If you are reading this post, you are probably looking for a Google Workspace alternative. You’ve come to the right place because in this blog post we will explain why we believe Mailfence is the best G Suite alternative.
As most of you are probably aware, Google Suite will soon no longer be free. If you are amongst the users of Gmail and G Suite looking for a free or cheaper alternative, this might be the time to take another criterion into account: your privacy.
What if Google’s G Suite going subscription-based was the occasion to look for a private and secure alternative?
Let’s have a look at what Mailfence offers.
How secure and private is Gmail?
Let’s get straight to the point: it is not. The issue with Gmail and G Suite is that it does not use end-to-end encryption and does not respect your privacy. Google claims your emails are safe but only encrypts your emails via STARTTLS, which is not actual end-to-end encryption.
To use Gmail and G Suite for free, you give up one key aspect: online privacy. Google can scan your emails via an algorithm to build your profile and know as much as possible about you. It could be what kind of shoes you like, if you do sports, etc. Gmail can scan other emails that contain more intimate subjects like dating or illnesses. In their privacy policy they state that for these delicate subjects they will notify you first and if you allow them then they will sell that info. However, who manages to keep up to date with Google’s ever-changing privacy policy?
Google/Alphabet the Big tech conglomerate behind Gmail and G Suite sells your data to advertisers and marketers. Moreover, these advertisers take the data, process it to understand you better, and sell more to you.
Privacy is a right, not a feature
You may have heard about Gmail’s confidential mode that allows you to send emails that self-destruct after the expiration date. We hate to break it to you, but the confidential mode is not really confidential. The “confidential” emails you send through Gmail are sent in plain text, which means that Google can still view those emails and store them on their servers.
Mailfence does not track its users as there are no hidden cookies. Refer to our very readable privacy policy if you want to get a complete idea of how we operate. Mailfence’s servers are based in Belgium, which has strict privacy laws. What’s more, we do not use Google Analytics or any other analytics, nor do we share any information with advertisers, which is how Google makes its revenue. By the way, did you know Google Analytics has recently been declared illegal?
Wow, Google sure sounds evil, but really, it is just a business that needs to make money somehow. Our business models differ quite a bit since we believe that privacy is a right and not a feature. Therefore, we choose not to track users and make money solely through subscriptions & licences sold to universities. To use some of our premium features, you have to subscribe to a paid plan. Currently, there are three paid plans: Entry, Pro & Ultra. It is the way to support us and keep our business up and running. Plus, we donate 15% of all revenues of the Ultra subscriptions to EFF and EDRI.
There is no denying that G Suite has loads of features. However, choosing a secure Google Workspace alternative does not mean you have to abandon many features.
Mailfence also offers a complete suite:
Mailfence is a complete email suite, offering many features
- Use the Mailfence calendar as an alternative to Google calendar and boost collaboration and convenience without compromising security & privacy.
- What’s cool about the Mailfence calendar is that it has a poll function integrated into it, allowing you to vote and find dates for potential meetings.
- Mailfence Contacts is your complete contact management software that allows you to manage and share contact data.
- Mailfence Documents is our alternative to Google Drive and Google Docs where you can store, edit, and share files with your group members. With the Mailfence documents feature, you can create a virtual drive. That allows you to access the documents without even being in the application itself. Another really great feature is the public folder that allows you to publicly share docs with non-Mailfence users just by sharing a URL.
- With Mailfence Groups you can share data and collaborate securely. Some possibilities include: view the shared mailbox, view the shared group Contacts, share the group Calendar. You can also use the drop folder feature to securely send files without having to attach them to emails. For the complete list of possibilities, check out our Mailfence Groups blog post.
- Wait, there’s more, Mailfence has an instant messaging chat where you can message your contacts directly.
Security is at the heart of Mailfence
Mailfence offers two end-to-end encryption methods to encrypt your data. You can use Mailfence without encryption but for your confidential information, you can encrypt your emails either symmetrically or asymmetrically. The data will then be encrypted directly on the machine of the user, and no one in between the sender and the receiver of the message can read your emails.
With STARTTLS (another encryption method used by Google), the sender’s email service encrypts the data as it leaves their servers. The company that controls the server could view the data if they want to, as it is not encrypted in the server. Plus, the STARTTLS encryption happens only if both sender and recipient services support it. Most service providers support STARTTLS, however, smaller organizations you could be communicating with might not support it.
Not convinced? Check our dedicated blog post on why end-to-end encryption is the way to go.
Combine end-to-end encryption with digital signatures to increase the security and the authenticity of your emails. We also offer Two-factor authentication (2FA) for additional security. By using a secure email provider like Mailfence you say no to mass surveillance and can start encrypting everything!
If you would like to learn what Mailfence protects you from and from what it does not, please visit our Threat model page.
Mailfence doesn’t use vendor lock in techniques
Interested in migrating to Mailfence? Great. But what about the possibility to leave us one day?
Mailfence is interoperable, thus convenient. Interoperability means you have access to your Mailfence account, not only through the Mailfence interface. We designed Mailfence with built-in interoperability so that our users can use our service with their favourite tools but also leave us whenever they want and recuperate their data.
You can sync your mailbox with other email clients to keep everything in one place with either IMAP, POP, and Exchange ActiveSync. Thus, you can access our Gmail alternative anywhere you want. Please note that each protocol has pros and cons. We highly recommend you read our protocol blogpost.
On top of that, we have a mobile app. Please refer to the dedicated blog post for more info. Or go directly to the installation steps.
In case you would like to delete your Mailfence account, there’re no tricky steps. Within a few clicks, you can delete your account and data (we would be sad to see you leave, though).
How to migrate from G Suite to Mailfence
If you are this far into the blog post, then chances are you are considering Mailfence as your preferred Gmail alternative. So, how do you migrate your data from G Suite to Mailfence?
Follow our different instructions on how to migrate your emails from Gmail to our alternative, depending on if you have a small or large amount of data to migrate.
If you want to migrate from G Suite to Mailfence, please follow our specific instructions for your documents, calendars and contacts.
Still not convinced? Learn more about who Mailfence is.
