Airmail vs Canary Mail

Airmail

• Apple users who want to tailor swipes, actions and layout in their email app
• Sending emails to task managers such as Todoist, OmniFocus or Things
• Organizations that want a one-time purchase with MDM configuration

Canary Mail

• One mail app across Mac, iPhone, Windows and Android devices
• People who want PGP-encrypted email without a separate tool
• Buyers who prefer a one-time lifetime license to a subscription

Airmail

• Without Airmail Pro the app works with one account and limited capabilities; multiple accounts and the unified inbox are subscription features.
• The vendor lists apps for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Vision Pro only, so there is no Windows, Android or web version.
• The yearly Pro price differs by store: $39.99 on the iPhone and iPad listing and $49.99 on the Mac listing. The iOS listing also shows a $3.99 Airmail Pro purchase with no period.
• AI Composer is a separate in-app purchase on the Mac App Store listing, shown at $4.99 and at $14.99 monthly.

Canary Mail

• It is a mail client, not a provider: it connects to existing accounts and does not create addresses or host mail.
• Apps are listed for macOS, iOS, Windows and Android only. There is no web or Linux version.
• AI Copilot, the calendar and Send Later need Growth, while PGP, SecureSend and phishing protection need Pro+ at $100 per year.
• There is no monthly billing. Paid plans are yearly or lifetime, bought inside the app, and the Free plan is limited to 2 devices.

Airmail

Multiple accounts and unified inbox

Add Gmail, iCloud, Exchange, Office 365, Outlook, IMAP and POP3 accounts and read them together in one unified inbox. Both are Airmail Pro features.

Smart Inbox

Filters newsletters and other distractions out of view so that only the more important messages are shown.

Snooze and Send Later

Snooze hides a message until it becomes relevant, and Send Later schedules a message to arrive at a chosen time.

Custom actions and rules

A custom action chains steps such as label, forward and archive into one command. On Mac, rules handle incoming mail automatically and sync between Macs through iCloud.

Privacy mode

Processes data locally on the device, blocks tracking pixels and stops images from loading automatically.

AI assistant connection

Airmail for Mac can connect to AI assistants such as Claude and Codex through the Airmail MCP, so an assistant can find messages, summarize threads and draft replies.

Canary Mail

Unified inbox for every account

Reads Gmail, Outlook, iCloud, Exchange, Yahoo Mail and other IMAP accounts in one inbox. Unlimited mail accounts are included on the Free plan.

AI Copilot

Drafts replies, suggests subject lines, rewrites messages in a chosen tone and summarizes long threads. It is part of Growth, and Canary says email is not used to train AI models.

Read receipts, snooze and Send Later

Lite read receipts, snooze, pinning and templates are free. Full read receipts and Send Later need Growth. A Chrome extension offers read receipts only.

PGP encryption and SecureSend

Pro+ adds PGP end-to-end encryption and SecureSend, which sends password-protected messages that can be set to expire.

Phishing and impersonation protection

Pro+ alerts you to suspicious links and spoofed senders and adds impersonation detection and misdirection prevention.

Calendar and scheduling

Growth includes a built-in calendar with scheduling tools, so meetings are handled in the same app as mail.

Airmail

• Free$0

  A single email account with limited capabilities; no multiple accounts or unified inbox.

• Airmail Pro (iPhone and iPad)$7.99

  per month, or $39.99 per year (US App Store in-app prices)

  Multiple accounts, unified inbox, agenda integration and realtime inbox monitoring. The Mac listing says iOS subscribers get Airmail Pro on Mac free.

• Airmail Pro (Mac)$7.99

  per month, or $49.99 per year (US Mac App Store in-app prices)

  The subscription bought through the Mac App Store. On Mac, Pro covers the smart inbox, custom actions, themes and a customizable layout.

• Airmail for Business$49.99

  one-time purchase (US App Store)

  Separate app with Airmail Pro features unlocked and no subscription. Leaves out realtime inbox monitoring, Send Later and synchronized snooze.

Canary Mail

• Free$0

  Unified inbox, unlimited mail accounts, snooze and pin, email templates and lite read receipts, on up to 2 devices.

• Growth$36

  per year (shown as $3 per month; no monthly billing)

  Adds AI Copilot, full read receipts, Send Later, calendar and scheduling, Inbox Cleaner and app integrations, on up to 5 devices.

• Pro+$100

  per year (shown as $10 per month with 2 months free)

  Everything in Growth plus PGP encryption, SecureSend, phishing and ransomware protection, impersonation detection and priority support.

• Growth Lifetime$100

  one-time purchase

  The Growth features for one user on up to 5 devices, paid once with no recurring billing.

• Pro+ Lifetime$300

  one-time purchase

  The Pro+ features for one user on up to 5 devices, paid once with no recurring billing.

Airmail

• Annual discount

  About 58% less with yearly billing

  On the US App Store listing Airmail Pro is $39.99 a year against $7.99 a month, which works out to about 58% less than twelve monthly payments. On the Mac listing the yearly price is $49.99.

• Lifetime license

  Airmail for Business is a one-time purchase

  Airmail for Business costs $49.99 once on the US App Store, with Airmail Pro features unlocked and no subscription. It runs on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Watch.

• Education

  Education discounts on Airmail for Business

  The Airmail for Business listing says the app is available through Apple's business purchase marketplace and that educational discounts apply.

Canary Mail

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime licenses for Growth and Pro+

  Both paid plans can be bought once instead of yearly: $100 for Growth and $300 for Pro+. A lifetime license covers one user on up to 5 devices across all four platforms.