Zoho vs ProtonMail – two email hosting services compared

How to Choose the Right Provider

There are several key criteria that a reputable email hosting provider should meet to ensure you can send and manage your emails with confidence. To make the decision easier, simply follow this checklist when selecting your provider:

Security

First and foremost, your email hosting provider should offer a high level of security to protect you from hacker attacks. Indicators of this include the implementation of end-to-end encryption, as well as the option for two-factor or multi-factor authentication.

Availability

Your email software must be accessible at all times to ensure continuous internal and external communication. To guarantee this, you should choose a provider that offers sufficient storage capacity and reliable uptime. You should also check whether data backup and recovery options are available.

Conclusion

Mobile Application

Your email software is no longer just a desktop matter — you and your employees should be able to manage emails on the go. That’s why it’s essential that your email hosting provider also offers a mobile app with a user-friendly interface.

Customer Support

Technical issues can always occur when sending emails, which makes your provider’s support options all the more important. Be sure to check the available support channels — such as phone, email, or chat — as well as their availability during the week.

Price

Amid all the technical considerations, this point is often overlooked — yet it’s crucial: make sure to choose an email hosting provider that fits within your budget to avoid facing unexpectedly high ongoing costs.

This is Zoho Mail

So much for the basics — now let’s move on to candidate number one in our email software speed dating! Zoho Mail is an email hosting service for businesses that comes with an integrated collaboration platform, allowing users to exchange data and communicate seamlessly right from their inbox. In essence, the software combines the best of traditional email with modern collaboration tools, making it ideal for companies that want to optimize workflows, improve teamwork, and manage multiple domains.

Zoho Mail is a product of Zoho Corporation, a software company founded in India in 1996. With more than 45 applications, Zoho offers comprehensive digital solutions for business processes and currently serves over 100 million users worldwide.

What features does Zoho Mail offer?  

Zoho Mail includes a wide range of features — from classic email functions such as templates, signatures, calendars, and task management, to the use of custom domains and a Zoho Mail mobile app for on-the-go access. It also includes a web-based admin panel for managing users and defining email policies.

In addition, the software provides robust security and privacy features, including TLS encryption, two-factor authentication, spam and malware filters, data loss prevention, and S/MIME support.

When it comes to collaboration, Zoho Mail offers so-called Streams, a social-media-style communication feature that enhances team interaction within email threads. Users can also share emails, folders, and calendars with teammates, and even integrate Zoho Chat for quick internal communication. For international teams, the software additionally provides a multilingual interface.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Zoho Mail

Like almost any software, Zoho Mail comes with both advantages and disadvantages. On the positive side, the software is optimized for businesses and stands out for its excellent price-performance ratio: both small companies and large enterprises can benefit from its very affordable plans. Zoho Mail’s strong email and organizational features, as well as its team collaboration tools, are among its key selling points. The software has also received awards for its strict data protection policies and its GDPR-compliant server locations, including those in Europe.

On the downside, Zoho Mail lacks end-to-end encryption and can present some technical hurdles when setting up custom domains. Compared to other tools, it also falls short due to its somewhat cumbersome migration and integration processes and its slightly cluttered interface.

The Email Service ProtonMail

The counterpart to Zoho Mail in our comparison is ProtonMail, an end-to-end encrypted email service from the Swiss company Proton AG. ProtonMail was developed in 2014 by CERN physicists and engineers and is headquartered in Geneva — a region known for having some of the world’s strictest data protection regulations. With over 100 million users worldwide, ProtonMail is one of the largest providers of encrypted email communication and operates not only its own network but also its own server hardware.

This is what ProtonMail offers

When it comes to security features, ProtonMail takes it one step further: in addition to end-to-end encryption, it also offers zero-access encryption, is independently audited, supports S/MIME, and ensures Perfect Forward Secrecy during transmission.
The software’s email functions include a modern web interface, custom email addresses with your own domain, emails with expiration times, and encrypted communication even with external recipients.

ProtonMail also integrates seamlessly into the Proton ecosystem — which includes Proton Drive and Proton VPN — and offers up to 1 TB of storage, depending on the chosen plan.

Advantages and Disadvantages of ProtonMail

When it comes to advantages, ProtonMail stands out for its top-tier security standards, strong data protection, and user anonymity: users are not exposed to ads, tracking, or data sharing.
Additionally, ProtonMail impresses with an intuitive user interface and continuous feature development.

The downsides include limited collaboration features, technical setup complexity, and the fact that the most powerful features are only available in paid plans, which are significantly more expensive than those of competitors.

Zoho Mail vs. ProtonMail – A Comparison

The moment we’ve all been waiting for! Zoho Mail vs. ProtonMail – where exactly do their features and advantages differ?

We’d say the main difference lies in their target audience. While Zoho Mail is designed for businesses, teams, and freelancers, ProtonMail is geared more toward NGOs — a reflection of its strong focus on privacy and security. ProtonMail clearly belongs to Team Security and Data Protection, offering end-to-end encryption and more, whereas Zoho Mail aligns with Team Productivity and Business Functions, using TLS encryption.

In terms of overall functionality, Zoho Mail takes the lead with a comprehensive suite of business tools, while ProtonMail’s features are more limited. And although ProtonMail doesn’t fully meet all business needs, its strong security philosophy comes at a cost: it’s relatively expensive and offers a free plan for only one user with just 1 GB of storage.

Zoho Mail, on the other hand, is very affordable and specifically tailored to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). It offers several pricing plans, including a free tier for up to 5 users, each with 5 GB of storage and the ability to use a custom domain.

codafish – Your Zoho partner for all digital applications

So, have you decided to go all-in with Zoho One, or will you start with Zoho CRM as a solid first step? No matter which path you choose – what truly matters is that your digital transformation is aligned with your business needs and goals.

Still unsure which option suits you best? As certified Zoho Premium Partners, codafish can help you assess, plan, and implement the right solution – whether it’s the full suite or the core CRM system.

Let’s talk! Book your free consultation today and take the first step toward smarter digital processes.