The 6 best email apps for Android

Most of us run our lives from an email inbox. So it makes sense that we often have to draft a rushed reply or stay on top of an overflowing inbox on our phones. But the right Android email app can make that a lot easier.

Of course, there are hundreds of email apps for Android, and the process of choosing one can be enough to deter you from finding the best app for your inbox management style.

So for this article, I put several dozen of the top-rated options through the wringer and found six that impressed me the most. These are the best email apps for Android.

The best Android email apps

What makes the best email app for Android?

Signing in to a busy email inbox can be intimidating—even more so when it’s squeezed into a compact screen. So the apps on this list, first and foremost, were consistently reliable and designed with mobile displays in mind.

They’re the ones I didn’t mind using while waiting for a bus, rushing to a meeting, or between exercises at the gym. Buttons that are easy to find and big enough to tap, workflows that only require a tap or two, swipe gestures that make sense—those are the kinds of things I was looking for. And, of course, the best mobile apps offer all the power of a web or desktop app but in a stripped-down version that doesn’t feel bloated.

Beyond an Android-friendly layout, here’s what I was looking for when testing these Android email apps:

• Versatile inbox management. Email isn’t a one-size-fits-all job: some people rely on automated filters, some use swipe gestures to quickly sift through their inboxes, and some want an AI bot to do it for them. It’s vital for an email app’s inbox management abilities to adapt to a person’s evolving habits. 

• Support for multiple accounts. An Android email client should support at least one account on the free version and multiple accounts and email providers on any paid plans.

• Cross-platform sync. Sometimes you need a larger screen for complex tasks. The best Android email apps should also have a web or desktop version.

• Extra features. We can use all the help we can get to tame email overload. Anything that made the experience easier or better, like an AI assistant or just a clever inbox organization utility, got bonus points.

Email apps are no longer just endless feeds of communication. There’s a lot more we do on them on the go, from organizing project data to hopping between multiple work and personal accounts and keeping tabs on receipts. Take a look at my picks, and then try the ones that seem like they might work best for you.

The best Android email apps at a glance

Best free email app for Android for Gmail users

Gmail

Gmail pros: 

• Resource-friendly for Android phones

• Smooth integration with other Google services

• Lots of nice touches, like confidential mode and an AI writing assistant

Gmail cons: 

Even if you think you know everything about Gmail, or if you’re reading this article to find an alternative to it, there are plenty of reasons to stick with Google’s free (and Android’s default) email app—especially if you’re a Google user otherwise.

If Gmail is your email provider, your threads will be automatically organized into separate sections (e.g., Primary, Social, Promotions). You can create your own categories, too, like grouping messages with specific keywords or senders, and the app will sort them in dedicated folders as they arrive. Plus, Gmail’s tight integration with other Google apps, like as Meet and Docs—and the fact that it’s maintained by the people who built your phone—not only means it’s the most resource-friendly option but also makes it a Google user’s best option.

Another highlight of the Gmail app is how neatly it minimizes screen clutter, despite housing a range of pro tools. It shows attachments, for example, as buttons in a message’s preview. Switching between multiple accounts, similarly, just takes a swipe-down on your profile picture.

One feature that’s often overlooked is Gmail’s Confidential mode, which lets users set a message expiration date, protect an email with an SMS passcode, or revoke access to messages at any time. There are also “nudges,” which periodically remind you how long it’s been since you communicated with a recipient and suggest sending a follow-up message. And you can snooze and schedule your emails, too.

Gmail’s AI chops also come in handy while drafting on a phone. It can compose an email from scratch from a brief prompt (in beta, at the time of writing) and offer you a couple of quick suggested replies under each message. I have to admit, though, that the suggested replies can be a hit-or-miss, and they’re often too short to be useful. Under one proposed strategic plan, for example, one of its responses was just “OK!” The smart inbox categories could also use some improvement since their filters sometimes don’t get it right and end up mis-filing important emails. 

You can do even more with Gmail by connecting it to thousands of apps via Zapier. Automatically respond to leads, save attachments to your cloud storage, and anything else you can dream up. Learn more about how to automate Gmail, or get started with one of these workflows. (And keep in mind that if you use Gmail as a backend, no matter what email app you use on your Android, these automations will work.)

