The 7 Best Mailbird Alternatives in 2026

Short answer: the closest free replacement for Mailbird is Thunderbird, which runs on Windows, Mac and Linux and now has an Android app. eM Client is the nearest paid match, with mail, calendar and contacts in one Outlook-style window. If you want the same app on your phone, Canary Mail (ours), Spark and BlueMail cover desktop and mobile. On Windows, the free new Outlook is already installed.

Disclosure: we make Canary Mail, one of the apps below. Prices and features were checked on each vendor's own site or app store listing on October 13, 2026.

Why people look for a Mailbird alternative

Mailbird is a desktop email client for Windows and, since 2025, the Mac. It puts several accounts in one inbox and connects to apps like calendars and chat. Most people who leave it give one of these reasons:

• The lifetime license confusion. When Mailbird 3 arrived as a paid upgrade, people who had bought "Pay Once" or "Lifetime" licenses expected it to be included. In September 2026 Mailbird's CEO wrote that its wording "was not clear enough". Mailbird 2 stops getting updates, including security fixes, at the end of 2026, and every Mailbird 2 customer gets a free upgrade to Mailbird 3. Future major versions now need a separate Lifetime Updates add-on.
• Mobile. The Android app is a public beta, and an iPhone app has only just appeared on the App Store, so the phone side is still new.
• No Linux or web version.
• Microsoft 365 needs Premium. Microsoft 365 and Exchange accounts are Premium-only.

Is Mailbird free?

Partly. Mailbird's free plan has no time limit but covers one email account on one device, and each new account gets a 7-day Premium trial. Premium is sold yearly or as a one-time Pay Once license; on the Mac App Store it's $34.49 a year or $159 once. Prices on Mailbird's own site change with promotions, so check there before you buy. Mailbird has no built-in AI model; instead it can connect to an AI app such as ChatGPT or Claude, and the ChatGPT integration needs Premium.

Mailbird alternatives compared

The 7 best Mailbird alternatives in 2026

1. Canary Mail: Best for AI and encryption on desktop and phone

Disclosure: we make Canary Mail.

Canary covers what Mailbird does on the desktop and adds full apps for iPhone, iPad and Android, so your accounts and settings follow you. It works with Gmail, Outlook and Microsoft 365, Exchange, iCloud, Yahoo and any IMAP account. Its AI drafts replies and summarizes threads, tracker blocking is on by default, and the Pro+ plan adds PGP encryption. More than 2 million people use it.

• Who it's for: Mailbird users who want the same inbox on their phone, with AI and encryption
• Price: free for unlimited accounts on 2 devices; Growth $36/year; Pro+ $100/year; lifetime licenses $100 and $300
• Platforms: Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android
• Downside: no Linux or web version, and paid plans are yearly or lifetime only, with no monthly option.

2. Thunderbird: Best free, open-source replacement

Thunderbird is free, open source and funded by donations. It handles any IMAP or POP account, has a calendar, contacts, tasks and OpenPGP encryption built in, and supports add-ons. It's also the most complete desktop client on Linux, which Mailbird doesn't support. Thunderbird for Android is available, and an iPhone app is in public beta on TestFlight (not yet on the App Store).

• Who it's for: people who want a free, full-featured desktop client, including on Linux
• Price: free
• Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, Android
• Downside: it looks less polished than Mailbird, scheduled sending needs an add-on, and there's no iPhone app yet.

More: Apple Mail vs Thunderbird.

3. eM Client: Best Outlook-style suite

eM Client is the closest paid match to Mailbird on the desktop, with mail, calendar, contacts, tasks and chat in one window. Version 11 (October 2026) added built-in AI and Microsoft Graph support for Microsoft 365. PGP and S/MIME are included, and its iPhone and Android apps are free. It also bought Postbox, which is no longer sold or developed.

• Who it's for: people who want an Outlook-like desktop app without Microsoft 365
• Price: free for 2 accounts for home use; Personal $24.95/year or $39.95 once (3 devices); Business $29.95/year
• Platforms: Windows, Mac; free iPhone and Android apps
• Downside: the free plan stops at two accounts, and the interface is busy.

More: eM Client alternatives.

4. Microsoft Outlook: Best if you're on Windows anyway

Windows Mail and Calendar stopped working at the end of 2024, and the new Outlook for Windows replaced them. It's free, handles Outlook.com, Gmail, iCloud, Yahoo and IMAP accounts, and has a built-in calendar and Focused Inbox. It also runs on Mac, phones and the web.

• Who it's for: Windows users and anyone on Microsoft 365
• Price: free with ads; Microsoft 365 Basic ($1.99/month or $19.99/year) removes them
• Platforms: Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android, web
• Downside: the free version shows ads, and Copilot needs a higher Microsoft 365 plan.

