Runbox vs StartMail (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Runbox grades higher than StartMail: 2.4 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 6, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Runbox grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Runbox
Norwegian paid email hosting with custom domains and no ads
StartMail
Paid private email from the Netherlands with unlimited aliases
Which one is for you
Pick Runbox if
- Fits if you want a paid inbox on your own domain at under €20 a year
- Works for people who want mail kept in Norway and read through ordinary mail apps
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan, because after 30 days it is €19.95 a year at the least
- Tight if you send in volume: 500 outgoing and 5,000 incoming messages a day on every plan
- Tight if you need space, as Micro is 2 GB of mail and 1 domain
- Watch out: prices are in euros, billed per year or per 3 years, with no monthly option
- Watch out: the homepage quotes a dollar price that does not match the pricing page
Pick StartMail if
- Fits if you want a paid, ad-free mailbox hosted in the Netherlands
- Works for people who want a separate alias for every sign-up
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you won't give payment details for a trial, as it asks for a card or PayPal up front
- Skip it if you want an iPhone app today, because the iOS app is still listed as coming soon
- Too light for anyone who wants a calendar or file storage along with their email
- Tight if you need more than one custom domain on Personal, as unlimited domains need Business at $6.99
- Watch out: there's no desktop app, so outside Android you use the browser or set up IMAP yourself
How we grade them
| 2.4GPARunboxFair | 1.8GPAStartMailWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AMicro is €19.95 a year, about €1.66 a month, under 60% of the $3.99 the cheaper quarter of email tools starts at. Larger plans climb to €179.95 a year, and there is no monthly billing. | CPersonal is $4.99 a month billed annually ($59.88), or $6.99 monthly, for 20 GB, unlimited aliases and one custom domain. That's the ordinary band for this category, and dearer than other private mailboxes: Posteo and mailbox both start at €1 a month. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan. You get a 30-day trial with no card needed, then it is €19.95 a year at the least. | DNo free plan. There's a 7-day free trial, but a credit card or PayPal account is required at sign-up, so you hand over payment details before you've sent a single email. |
| Features | COwn domains and aliases, open protocols, filters and folders. Every plan has daily limits of 5,000 incoming and 500 outgoing messages, and Micro holds 2 GB. | CUnlimited aliases, with burners that vanish after an hour, one-click PGP, password-protected mail for people without it, hidden external images and full IMAP with a migration tool. But its own feature list covers mail and contacts only, with no calendar and no file storage. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You point a domain at it and set up addresses and aliases, so there is some setting up before it works. | CNo rating on record. Encrypting is one click and a migration tool brings your old mail and contacts over, but on anything but Android you're in the browser or setting up IMAP in another mail app yourself. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only on the listing, with standard mail protocols for other mail apps. No apps and no integrations are named. | CThe browser and an Android app, and that's the lot: no desktop app, and the iPhone app is still listed as coming soon. Full IMAP and SMTP access means Thunderbird, Outlook, Apple Mail or K-9 Mail can fill the gap. |
| Best for | paid email on your own domain | private email with an alias for every sign-up |
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: Runbox and StartMail. How we grade
Price against what you get
Runbox starts at about $1.86 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. StartMail starts at $4.99 a month and scores 2.0.
They score the same, and Runbox starts $3.13 a month lower. Of the other email apps on the chart, 13 score higher than Runbox for less, and 29 score higher than StartMail for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Runbox also covers calendar.
- StartMail also covers inbox filtering.
At a glance
| Runbox | StartMail | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | €19.95 per year (€49.95 for 3 years) | $4.99 per month, billed annually ($59.88) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial, no credit card required | 7-day free trial; a credit card or PayPal account is required at sign-up |
| Web | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Runbox | StartMail B.V. |
| Price read from | runbox.com | startmail.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 6, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Runbox
- Prices are listed in euros and billed per year or per 3 years; there is no monthly billing.
- There is no free plan; the first 30 days are a trial.
- Daily limits of 5,000 incoming and 500 outgoing messages apply on every plan.
- The homepage quotes a dollar price that does not match the euro prices on the pricing page.
StartMail
- There is no free plan, and the 7-day trial asks for a credit card or PayPal account at sign-up.