Gmail pricing: The free version includes 15GB of storage that’s shared across all your Google apps like Drive. Paid Google One subscriptions start at $1.99/month for 100GB. Google Workspace Business subscriptions start at $6/month.

Best free email app for Android for Microsoft users

Outlook

Outlook pros: 

Outlook cons: 

Anyone who’s avoided Outlook’s Android app thinking it’ll crowded and complicated will be glad to know: it’s decidedly not. The mobile version is one of the most lightweight Android email apps I encountered—the rich message composition (you can even sketch), inbox organization, and powerful search options are all super easy to use. And if a hefty portion of your emails involve your calendar, Outlook’s built-in integration is perfect.

One of my favorite Outlook tools is the Send availability shortcut within the New message window. Tapping it opens your calendar and prompts you to select dates and times to share with your email recipient. And when they reply with their preferred time, you can click Convert to Event to quickly create a calendar invite. 

Apart from that, the Outlook app is fast, modern, and offers thoughtful features. Take the dedicated Focused inbox tab. It learns which emails matter to you and tucks the rest away in the Other section. You can further filter it based on criteria like whether they have attachments or if someone has specifically tagged you in a chain. For Microsoft users particularly, Outlook acts as a hub, and you can access all your files, calendars, and docs in one place. 

My biggest quibble with the app is that the ads in the free version feel kind of invasive. They’re often placed at the very top of your inbox, where your first email should be, so sometimes, when I clicked to open a message, an ad popped up instead. Not ideal.

Outlook also integrates with Zapier, so you can connect it with the other apps you use to automatically add events as tasks or copy events to another calendar. And just like with Gmail, if you use Outlook as your backend, you can use these automations on any email app. Learn more about how to automate Outlook, or get started with one of these templates.

Outlook pricing: Outlook’s free version comes with 15 GB of free email storage; paid plans, which offer more storage, start at $6.99/month (for the Microsoft 365 Personal plan)

Best Android email app overall

Spark Mail

Spark Mail pros: 

• Unique smart inbox features like gatekeeping

• Clean, feature-rich design 

• Extensive personalization options

Spark Mail cons: 

Calling Spark Mail a jack of all trades is an understatement. Not only it does it have nearly every tool you’d need to tackle inbox overload, but it also executes them all well. No matter how you email, chances are you’ll feel at home with this app.

The centerpiece of Spark Mail is its smart inbox. My favorite part? You can choose to gatekeep access to it by default so that new senders will need permission from you before they can begin spamming your mailbox; known senders will be automatically pushed to the top. 

Another highlight is the set of inline sections for non-essential messages, such as newsletters, promotions, and notifications. It didn’t take me long to realize the potential of these default design choices. It kept my inbox clean of junk most of the time and let me focus on important emails from people I interact with frequently. 

Spark’s personalization was also a welcome addition. I could, for example, pick which buttons appear on the Compose window, instead of getting used to the ones the app ships with. Plus, it integrates with about a dozen third-party services, such as Trello, Asana, and OneNote, so you can import external data directly into your emails. 

Spark Mail pricing: The free version includes unlimited accounts and 5GB of storage; for more, including an AI assistant, you’ll have to pay $4.99/month.

Best Android email app for conversational chat-style emailing

Spike

Spike pros:

Spike cons: 

Spike makes emailing feel more like texting. It converts your inbox into a chat-style interface, where messages are grouped by people. Several apps offer this kind of experience, but I’ve found Spike’s the most intuitive of the bunch.

Even though there’s still an option to revert to the traditional email layout, I found myself almost always sticking with the instant messaging structure. The reason’s simple: following a lengthy email chain can quickly become impossible. Because Spike lays it out in a more readable manner, it’s easier to go through countless unread messages and respond without fussing over the text layout and format. Its Intelligent Priority Inbox also does well to identify important emails and set junk/receipts aside. I appreciated the pinned space for jotting down notes and tasks, too, which is ideal for those who effectively manage their entire lives from their inbox. 

In addition to letting you easily attach files or photos, Spike has integrations for sharing files from cloud accounts (Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive), drawing and sending doodles, finding and inserting GIFs, and creating audio recordings. And just because this Android email app looks more like WhatsApp than Outlook doesn’t mean you can’t use it for professional communication. From read receipts to calendar syncing, it has plenty of options for simplifying how you stay connected to work. And your recipients will still see your emails the traditional way.

