What Mailfence does

Mailfence is a Brussels-based, privately held provider of a secure and private email and collaboration suite, in continuous operation since 1999 and serving primarily privacy-conscious individuals, small and medium businesses, and a smaller segment of larger organizations across Europe and globally through self-serve digital channels. The company was co-founded by Arnaud Huret (CEO) and Patrick De Schutter (Managing Director) and operates with a headcount in the 11-50 range without disclosed external institutional funding. Its offering centers on browser-based end-to-end encrypted email using the OpenPGP standard, with digital signatures, keystore management, password-protected messages, and SSL/TLS transport security, complemented by an integrated suite of Calendar, Documents, Groups, Chat (XMPP), and Polls tools, plus iOS/Android apps and a Progressive Web App.

The underlying architecture performs cryptographic operations client-side in the user's browser, so even Mailfence cannot decrypt message content, and the service is interoperable with any OpenPGP-compatible provider. Distribution is entirely direct and self-serve through mailfence.com, supported by integrations with Outlook, Apple Mail, Thunderbird, and eM Client via POP/IMAP/SMTP, ActiveSync, and CardDAV/CalDAV protocols. Revenue is generated through a freemium subscription model with five tiers (Free, Base, Entry, Pro, Ultra) offering progressively larger storage, alias counts, custom domains, and support levels, alongside a dedicated Mailfence for Business plan with user administration and DKIM/SPF/DMARC. The company publishes a transparency report and warrant canary, is fully GDPR-compliant, and donates 15% of Ultra plan revenues to the Electronic Frontier Foundation and European Digital Rights, positioning Belgian jurisdictional privacy law as a central differentiator against US-based competitors.

Name

Mailfence

Legal name

Mailfence

Website

https://mailfence.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mailfence is a Brussels-based, privately held provider of an end-to-end encrypted email and collaboration suite (email, calendar, documents, chat) built on browser-based OpenPGP, serving privacy-conscious individuals, SMBs, and select enterprises under Belgian privacy jurisdiction.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Secure Email Services

NAICS

Software Publishers (513210)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Email Data Loss Prevention & Encryption (HDADAKAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Email Authentication & Domain Protection (DMARC/SPF/DKIM) (HDADAKAC), Email Phishing & BEC Protection (HDADAKAB)

Keywords

• Secure email service
• End-to-end encryption
• Private email
• Business email hosting
• OpenPGP encryption

Headquarters

HQ city

Brussels

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Subscription Plans: Mailfence generates revenue through tiered subscription plans (Free, Base, Entry, Pro, Ultra) with varying storage capacities, feature sets, and billing frequencies (monthly, half-yearly, yearly). Higher tiers include more email storage, document storage, custom domains, aliases, and priority support.
2. Freemium Model: The free tier provides basic email service with limited storage (500 MB emails, 500 MB documents) to attract users who can upgrade to paid plans for additional features and capacity.
3. Business Plans: Dedicated 'Mailfence for Business' plans with user management, custom domain support, and enhanced administrative features for organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Mailfence sells an integrated secure email and online productivity suite (Messages, Calendar, Documents, Groups, Chat, Polls) delivered as a subscription SaaS. The service is built on browser-based OpenPGP end-to-end encryption so that even Mailfence cannot read message contents, supplemented by digital signatures, password-encrypted messages, two-factor authentication, and Belgian-jurisdiction legal privacy protection. It offers a free tier and paid individual/business tiers with custom domain, alias, and user management capabilities.

