Apple Mail vs MailMate
We give Apple Mail a 3.4 GPA and MailMate a 2.6, out of 4.0. Apple Mail grades higher on the free plan, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on value for money and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Apple Mail
Free built-in email app for iPhone, iPad and Mac
MailMate
Keyboard-driven IMAP email client for macOS with Markdown composing
How we grade them
| 3.4GPAApple MailVery good | 2.6GPAMailMateGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AThe app costs nothing. iCloud+ at $0.99 a month adds 50 GB, throwaway addresses and email at your own domain, shared with up to five other people. Proton wants $3.99 for a plan with one custom domain. | A$10 every 3 months, plus any VAT, where the middle for email tools here is about $9 every single month. All features are included. And if you cancel, it drops to Free Mode and keeps every feature for non-business use. That's about as fair as a subscription gets. Businesses are required to stay in Paid Mode. |
| Free plan and trial | AThe whole app is free, and it reads Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo and Exchange accounts as well as iCloud. The tight spot is an iCloud address, which shares 5 GB with the rest of your iCloud. | CNo free plan to start on. Trial Mode gives you every feature, currently for 14 days of active use, and then you need a license key from the subscription. Free Mode only arrives after a subscription ends, and it labels your outgoing mail "MailMate Free Mode" in its headers. |
| Features | BCategories, snooze, send later, unsend, VIPs and tracker blocking are all built in. But it's a plain mail app next to Outlook. One reviewer notes rules only live on the Mac, and the AI summaries hang on Apple Intelligence, which is still a beta. | BMarkdown composing with a preview, shortcuts and custom key bindings, smart mailboxes built from conditions on any message header, and OpenPGP and S/MIME. Deep where it goes. But it connects through IMAP accounts only, the composer is plain text only, and the last public release is more than 4 years old. |
| Ease of use | A4.6 from about 4.5 million App Store ratings. It's already on your iPhone, iPad and Mac, so there's nothing to download. Add your Gmail or Outlook account and your mail turns up. | BNo rating on record, so a B is our ceiling. It's an app you install and add accounts to. But formatting comes from Markdown, not toolbar buttons, and the whole thing is designed to be driven from the keyboard. Expect to learn its ways. |
| Platforms and integrations | CiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple Vision, and that's where it ends. No Windows app, no Android app. An iCloud address can be read at iCloud.com or in Outlook on Windows, but that's not this app. | DIt runs on macOS only, and it connects to email through IMAP accounts. Bundles hook it up to third-party task managers, calendar managers and external text editors, and it works with BusyContacts and HoudahSpot. That's the lot. |
| Best for | everyday email if all your devices are Apple | keyboard-and-Markdown email on a Mac |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Apple Mail and MailMate. How we grade
Where they differ
- Apple Mail starts at $0.99 per month (iCloud+ with 50 GB). MailMate starts at $10 every 3 months (local-currency equivalent plus any VAT).
- Apple Mail has a free plan. MailMate does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Apple Mail lists a web app.
- Only Apple Mail lists an iOS app.
- Apple Mail also covers inbox filtering.
- MailMate also covers Markdown.
At a glance
| Apple Mail | MailMate | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $0.99 per month (iCloud+ with 50 GB) | $10 every 3 months (local-currency equivalent plus any VAT) |
| Free plan | The Mail app is free on Apple devices and works with iCloud, Gmail, Exchange, Yahoo, Outlook and other accounts. An iCloud Mail address draws on the 5 GB of free iCloud storage. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | Trial Mode: every feature, currently for 14 days of active use |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | Apple Inc. | Freron Software |
| Price read from | support.apple.com | freron.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Apple Mail
- iPhone, iPad and Mac owners who want a mail app at no cost
- Reading iCloud, Gmail, Exchange and Yahoo mail in one inbox
- People who want protection from email tracking built in
MailMate
- Mac users who prefer writing email in plain text or Markdown
- People who want to run their inbox from the keyboard
- Building detailed smart mailboxes and saved searches
Worth knowing
Apple Mail
- The app is listed only for Apple devices. Elsewhere, iCloud Mail is reached in a browser at iCloud.com, which Apple describes for iCloud Mail accounts, or in Outlook on Windows.