More: Outlook alternatives and the best email clients for Windows.

5. Spark: Best for a smart inbox and small teams

Spark's Smart Inbox puts mail from people above newsletters, Gatekeeper screens new senders, and teams can share drafts and comment on emails. It's on every major platform, so it fixes Mailbird's mobile gap.

• Who it's for: people who want a sorted inbox on desktop and phone, and small teams
• Price: free for unlimited accounts; Plus $10/month or $99/year; Pro $20/month or $199/year, per user
• Platforms: Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android
• Downside: the desktop app is built with Electron, some mail is processed on Readdle's servers, and AI is on paid plans.

More: Canary Mail vs Spark.

6. Mailspring: Best clean, free app that also runs on Linux

Mailspring looks the most like Mailbird of anything here: a clean unified inbox, fast search, themes and signatures. It's free and open source, and Pro adds read receipts, send later, snooze and templates.

• Who it's for: people who liked Mailbird's look and want a free app, including on Linux
• Price: free for unlimited accounts; Pro $8/month
• Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux
• Downside: no mobile app, no Exchange protocols, and it's built on Electron.

7. BlueMail: Best for the same free app on every platform

BlueMail runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and Android with unlimited accounts on the free plan, which also includes PGP. Its privacy policy says it never handles your credentials on the desktop; on mobile, instant push means it processes sign-in tokens on its servers.

• Who it's for: people who want one free app on every device, Linux included
• Price: free; Plus $5/month or $36/year; Team $12/month or $99/year
• Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, Android
• Downside: the design is busy, and mobile push relies on BlueMail's servers.

Mailbird on Android, iPhone and Linux

• Android: Mailbird's Android app is on Google Play as a public beta.
• iPhone and iPad: an iPhone and iPad version has appeared on the same App Store listing as the Mac app, though Mailbird's site still describes iOS as coming soon.
• Linux: there's no Linux version. Thunderbird, Mailspring and BlueMail all run on Linux.

How to switch from Mailbird

Mailbird connects to your email accounts rather than storing your mail itself, so if you use IMAP (Gmail, Outlook.com, iCloud, Yahoo and most others do), your mail stays on the server. Add the same accounts to your new app and everything appears. Recreate signatures and filters by hand. If any account was set up with POP3, which downloads mail to your PC, keep a copy of that local mail before you uninstall.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best alternative to Mailbird?

Thunderbird if you want free and open source (and Linux); eM Client for an Outlook-style suite; Canary Mail, Spark or BlueMail if you want the same app on your phone. On Windows, the free new Outlook is already installed.

Is there a free version of Mailbird?

Yes, but it covers one email account on one device. Premium adds unlimited accounts, Microsoft 365 and Exchange support, and more.

Is Thunderbird better than Mailbird?

For most people who want free software, yes: Thunderbird is free for unlimited accounts, runs on Linux, has encryption and a calendar built in, and has an Android app. Mailbird looks more modern and has more app integrations.

Which is better, Mailbird or eM Client?

eM Client, if you want calendar, contacts and tasks in one window and free mobile apps; its free plan allows two accounts against Mailbird's one. Mailbird is simpler and has more third-party app integrations.

Does Mailbird have a mobile app?

Mailbird has an Android app in public beta, and an iPhone and iPad version has appeared on the App Store. Both are new compared with its desktop apps.

Does Mailbird work on Linux?

No. Thunderbird, Mailspring and BlueMail are good Linux alternatives.

What happened to Mailbird lifetime licenses?

Mailbird 3 arrived as a paid upgrade, and in September 2026 Mailbird said its "Pay Once/Lifetime" wording hadn't been clear enough. Mailbird 2 stops getting updates at the end of 2026, every Mailbird 2 customer gets a free upgrade to Mailbird 3, and future major versions need the Lifetime Updates add-on.

What is the best free email software?

Thunderbird is the most complete free desktop app; Mailspring and BlueMail are free with unlimited accounts; Outlook is free with ads. See our free email clients guide.

Sources

• Mailbird
• Mailbird pricing
• Mailbird: Mailbird 2 winding down
• Mailbird on the Mac App Store
• Mailbird on Google Play
• Postbox acquired by eM Client
• eM Client pricing
• eM Client release history
• Thunderbird
• Thunderbird for iOS: a first look
• Microsoft: the future of Mail and Calendar on Windows
• Microsoft 365 Basic
• Spark pricing
• Mailspring Pro
• BlueMail pricing
• BlueMail privacy policy
• Canary Mail pricing