Alternatives to The Bat!

A Windows desktop email client that keeps mail locally, with on-disk encryption and end-to-end encryption. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.

  • The Bat!

    A Windows desktop email client that keeps mail locally, with on-disk encryption and end-to-end encryption.

    PaidProprietaryWindows

Replacements

Listings that take over the same core job as The Bat!.

  • Thunderbird

    Mozilla’s desktop mail client, with calendar, contacts and a unified inbox, funded by donations rather than ads.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinuxAndroid

    Thunderbird is free and open source under MPL-2.0, runs on Windows, macOS, Linux and Android, and adds calendar, contacts and built-in OpenPGP.

  • eM Client

    A polished commercial mail, calendar and contacts client for Windows and Mac, with a free tier capped at two accounts.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindowsmacOSAndroidiOS

    eM Client adds calendar, tasks and contacts with PGP and S/MIME on every tier, runs on Windows and Mac, and caps its free licence at two accounts.

  • Betterbird

    A Thunderbird fork that ships extra fixes and features, and can run side by side on the same profile.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Betterbird is a free open-source Thunderbird fork with extra fixes, a portable Windows build, and versions for macOS and Linux.

  • Claws Mail

    A fast, keyboard-driven email client that loads a hundred thousand message folder without thinking about it.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Claws Mail is free and GPL-licensed, handles enormous mail folders quickly, ships PGP and spam plugins, and composes plain text by default.

  • Mailbird

    Desktop email client for Windows and macOS with a unified inbox.

    PaidProprietaryWindowsmacOS

    Mailbird is a paid Windows and macOS client with a unified inbox and app integrations, but lacks The Bat!'s local encryption features.

  • Pegasus Mail

    A long-running free desktop email client for Windows, maintained alongside the Mercury mail server.

    FreeProprietaryWindows

    Pegasus Mail is a free, long-running Windows client with no paid tier that pairs with the Mercury mail server, though its release pace is slow.

  • Wino Mail

    Native Windows mail and calendar client for Outlook, Gmail and IMAP accounts.

    FreeOpen sourceWindows

    Wino Mail is a free open-source native Windows client with mail and calendar for Outlook, Gmail and IMAP, still filling in features as a one-developer project.

  • Microsoft Outlook

    Microsoft's email, calendar and contacts app for desktop, mobile and the web.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindowsmacOSAndroidiOSWeb

    Microsoft Outlook moves you to a freemium app on desktop, mobile and web tied to Microsoft services, without The Bat!'s local message base encryption.

Similar software

Related functionality, not a direct replacement.