Outlook vs Gmail: Which is best in 2024?

We’ve done research and put together a comprehensive review looking at the pros and cons of Outlook vs Gmail, how the two email providers compare and the main differences between Gmail and Outlook.

This guide will help you decide whether it is better to use Outlook or Gmail. And if you decide that neither tick the boxes, we have an even better solution for all your email needs – particularly when security is important to you!

One of the first deciding factors, particularly for free users, is your new email address that you are going to create: Do you want it to end in outlook.com or gmail.com? Alternatively, we’ve got a great third option in stock for you: tutamail.com. As a new email provider focusing on security and privacy, it’s highly likely that your preferred email address is still available at Tuta – while this is most likely not the case for mainstream services like Gmail and Outlook. Check here if your email address is still available!

1. Gmail in review
2. Outlook in review
3. Differences of Outlook vs Gmail
4. Gmail vs Outlook: Pricing and plans
5. What are the pros and cons of Gmail and Outlook?
6. Gmail vs Outlook privacy concerns
7. Which is better: Gmail or Outlook?
8. Tired of ads?

Gmail in Review

Google’s Gmail has been the go-to free email provider ever since it was released in 2004, and today it’s the most widely used email provider globally with more then 1.5 billion users. Since its release, it has been a top competitor in the email field and a key player, in terms of creating modern, new features and an email service that that’s user-friendly and intelligent.

Gmail is great for personal use and for businesses. For personal use, everyone can get a free Gmail account with 15 GB free storage, great organizational tools, and access to Gmail’s robust search function. For businesses, Google offers a paid subscription for Google Workspace with paid plans starting at 5.75 €/mth. If individual users need more features and storage space they can get a paid account for a Google One subscription, these plans start at 1.99 €/mth.

Google Workspace offers a range of applications like Google Drive, Google Calendar and Google Hangouts which all integrate and work effortlessly with Gmail. Google offers so many features and apps, it’s no surprise it’s a popular email provider for enterprises and individuals.

Outlook in Review

Microsoft owned Outlook is a top email competitor against Gmail, and provider to over 400 million active users around the world. Like Gmail, Outlook offers a free email service (often referred to as Outlook.com or Outlook on the Web) with 15 GB free storage for individual use.

And if you’re needing more, you can get a paid subscription to Microsoft Office 365 – this is similar to Google’s Workspace. A pro is that Outlook mail integrates seamlessly with other Microsoft services like OneDrive, Calendar and Teams. Purchased plans for Microsoft 365 start at 7.00 €/mth.

Differences of Outlook vs Gmail

Ease of use and interface design

Both Gmail and Outlook offer good interfaces, are intuitive and user-friendly, but each with their own tweaks and differences. Read on to see how Gmail’s and Outlook’s user experience compare – this will help you decide which free email provider is best for you and which to create an email address with.

Outlook’s left-hand navigation panel which displays categories, folders and some useful widgets makes the interface feel well laid out and organized, but at the same time it somehow all feels a bit outdated - specially comparing to Gmail. On the other hand, Gmail’s interface is super clean, simple and easy to navigate. Gmail’s design can be customized and Google has made use of recognizable icons and eliminated all unnecessary text. Gmail feels more modern, clean and easy to navigate.

How easy is it to use?

Gmail aced the intuitive design, so it’s super easy for new email users. One thing Gmail is known for, is its user-friendly and clean interface. This compares to Outlook which isn’t bad, but we found it a bit more difficult to navigate and figure out.

Is it customizable?

If you want to customize your mailbox, we’d recommend Outlook. Outlook has a good range of customization options, so that you can make it look and work perfectly for you. Microsoft lets you customize your home page theme, font size, and colour scheme among others.

On the other hand, Gmail doesn’t offer as many customization options – you can apply different preset themes to personalize the look, but this is less than what Outlook offers. Rather than needing to customize your mailbox, Gmail takes a more straightforward approach which allows for easy navigation of your inbox.

Mobile app features and usability

Gmail and Outlook both have great mobile apps for Android and iOS so you can easily send and receive emails on the move with convenience no matter if you are an Android user or if you have an iPhone. In terms of their mobile apps, each offers very similar features to the desktop versions.

User experience

Outlook has a range of advanced features which are great if you need them, but for many, especially for beginners, it could be overwhelming. While for some people these features may be unnecessary, others might benefit from Outlook’s advanced features like its filtering capabilities – this is specially useful when you need to manage emails in bulk. This compares to Gmail which focuses on user-friendly design that’s easy enough for beginners to navigate.

Search functions

Gmail is well known for its powerful search tools, and Google’s search algorithms make it effortless to find specific emails and attachments fast. Outlook, has a robust search feature but it’s not as quick and intuitive as Gmail’s search tool.

What about support?

