StartMail
StartMail is a Netherlands-based encrypted email service offering PGP encryption, unlimited disposable aliases, and GDPR-compliant Dutch hosting via Personal ($4.99/mo) and Business ($6.99/mo) subscriptions. It serves privacy-conscious individuals, small businesses, and AI-concerned users globally through direct-to-consumer sales.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersThe Hague, Netherlands
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What StartMail does
StartMail B.V. is a Netherlands-headquartered, privately funded email service founded in 2013 by Robert E.G. Beens and David Bodnick, the creators of Startpage. The company operates a direct-to-consumer, subscription-based encrypted email product built on OpenPGP standards, with self-hosted infrastructure in an ISO 27001-certified Dutch data center under GDPR and Dutch privacy law. Its two commercial tiers are the Personal Plan at $4.99/month (or $59.88/year) with 20GB of storage and one custom domain, and the Business Plan at $6.99/month (or $83.88/year) with 30GB of storage, unlimited custom domains, and shared aliases for teams, plus 25% off additional group accounts.
The core product is differentiated by one-click PGP encryption, password-protected emails to non-encrypted recipients, and an unlimited alias system (including one-click burner aliases that auto-delete after one hour) for spam and breach containment. Supporting features include TOTP-based two-factor authentication, malicious-link warnings, IMAP/SMTP access for third-party clients (Thunderbird, Outlook, Apple Mail, K-9 Mail), a migration tool for inbound switchers, and a Bitcoin payment option on annual plans. Distribution is entirely DTC through startmail.com and an affiliate program paying 100% first-year commissions to creators and comparison sites, with no third-party resellers or physical retail.
The business model is intentionally narrow: no advertising, no tracking, no AI processing of user email content, and no external venture capital. StartMail is founder-owned and cash-flow funded, serving privacy-conscious individuals, AI-concerned users, and small businesses/teams globally. Scale commentary cites 'hundreds of thousands' of trusted users since launch and 10,000+ paying customers within roughly a year of the 2015 German-language launch. The company's strategic posture is incremental product enhancement within a privacy-first positioning rather than scale-driven expansion.
StartMail firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- StartMail
- Legal name
- StartMail B.V.
- Website
- https://startmail.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- StartMail is a Netherlands-based encrypted email service offering PGP encryption, unlimited disposable aliases, and GDPR-compliant Dutch hosting via Personal ($4.99/mo) and Business ($6.99/mo) subscriptions. It serves privacy-conscious individuals, small businesses, and AI-concerned users globally through direct-to-consumer sales.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
StartMail industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Encrypted Email Service
- NAICS
- Direct Mail Advertising (541860)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Email Phishing & BEC Protection (HDADAKAB)
Keywords
Where StartMail is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- The Hague
- HQ country
- Netherlands
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
StartMail business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Subscription - Personal Plan: Paid subscription service at $4.99/month or $59.88/year. Includes 20GB storage, unlimited aliases, PGP encryption, and access via webmail or email clients. 7-day free trial with payment details required.
- Subscription - Business Plan: Paid subscription at $6.99/month or $83.88/year. Includes 30GB storage, unlimited custom domains, shared aliases for teams, and group subscription management. 25% discount on additional accounts.
- Additional Mailboxes/Add-ons: Additional email inboxes available at 25% discounted rate for group subscriptions. Revenue from add-on mailbox purchases during subscription year.
- Affiliate Referrals: 100% commission on first-year subscription value for qualified affiliate referrals, including yearly subscriptions and additional purchases.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Personal Plan - Secure email with StartMail domain or 1 custom domain, 20GB storage |
| Subscription | Annual | Business Plan - Secure email with unlimited custom domains, 30GB storage, team features |
| Subscription | Annual | Group Subscription Add-ons - Additional accounts at 25% discount |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
StartMail product offering
Product offeringCore offering
StartMail is a privacy-focused encrypted email service based in the Netherlands that provides users with PGP-encrypted email, unlimited disposable aliases, and a spam-free inbox. It offers separate Personal and Business subscription plans, runs on ISO 27001 certified infrastructure under GDPR, and supports IMAP/SMTP access from third-party email clients. Customers can send password-protected emails to non-PGP recipients and migrate existing contacts from other providers.
Product overview
StartMail is a privacy-focused secure email service offering two subscription tiers: Personal Plan ($4.99/month, 20GB storage, 1 custom domain) and Business Plan ($6.99/month, 30GB storage, unlimited domains). The core product portfolio centers on email privacy and encryption, featuring PGP encrypted emails with one-click encryption, unlimited email aliases (including personal aliases, one-hour burner aliases, and domain aliases), and password-protected emails for non-encrypted recipients. Additional offerings include an email and contact migration tool, group subscriptions with 25% discount for additional accounts, two-factor authentication (TOTP), and an affiliate partner program. All plans include no ads, no tracking, Dutch-hosted GDPR-compliant infrastructure, and full IMAP/SMTP access for use with third-party email clients.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- StartMail Personal Plan Subscription plan for individual users providing a privacy-focused email account with PGP encryption, unlimited aliases, password-protected emails to non-PGP recipients, IMAP/SMTP access, and 10 GB of storage, with a 30-day free trial.