Spike’s bold design isn’t perfect, though. When I added a second email account, for one, things got a bit cluttered—it wasn’t always clear which account the messages were coming from. The chat-like layout works better for recipients who have set a clear profile picture since there’s not much space left for displaying full names. 

Spike pricing: The free version includes 1 email address, unlimited notes, 1:1 video calls, 1GB of storage, and 30MB of file upload; paid plans start at $5/month (billed annually) for a unified inbox with 3 email addresses, 5 participants per video call, 5GB of storage, file upload of up to 100MB, and priority support.

Best Android email app for privacy

Proton Mail

Proton Mail pros: 

Proton Mail cons:

Email apps hold some, if not most, of your sensitive information, like your financials, work data, and personal exchanges. While most inbox clients have protections in place, none offer the level of control Proton Mail does. It’s the only app that encrypts your emails from the moment you hit send to the moment your recipient decrypts the message—which means not even Proton itself can read your messages. On top of that, Proton Mail features a range of tight security perks, including tracker blockers and password-protected emails. 

Privacy aside, Proton Mail is a joyfully easy-to-use and visually appealing platform. For example, it cleverly uses colors to highlight important signals like priority emails without sacrificing readability. From drafting and reading messages to searching and organizing your inbox, Proton Mail never offers up a window with more than five buttons. 

Its stark email composition interface has text boxes for To, Subject, and the message body, plus buttons for password protection, message expiration, and attaching files. Three text boxes, three features—that’s it. The downside to that is you won’t find any typical text formatting options on Android.

A bigger hurdle to adopting Proton, though, is that it only supports its in-house email provider. So the only way to use a Gmail or an Outlook account is to set it to auto-forward all your correspondence. 

Proton Mail pricing: The free version includes 1 email address, 1GB of storage, 150 messages per day, 1 calendar, and 1 medium-speed VPN connection; paid accounts start at $12.99/month for 500GB of storage, 15 email addresses, unlimited messages, 20 calendars, and 10 high-speed VPN connections.

Best Android email app for AI features

Shortwave

Shortwave pros: 

Shortwave cons: 

Shortwave looks and works like Google’s defunct Inbox app. Its smart inbox scans your inbox for similar emails and groups them as inline collapsible sections. But unlike other apps, this isn’t limited to low-priority emails like newsletters. You can pick any two or more messages and drop them onto each other to create a new section’s criteria, and Shortwave will, in the future, automatically bundle them aside. 

Shortwave heavily revolves around viewing emails as to-dos. You can instantly turn any message into a task and move it to a dedicated tab inside the app. 

Shortwave’s main strength, however, lies in how deeply email AI is intertwined with its experience. Creating a new to-do out of an email? The AI assistant will recommend a name for the task. Don’t want to search your inbox yourself? Tell the assistant what you’re looking for, and it will do it for you. 

And my favorite Shortwave AI workflow by far is asking its built-in chatbot to analyze my emails. While planning a trip, for example, I simply asked it to build an itinerary for me. It used a couple of reservation emails and conversations I had with a friend to draw up a plan that I only had to modify a little. But Shortwave’s AI can go beyond simple workflows like vacation planning. It can schedule meetings for you based on work threads, summarize emails, and suggest full-fledged auto-generated text responses.

The only complaints I have are that it’s only compatible with Gmail inboxes, and its Android app can feel a little less polished than others—but that hasn’t compromised its reliability. 

Shortwave pricing: Shortwave’s free plan offers limited AI features and 90 days of searchable email history. Unlocking the rest of its features will cost you $7/month. 

What’s the best email client for Android?

Before you can choose the best email for Android, you need to understand your email habits. Are you using your inbox as a to-do list and need organization (Shortwave)? Are you using it mainly for scheduling and value calendar integrations (Outlook)? Do you value security above all else (Proton Mail)? 

As you ask yourself these and other questions, remember that your answers might be different when you’re searching for mobile apps than for your desktop or web app. Try brainstorming what you like about other mobile communication apps (think: messaging apps), and pick an email client for Android with similar benefits.

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This article was originally published in March 2019 by Ryan Farley and has also had contributions from Maria Bell. The most recent update was in January 2025.