Apple Mail vs Mailspring

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

Free plan · from $0.99/mo

Mailspring

Open-source desktop email client for Mac, Windows and Linux

Free plan · from $8/mo

Where they differ

Apple Mail starts at $0.99 per month (iCloud+ with 50 GB). Mailspring starts at $8 per month, or $85 per year (Mailspring Pro).
Only Apple Mail lists a web app.
Only Apple Mail lists an iOS app.
Only Mailspring lists Windows and Linux apps.
Mailspring is open source, according to its own site.
Apple Mail also covers inbox filtering.
Mailspring also covers templates.

In commonFree planmacOSEmail client

	Apple Mail	Mailspring
Pricing	Free plan	Free plan
Starts at	$0.99 per month (iCloud+ with 50 GB)	$8 per month, or $85 per year (Mailspring Pro)
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.	Unlimited accounts, unified inbox, search, mail rules, signatures, templates and themes. A free Mailspring ID adds weekly allowances of Pro features, such as 15 snoozes and 5 send-later messages.
Free trial	None listed	None listed
Web
macOS
Windows
Linux
iOS
Made by	Apple Inc.	Foundry376, LLC
Price read from	support.apple.com	getmailspring.com
Checked	Oct 5, 2026	Oct 5, 2026

Apple Mail

Mailspring

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.

Mailspring

There is no iOS, Android or web version; the docs say the team is focused on the desktop app.
Exchange (EWS and ActiveSync) and POP3 are not supported. Microsoft 365 accounts connect over IMAP and SMTP.
The calendar is a read-only preview for Google accounts; a full calendar is described as coming later.
No one-time or lifetime license is offered, and Pro does not include premium support.

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.

Mailspring

Unified inbox: One inbox for Gmail, iCloud, Office 365, Fastmail, Outlook.com, Yahoo and other IMAP accounts. The free version puts no limit on the number of accounts.
Advanced search: Mailspring indexes mail so that Gmail-style search queries can look through message contents across every connected account.
Read receipts and link tracking: Notifies you when a recipient opens a message or clicks a link. A free Mailspring ID can track 5 messages a week of each kind, and Pro is unlimited.
Send later, snooze and reminders: Schedule a message, snooze a conversation, or get a reminder when nobody replies. The free allowance is 5 send-later messages, 5 reminders and 15 snoozes a week.
Translation and grammar check: Translates drafts and incoming messages and checks grammar in the composer with LanguageTool. Both have weekly caps, which are higher on Pro.
Open source with direct sync: The full codebase is published under the MIT license. Mail syncs over IMAP straight from the provider to your machine, not through Mailspring's servers.

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.

Mailspring

Free$0
Complete email client with unlimited accounts and a unified inbox. Weekly allowances of Pro features: 15 snoozes, 5 send-later messages and 5 tracked messages.
Mailspring Pro$8
per month, or $85 per year
Unlimited snooze, send later, follow-up reminders, read receipts and link tracking, plus higher caps on translation, grammar check and contact profiles.

Apple Mail

No public discounts listed.

Mailspring

Annual discount
11% off with annual billing
Mailspring Pro is billed monthly at $8 by default. The subscription docs list an annual plan at $85 a year, which they describe as an 11% discount.
Other savings
Multi-seat discounts for teams
The subscription docs say discounts on multi-seat licenses and annual team plans are available by contacting Foundry376's sales address.