- StartMail Business Plan Per-seat subscription plan for small businesses and teams offering custom domain email, unlimited shared aliases, group subscription management, mandatory 2FA, 25 GB storage per account, and PGP/password-protected email functionality.
- StartMail Family Plan Subscription tier for households providing private email accounts for family members under one billing relationship, with a 25% discount on each additional family member.
- Email Aliases Unlimited custom email alias creation that lets users generate a unique address for each sender or purpose, send from aliases, and instantly block or delete aliases to stop spam, leaks, and data-broker exposure.
- PGP Encrypted Email Encrypted email service built on the OpenPGP standard with one-click encryption, automatic key generation and management in-browser, and optional password-protected (Pmail) messages for recipients without PGP.
- Disposable Email (Burner Aliases) Single-use or short-lived email aliases that can be created and instantly destroyed, used for sign-ups, downloads, and other situations where users do not want to share their primary address.
Quantifiable outcome
- 89% of people do not want their data used for personalized ads (internal research cited)
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use StartMail
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
StartMail technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration9 records
Feature6 records
StartMail partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Security Delta (HSD)minorStartMail has partnered with Security Delta (HSD), a Dutch innovation center for security. StartMail's offices are situated at HSD, enabling knowledge sharing and collaboration on security solutions with partner businesses. This partnership supports StartMail's commitment to security innovation in the Netherlands.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
StartMail competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Proton Mail (Proton): Swiss-based encrypted email provider offering end-to-end encrypted email, calendar, drive, and VPN. Closest direct competitor to StartMail with overlapping privacy positioning, PGP-based encryption, and paid subscription tiers, but with substantially larger scale and capital base.
- Tuta (formerly Tutanota): German encrypted email and calendar service using its own encryption protocol (not PGP). Direct competitor in the privacy-email niche with similar subscription pricing and target customer, differentiated by built-in calendar and native mobile apps.
- Posteo: German privacy-focused email provider with ad-free, encrypted email on green energy infrastructure. Directly comparable subscription-based secure email service targeting privacy-conscious individuals and small organizations in the DACH market.
- Mailbox.org: Berlin-based ad-free secure email provider offering encrypted mailbox with PGP, calendar, cloud storage, and office tools. Direct competitor in the European privacy-email space with similar subscription tiers and self-hosting focus.
- Fastmail: Australia-based paid email provider focused on privacy, custom domains, and ad-free inbox. Direct competitor at the Business Plan tier of the market with overlapping custom-domain and team features, though less emphasis on end-to-end encryption.
- Hushmail: Canada-based encrypted email service with PGP encryption and a strong presence in healthcare, legal, and small-business segments. Comparable secure-email subscription model with HIPAA-oriented positioning.
- Runbox: Norwegian email provider focused on privacy, sustainability, and data ownership, hosted in Norwegian data centers. Comparable subscription secure-email service with similar European privacy-law positioning and SMB/custom-domain offerings.
- Thexyz: Canadian privacy-focused email and hosting provider offering encrypted email with custom domains and team features. Direct comparable at the Business Plan tier with overlapping subscription pricing.
Regional players
- Soverin: Dutch privacy-focused email provider based in the Netherlands with EU-only data storage and custom-domain support. Highly comparable in regulatory positioning to StartMail, but operates primarily in the same home Dutch market rather than globally.
Emerging players
- Disroot: Dutch non-profit providing privacy-focused email and online services under strong EU data-protection principles. Comparable in privacy positioning and Dutch hosting, though community-funded rather than commercial, making it an emerging/niche alternative rather than direct head-to-head competitor.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
StartMail social profiles
Digital presenceStartMail compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
StartMail financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
StartMail leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
StartMail funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
StartMail M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about StartMail
What does StartMail do?
StartMail is a privacy-focused encrypted email service based in the Netherlands that provides users with PGP-encrypted email, unlimited disposable aliases, and a spam-free inbox. It offers separate Personal and Business subscription plans, runs on ISO 27001 certified infrastructure under GDPR, and supports IMAP/SMTP access from third-party email clients. Customers can send password-protected emails to non-PGP recipients and migrate existing contacts from other providers.
Is StartMail a public or private company?
StartMail is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was StartMail founded?
StartMail was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is StartMail based?
StartMail is headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands, in the Europe region.
How does StartMail make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Subscription - Personal Plan is the primary driver. The others are subscription - Business Plan, additional Mailboxes/Add-ons and affiliate Referrals.
Who are StartMail's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Proton Mail (Proton), Tuta (formerly Tutanota), Posteo, Mailbox.org, Fastmail, Hushmail, Runbox and Thexyz. Soverin is listed as a regional player. Disroot is listed as an emerging player.
Does StartMail have an API?
No public API is recorded for StartMail.
What industry is StartMail in?
StartMail's product category is Encrypted Email Service. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDADAKAB, Email Phishing & BEC Protection. Its NAICS code is 541860 and its SIC code is 7372.