Email · Tool
Stage
Function
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Gmail
3Free email with powerful search, paid behind Workspace; ads and AI features tie identity to Google’s broader stack.
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Outlook
3Consumer inbox on the Microsoft graph: Microsoft 365 upsells, Focused Inbox, and account convergence toward paid bundles.
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Proton Mail
1End-to-end encrypted email from a Swiss nonprofit-aligned foundation; free tier with no ads or scanning, paid plans fund the service without monetising user data.