- The only app is for Android; the iOS app is listed as coming soon. Elsewhere it runs in the browser or in other mail apps over IMAP.
- Personal accounts are limited to one custom domain; unlimited domains and shared aliases need the Business plan.
- The feature list covers email and contacts only and does not mention a calendar or file storage.
Key features
Runbox
- Own domains and aliases
- Each plan includes 100 aliases on Runbox domains and unlimited aliases on your own domains, with 1 to 100 domains depending on the plan.
- Open protocols
- Mail can be used through the web app or any client over POP, IMAP and SMTP, with contacts and calendar over CardDAV and CalDAV.
- Limits on every plan
- Messages up to 100 MB, 5,000 incoming and 500 outgoing messages a day on all plans, with two-factor authentication.
- Norwegian hosting
- Data is hosted in Norway under Norwegian privacy rules, on servers the company says run on hydropower.
- Filters and folders
- Messages can be consolidated from other accounts and filtered, and a calendar and contacts are included.
StartMail
- Unlimited aliases
- Extra addresses can be created and deleted at any time, on the StartMail domain or your own, and one-click burner aliases disappear on their own after an hour.
- PGP encryption
- One click encrypts a message with PGP or adds a PGP signature, and an IMAP mail client can be set up for end-to-end encryption with OpenPGP.
- Password-protected email
- Encrypted messages can be sent to people who do not use encryption: the recipient reads and answers them with a password you set.
- Tracking and phishing protection
- External images are hidden by default to block tracking pixels, a warning shows the full address before an external link opens, and your IP address is kept out of sent mail.
- Custom domains and group subscriptions
- Personal accounts can use one custom domain and Business accounts any number. Extra accounts for family or team members are 25% off, and Business groups can share aliases.
- IMAP access and migration
- Full IMAP and SMTP access for Thunderbird, Outlook, Apple Mail and similar apps, plus a migration tool that imports email and contacts from other providers.
Plans
Runbox
Micro€19.95
per year (€49.95 billed every 3 years)
2 GB email storage, 200 MB file storage and 1 email domain.
Mini€34.95
per year (€84.95 billed every 3 years)
10 GB email storage, 1 GB file storage and 5 email domains.
Medium€49.95
per year (€119.95 billed every 3 years)
25 GB email storage, 2 GB file storage and 10 email domains.
Max€79.95
per year (€189.95 billed every 3 years)
50 GB email storage, 5 GB file storage and 25 email domains.
Max100€119.95
per year (€284.95 billed every 3 years)
100 GB email storage, 10 GB file storage and 50 email domains.
Max250€179.95
per year (€424.95 billed every 3 years)
250 GB email storage, 25 GB file storage and 100 email domains.
StartMail
Personal$4.99
per month, billed annually ($59.88); $6.99 billed monthly
An address on the StartMail domain or one custom domain, unlimited aliases and 20 GB of storage. Annual plans can be paid in Bitcoin.
Business$6.99
per month, billed annually ($83.88); $8.99 billed monthly
An address on your own domain, unlimited domains, 30 GB of storage and shared aliases on a custom domain within a group subscription.
Ways to pay less
Runbox
- Annual discount
3-year plans cost less per year
Paying for 3 years at once costs less than three single years: for Micro €49.95 instead of €59.85 and for Max €189.95 instead of €239.85.
- Other savings
60-day money-back guarantee
The homepage lists a 60-day full money-back guarantee on paid plans.
StartMail
- Annual discount
Save $24 a year with annual billing
Personal costs $59.88 a year ($4.99 a month) against $6.99 a month when billed monthly, and Business $83.88 a year against $8.99 a month. The pricing page puts the saving at $24.
- Other savings
25% off additional accounts
Any number of extra accounts for family members or colleagues can be added to a subscription as a group, each at 25% off the regular rate.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Runbox or StartMail?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Runbox is cheaper to start with: about $1.86 a month, against $4.99 a month for StartMail. Runbox starts at €19.95 per year (€49.95 for 3 years), and StartMail starts at $4.99 per month, billed annually ($59.88).
Which has a free plan, Runbox or StartMail?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Runbox nor StartMail has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do Runbox and StartMail run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only StartMail lists an Android app. 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.