices and contacts. On Proton, the support conversations and the billing are in other software.
For a small team that pays per seat today
Magpie. The Team plan is one price for up to 25 people, and every mailbox is included. Proton's business plans are priced per user.
For someone who reads mail in Outlook or Apple Mail
Proton Mail. Bridge connects Proton Mail to desktop mail apps on paid plans. Magpie's Mail is read only in the browser and the Magpie app.
For a business that wants private mail and the rest of Magpie
Either. Proton Mail can host the domain's mail while Magpie runs the bookings, invoices, website and DNS, which can hold Proton's records. Choose by whether encrypted mail or one shared inbox for the team matters more.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Proton Mail and Magpie?

Proton Mail is an encrypted email service from Switzerland, with a calendar, files, passwords, a VPN and video meetings in the same account. Magpie is one subscription for a small business's software. Its Mail is one area beside bookings, invoicing, a helpdesk, contacts and a website. Proton does more to keep mail private; Magpie does more with it once it arrives.

Does Magpie replace Proton Mail?

Yes, for a business that wants email at its domain beside the rest of its work. Magpie hosts the mailboxes and aliases and sets up the domain's records. It shares a support@ mailbox with the team, and Helpdesk assigns each customer's email.

Consider keeping Proton Mail if you chose it so that nobody else can read your mail. Keep it too if you want a free address without a domain, sort mail with filters and labels, or read it in Outlook or Apple Mail. Proton Mail does each of these better than Magpie does today.

How much does Proton Mail cost?

For individuals, Proton has Proton Free, Mail Plus and Proton Unlimited. For businesses it has Mail Essentials, Workspace Standard and Workspace Premium, priced per user. A custom domain needs a paid plan. Proton Scribe is an add-on on most plans. The prices are on Proton's pricing pages.

How much does Magpie cost?

Magpie has a Free plan and paid plans, each covering every area. Mail needs a paid plan: Pro for Personal, or the Team plan for a team. The Team plan is one price for up to 25 people, not a price per mailbox. The prices are on Magpie's pricing page.

Is Magpie's email encrypted end to end?

No. Magpie's servers store messages in a form they can read, and Mail has no PGP or password-protected messages. Encrypted email is on Magpie's roadmap. Proton Mail encrypts mail end to end between its users and stores other mail so that Proton cannot read it.

Can I send an encrypted message to a client from Magpie?

For a file, yes. Secure Files sends it as an encrypted link that Magpie cannot read, and the link can expire, allow one download and need a passphrase. The text of an email is not encrypted. Proton Mail sends a password-protected email to any address on every plan.

Does Magpie give me a free email address?

No. Mail hosts addresses only at a domain you own, and it needs a paid plan. Proton Free gives an address at proton.me without a domain or a payment.

Does Magpie have filters, labels or inbox categories?

No. Every message Mail accepts arrives in Inbox, and a message is in one folder at a time. You move it yourself. Rules, labels and categories are on Magpie's roadmap. Proton Mail has all three, with limits on Proton Free.

Can I use Outlook or Apple Mail with Magpie?

No. Magpie's Mail has no IMAP, POP or SMTP access, so it is read only on Magpie's website and in the Magpie app. Proton Mail connects desktop mail apps through Bridge on its paid plans.

Does Magpie have a phone app for email?

Mail works in a phone's browser, where it reads, writes, searches, snoozes and schedules mail. The Magpie app reads and writes mail and notifies each new message. It is not yet in the App Store or Google Play. Proton Mail has apps for iPhone and Android.

Does Proton Mail have a helpdesk or a shared inbox?

Proton's Groups deliver one address, such as support@, to everyone in the group, each in their own inbox, on the Workspace plans. Its pages do not mention assigning a customer's email to a teammate. Magpie's team mailbox opens for every member, and Helpdesk assigns, tags and closes each customer conversation.

Does Proton Mail have invoicing or booking pages?

Booking pages, yes: Proton Calendar has them, 1 on Mail Essentials and 25 on the Workspace plans. Invoicing, no. Magpie includes Meetings, Appointments and Invoicing in every plan, in the same team as Mail.

Can I bring my old email into Magpie?

No. Mail does not copy messages from another provider. Once the domain's MX record points to Magpie, new mail arrives there, and the old messages stay with the previous provider. Importing old mail is on Magpie's roadmap. Proton's Easy Switch imports mail, calendars and contacts.

How do I move from Proton Mail to Magpie?

Add your domain to Mail and a mailbox for each address. Then change the domain's MX record to Magpie's, at your registrar or by hosting the domain's DNS with Magpie. New mail arrives in Magpie from then on. Your messages in Proton stay in your Proton account, so keep it until you no longer need them.

Can I use Proton Mail and Magpie together?

Yes. Proton Mail can host the domain's mail while Magpie runs your bookings, invoices, website and helpdesk. Magpie's DNS can hold the MX, SPF and DKIM records Proton gives you. Magpie's emails to your customers, such as invoices and booking confirmations, are sent by Magpie either way.

Where is my data kept?

Proton is based in Switzerland and keeps data on its own servers there. Magpie offers no choice of where data is kept; its privacy policy covers transfers between countries with Standard Contractual Clauses. A choice of where data is kept is on Magpie's roadmap.

Does Magpie have a password manager and encrypted files?

Yes. Password Vault keeps logins, notes and recovery codes, and Secure Files keeps files. Both are encrypted in your browser, so Magpie cannot open them. Proton includes Proton Pass on Proton Unlimited and Workspace Standard and above, and Proton Drive on every plan.

Does Magpie have video meetings?

Video Chat holds a timed browser call for two people. Proton Meet holds meetings of up to 100 people on Workspace Standard and 250 on Workspace Premium, with recording and screen sharing. Group calls are on Magpie's roadmap.

How much storage does each mailbox get?

Each Magpie mailbox has 5 GB, and more cannot be bought; deleting messages permanently makes room. Proton has 1 GB on Proton Free, 15 GB on Mail Plus, 500 GB on Proton Unlimited, and 15 GB to 3 TB a user on its business plans.

What is included in Magpie's Free plan?

Booking pages, Invoicing, Store with no Magpie fee, a website, the Newsletter, Forms, Password Vault, Secure Files and a team of 3. Mail is not on the Free plan: email at your domain needs Pro or the Team plan.

If a line on this page is wrong, tell us and we will correct it.

Proton Mail changes, and so does Magpie. If a line is out of date about either product, email support@magpie.diy with the page that shows it. We check the line against that page, change it, and give it the new date. That goes for Proton's own team as much as for anyone who uses it.

Email support@magpie.diy

Put your business email beside the rest of the business.

Create a Magpie account, then add your domain to Mail.

Create account