- iCloud Mail counts against iCloud storage, 5 GB on the free tier. When it runs out, the iCloud address stops receiving new mail until space is freed or bought.
- Hide My Email and Custom Email Domain need iCloud+, and Apple notes that Custom Email Domain is not available in all countries or regions.
- Priority Messages, summaries and Writing Tools depend on Apple Intelligence, which Apple labels a beta and limits to certain languages and regions.
MailMate
- It runs on macOS only and connects to email through IMAP accounts.
- The composer is plain text only: formatting comes from Markdown rather than from toolbar buttons.
- The recommended download is a 2.0 beta that needs macOS 10.12 or later; the last public release is more than 4 years old.
- Businesses are required to stay in Paid Mode, and the subscription does not guarantee a reply to support emails.
Key features
Apple Mail
- Every account in one inbox
- Add iCloud, Gmail, Exchange, Yahoo, Outlook and other accounts, then read them in a single inbox or one mailbox at a time, with filters for unread or flagged messages.
- Automatic categories
- Mail sorts incoming messages into Primary, Transactions, Updates and Promotions, which keeps receipts and marketing email out of the main list.
- Priority Messages and summaries
- With Apple Intelligence, urgent messages are shown in a section at the top of the inbox, messages and threads can be summarized, and Smart Reply drafts quick responses.
- Send later, snooze and unsend
- Schedule a message to send later, snooze one to come back to, or unsend it. On Mac, Mail can also remind you about messages that got no response.
- Mail Privacy Protection
- Hides your IP address from senders and downloads remote content privately in the background, so senders cannot tell whether or when a message was opened.
- Hide My Email and custom domains
- With iCloud+, send from unique, random addresses that forward to your real one, and use a domain you own with iCloud Mail, shared with up to five other people.
MailMate
- Markdown composing
- Emails are written in a plain text editor. Optional Markdown is converted to HTML for lists, tables, code segments and inline images, with a preview of what recipients will see.
- Keyboard control
- The app is designed to be driven from the keyboard, with shortcuts for searching, moving messages to a mailbox and tagging, and support for custom key bindings.
- Smart mailboxes and search
- Smart mailboxes are built from conditions on any message header, with nested All/Any rules, and any search can be saved as one. Clicking a name or subject runs a related search.
- OpenPGP and S/MIME
- Messages can be encrypted and signed with either OpenPGP or S/MIME from within the client.
- Bundles for other apps
- Bundles connect MailMate to third-party task managers, calendar managers and external text editors. They are fetched and updated separately from the app itself.
- Alternative layouts
- Besides the standard view there is a widescreen layout, a Correspondence layout showing related messages, a Statistics layout that counts header values, and Thread Arcs.
Plans
Apple Mail
Mail$0
The Mail app on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple Vision, plus iCloud Mail within the 5 GB of free iCloud storage.
iCloud+ 50 GB$0.99
per month
50 GB of iCloud storage, which iCloud Mail counts against, plus Hide My Email and Custom Email Domain.
iCloud+ 200 GB$2.99
per month
200 GB of iCloud storage with the same Hide My Email and Custom Email Domain features.
iCloud+ 2 TB$9.99
per month
2 TB of iCloud storage with the same mail features. Apple also sells 6 TB at $29.99 and 12 TB at $59.99 per month.
MailMate
Paid Mode$10
every 3 months, plus any VAT
The MailMate Development subscription issues the license key and pays for ongoing development. All features are included, and business use requires it.
Free Mode$0
After a subscription ends, all features keep working for non-business use, and outgoing mail is labelled "MailMate Free Mode" in its headers.
Ways to pay less
Apple Mail
- By country
iCloud+ is priced by country or region
Apple lists a monthly iCloud+ price for each country or region. On October 9, 2026 the 50 GB plan was $0.99 in the United States and Rs 75 in India, and the 2 TB plan $9.99 and Rs 749.
MailMate
- Nonprofit
Non-profit use can stay in Free Mode
The pricing page says non-profit use does not require Paid Mode, so the subscription can be cancelled and MailMate keeps all of its features in Free Mode.
