Firefox Relay vs ImprovMX (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, ImprovMX grades higher than Firefox Relay: 2.4 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Firefox Relay grades higher on ease of use. ImprovMX grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Firefox Relay
Email and phone masks that forward to your real inbox
ImprovMX
Email forwarding and sending for custom domains
Which one is for you
Pick Firefox Relay if
- Fits if you want a throwaway address for a few sign-ups
- Works for people who already use Firefox and want masks built into it
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you want more than 5 masks, as Premium shows no price and is waitlist only
- Not for you if you need to reply from a mask, as the free plan can't
- Watch out: Mozilla advises against masks for banks, doctors, lawyers and mail with attachments you must receive
- Watch out: Relay Premium is limited to listed countries, including the US, Canada, the UK and most of the EU
Pick ImprovMX if
- Fits if you have a domain and want its mail to land in an inbox you already use
- Works for people who send from their own domain and want plans from $50 a year
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want a mailbox or email client, as it only forwards
- Tight if you stay free: no SMTP sending and no rules
- Watch out: forwarding stops if a daily or monthly limit is hit until it resets or you upgrade
- Watch out: Enterprise is sold through contact only
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAFirefox RelayFair | 2.4GPAImprovMXFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CThe free plan is the only plan you can sign up for. Premium shows no price and a Join the Waitlist button, so there's no price on record. | BFree for 1 domain, 25 aliases and 500 forwarded emails a day, and Light is $50 a year, about $4.17 a month. Sending isn't in the free plan. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree for 5 email masks, the extension and tracker removal. Five masks is a cap you'll hit, and the free plan can't reply from a mask. | B1 domain, 25 aliases, 500 forwards a day, 7-day logs and API access for nothing. One person could live on it, as long as they don't need to send. |
| Features | CEmail masks, a browser extension and tracker removal. Gaps: replies and promo blocking sit on Premium, and phone masking has no price shown. | CAlias forwarding, sending from your domain, routing rules, logs and webhooks, and an API. It does forwarding fully, but that's a smaller job than a mailbox, and sending needs Light. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. You install the extension and click to make a mask, with nothing else to set up. | CNo store rating on record. You change your domain's DNS records to point mail at it. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb and a browser extension only, with no phone app, desktop app or integrations listed. | CWeb only, with an API and webhooks. No integrations list, phone app or desktop app. |
| Best for | email masks from Mozilla | email forwarding for your own domain |
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: Firefox Relay and ImprovMX. How we grade
Where they differ
- Firefox Relay also covers ad and tracker blocking.
- ImprovMX also covers transactional email.
At a glance
| Firefox Relay | ImprovMX | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | Not published | $50 per year (Light, up to 5 domains) |
| Free plan | 5 email masks, the browser extension and removal of email trackers from forwarded mail. | 1 domain, 25 aliases, 500 forwarded emails a day, 7-day email logs and API access. No SMTP sending. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | Mozilla | ImprovMX |
| Price read from | relay.firefox.com | improvmx.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Firefox Relay
- Premium and phone plans show no price and a Join the Waitlist button, so only the free plan can be signed up for.
- The free plan stops at 5 masks and cannot reply from a mask; masks go to your existing inbox.
- Mozilla advises against masks for banks, doctors, lawyers and mail with attachments you must receive.
- Relay Premium is limited to listed countries, including the US, Canada, the UK and most of the EU.
ImprovMX
- ImprovMX forwards mail; it does not host mailboxes or provide a mail client.
- The Free plan has no SMTP sending and no rules; sending needs Light or higher.
- Forwarding stops if a daily or monthly limit is hit until it resets or you upgrade.
- Enterprise is sold through contact only.
Key features
Firefox Relay
- Email masks
- Each mask forwards to your true address, and you can turn forwarding off for one mask without touching the rest.
- Browser extension
- An add-on creates a mask on a site's sign-up form. The homepage links the Firefox add-on, and masks can be made from the dashboard in other browsers.
- Tracker removal
- Common email trackers are stripped from forwarded mail, and this is included on the free plan.
- Promo blocking
- Premium can block promotional mail while still forwarding receipts and shipping notices. Blocking is not exact, so important mail can occasionally be caught.
- Anonymous replies
- Premium lets you reply to a forwarded email within 3 months of receiving it, and gives a custom mozmail.com mask domain.
- Phone masking
- A phone mask forwards calls and texts to your number and lets you reply to texts. The phone plan is a waitlist.
ImprovMX
- Alias forwarding
- Forwards mail from addresses on your domain to one or several destinations, with catch-all and regex aliases, or to a webhook.
- Sending from your domain
- Paid plans send over SMTP or a JSON send API using the custom domain, within monthly send limits.
- Routing rules
- Customizable rules control how incoming email is routed; the number of rules rises by plan.
- Logs and webhooks
- Email logs help trace missing messages, with retention from 7 days to 180 days on paid plans; webhooks are paid-only.
- Public API
- An API key lets you create domains and aliases and view logs programmatically, on every plan including Free.
Plans
Firefox Relay
Limited email protection$0
5 email masks, the browser extension and removal of email trackers.
Relay PremiumCustom
Unlimited masks, a custom mask domain, replies and promo blocking; no price shown, waitlist only.
ImprovMX
Free$0
1 domain, 25 aliases, 500 forwarded emails a day, 7-day logs, API access and standard support.
Light$50
per year, up to 5 domains
25 aliases per domain, 150,000 forwarded and 750 SMTP-sent emails a month, 5 rules per domain.
Premium$9
per month, up to 30 domains
100 aliases per domain, 150,000 forwarded and 12,000 SMTP-sent emails a month, webhooks.
Pro$24
per month, up to 100 domains
200 aliases per domain, 450,000 forwarded and 60,000 SMTP-sent emails a month, 50 rules per domain.
EnterpriseCustom
Unlimited domains, aliases and sending, a dedicated account manager and support SLAs.
Ways to pay less
Firefox Relay
No public discounts listed.
ImprovMX
- Annual discount
15% off yearly billing
Yearly billing costs $90 for Premium and $240 for Pro, which the pricing page labels as 15% off.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Firefox Relay or ImprovMX?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Firefox Relay publishes no starting price, and ImprovMX starts at $50 per year (Light, up to 5 domains).
Which has a free plan, Firefox Relay or ImprovMX?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Firefox Relay and ImprovMX have a free plan.
Which platforms do Firefox Relay and ImprovMX run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Firefox Relay lists a browser extension. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.