Product overview

Mailfence is an integrated secure and private email suite built on the principle that 'privacy is a right, not a feature.' The platform consists of Messages (secure email with end-to-end OpenPGP encryption, digital signatures, and custom domain support), Calendar (scheduling and secure sharing), Documents (storage and document sharing), Groups (team collaboration with shared calendars and documents), Chat (instant messaging via XMPP), Polls (voting and surveys), and the Nicol.ai support assistant. The suite offers tiered subscriptions from Free to Ultra with varying storage, aliases, and features, plus dedicated business plans with user management and administrative controls.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mailfence Messages The core secure email platform of Mailfence, providing end-to-end OpenPGP encryption, digital signatures, aliases, custom domain support, and access via web, POP3/IMAP/SMTP, ActiveSync, and mobile clients for individuals and businesses.
• Mailfence Calendar Private online calendar for scheduling appointments with secure sharing of events, integrated with the Mailfence secure email suite.
• Mailfence Documents Secure document storage and online editing platform with one-click sharing capabilities, enabling users to safely store and collaborate on documents within Mailfence's private storage.
• Mailfence Groups Team collaboration feature enabling secure data sharing, group calendars, group documents, and group chat among team members within the Mailfence environment.
• Mailfence Chat Instant messaging solution for secure communication among Mailfence group members, supporting XMPP/Jabber protocol for group chat functionality.
• Mailfence for Business Business-grade secure email service with user management, custom email domains, DKIM/SPF/DMARC support, and administrative controls, designed for small-to-medium businesses and organizations needing compliant professional email.
• Mailfence Polls Survey and voting tool for gathering group opinions and making collaborative decisions within Mailfence groups and teams.
• Mailfence Mobile App Native iOS and Android mobile applications that synchronize Mailfence mail, contacts, and calendars via Exchange ActiveSync for on-the-go secure access.
• Nicol.ai Assistant AI-powered support chatbot available at chat.mailfence.com that assists users with Mailfence product questions and support inquiries.

Quantifiable outcome

• Emails encrypted with OpenPGP are unreadable by anyone including Mailfence during transmission
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)minorOthersMailfence donates 15% of Ultra plan revenues to support the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights nonprofit organization. This represents a charitable giving relationship rather than a formal partnership.
• European Digital Rights (EDRi)minorOthersMailfence donates 15% of Ultra plan revenues to support European Digital Rights, a European digital rights organization. This represents a charitable giving relationship rather than a formal partnership.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Proton Mail: Proton Mail offers end-to-end encrypted email based in Switzerland with similar OpenPGP-based architecture. It directly competes for the same privacy-conscious individual and SMB market and is the most relevant direct peer given comparable feature set, jurisdiction-based privacy positioning, and freemium model.
• Tuta (formerly Tutanota): Tuta provides end-to-end encrypted email and calendar based in Germany with a similar privacy-focused, subscription-based model. It competes head-to-head with Mailfence for European privacy-conscious users and offers an integrated secure suite analogous to Mailfence's Messages and Calendar.
• Posteo: Posteo is a Germany-based privacy-focused email provider with paid-only subscriptions, strong green energy credentials, and no tracking. Comparable to Mailfence for individual and small-team users prioritizing data minimization and GDPR-aligned practices.
• StartMail: StartMail offers PGP-encrypted email based in the Netherlands with custom domain support, aliases, and a focus on individuals migrating from mainstream providers. Directly comparable feature set and European jurisdiction-based privacy positioning.
• Hushmail: Hushmail provides encrypted email with a focus on healthcare and small business compliance use cases (HIPAA). Comparable product offering with encrypted email and custom domain support, though positioned more for regulated industries than consumer privacy.
• Runbox: Runbox is a Norway-based secure email provider with subscription plans, custom domains, and IMAP/SMTP access. Comparable niche secure email positioning targeting privacy-conscious users in the European market.
• Kolab Now: Kolab Now is a Switzerland-based integrated suite of email, calendar, contacts, and file sharing with a focus on privacy and open standards. Directly comparable integrated suite approach with similar European sovereignty positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Fastmail: Fastmail is an established paid email provider based in Australia with custom domains, calendar, and contacts. While not privacy-focused, it competes for users willing to pay for ad-free email alternatives to mainstream providers and offers comparable productivity integrations.
• Zoho Mail: Zoho Mail is part of a broader business productivity suite with custom domain support, admin controls, and business-focused features. Competes with Mailfence for Business in the SMB market with a wider feature portfolio and established enterprise presence.

Emerging players

• Disroot: Disroot is a Netherlands-based non-profit providing privacy-respecting services including encrypted email, cloud storage, and collaboration tools. Comparable integrated suite philosophy with community/activist user base overlap with Mailfence's privacy-conscious segment.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mailfence
• Xx.com/mailfence
• Facebookfacebook.com/mailfence

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mailfence