If you get stuck when setting up your new email account, you would like to get support from the provider. Both Gmail and Outlook lock direct support behind a paywall, even then Gmail only offers support via email. Outlook offers support via email and also on the phone, which might be a deciding factors for some, particularly for business email users.

Features and functionality

You will find all essential functions you need with Gmail and Outlook , but the email services do differ in terms of their advanced features. For some users advanced features are not necessary, but if you are keen on boosting productivity, security and email management then these advanced features are what you need to prioritize and take a closer look at how they compare in Outlook and Gmail.

Collaboration

Outlook is integrated with Microsoft Teams, which allows you to collaborate, share files and join meetings via video chat. This is very similar to Gmail’s collaboration feature which allows you to work on documents in real time and at the same time with multiple people. Google’s collaboration feature also integrates with Google’s other tools like Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides making it really easy for people to collaborate, work together and share files from remote locations.

Productivity

Outlook has a range of super useful productivity features – users can manage and schedule appointments, tasks and notes all in the same interface. Another great feature is the integrated calendar and contact list. For users who prioritize productivity or employees in the workplace these features make scheduling appointments and managing meetings super convenient.

Gmail offers an integrated to-do list with reminders, an option to snooze emails, schedule send, and keyboard shortcuts which all save you time. With the Google apps menu, users can also navigate the Google Calendar and manage or meet with contacts in just a few clicks. Google’s Workspace also integrates super easily with Gmail, so all of Google’s tools are within reach of your email to help boost productivity.

Security

Both email providers have good security features like spam filtering, virus scanning, two-factor authentication, message encryption, data loss prevention and advanced threat protection. If you’re an enterprise, Outlook offers enterprise-level secure tools with specific paid enterprise plans which is plus if security is a priority.

Attachment options and storage

For the free email plan Gmail users get 15 GB of free storage for emails and attachments which is the same as Outlook’s free email plan where users also get 15 GB of free storage space – with both services you have the option to purchase more storage space.

Management and organization

One feature people love about Outlook is its rules and filters for incoming emails. With Outlook you can make rules and filters for emails so that as they arrive they are organized into folders prioritized based on importance. Creating rules for emails to be sent to their dedicated folders along with the advanced search capabilities means you can really organize your mailbox neatly to your liking – and avoid seeing any unnecessary mails. On the other hand, Gmail has label categories which are easy to use and take a more simple organization approach. One really useful organizational feature from Gmail is that they automatically categorize your mails into different tabs like ‘promotions’ or ‘social’ so that you don’t get spammed with promotional ad-emails in your primary mail box. In contrast to that, however, Google itself puts annoying ads into your Gmail client which is no surprise as this company is known for making money by showing its free users plenty of advertisements.

Automation and email templates

If you’re using Outlook for business or need pre-written messages for repetitive tasks then Outlook is your go-to. Outlook has more advanced templates that allow you to save pre-written messages, as well as scheduling of emails and more. Gmail offers automated responses which are okay if you’re out of office or want an automated quick reply.

Gmail vs Outlook: Pricing and plans

Pricing and plans for Personal use:

Both Gmail and Outlook offer free email accounts for users and each give you a good taste of what each paid suit entails. With both email providers, if you’d like to take advantage and use all their features and tools, you need to subscribe for a paid account. While Outlook has dedicated desktop apps for paying users to access their whole suite, Google still hasn’t had an official Gmail app release for desktop although you can add a shortcut to the Gmail web client to your desktop.

With Outlook’s free email, you get all the basic email features and 15 GB of free storage space when you create a new email address but you don’t get the more advanced features like calendar integration, email organization and contact management. Outlook mail is available on your web browser, whereas a paid subscription gets you access to the downloadable Microsoft 365 which has the full range of apps that integrate with Outlook mail.

If you decide to get a paid premium version of Microsoft 365, you gain access to the Outlook Desktop app and then you can take advantage of all the advanced features, collaboration tools, extra storage and added security features. A personal plan for Microsoft 365 currently costs 7.00 €/mth. and includes 1 TB of cloud storage space, multiple device log in and ad-free emails among other benefits.

When you create a free Gmail account for personal use which offers ample storage space of 15 GB, good organizational features and a powerful search function. This free 15 GB storage is shared across your Gmail, Google Drive and Google Photos. For many people, this free version is suitable for personal use. If you’re in need of more advanced email tools and features, you have the choice to get a Google One account, which has different plans like the Basic plan for 1.99 €/mth and includes 100 GB and access to more Google One features or the Premium Plan for 9.99 €/mth. which includes 2 TB storage and access to all Google One features.

Both email providers offer generous free email accounts which are good for everyday emails, if you’re in need of more storage space, or want to make use of each email providers advanced features, and tools then a paid subscription would be more suitable for your needs.

Gmail is the most used email provider with more than 1.8 billion users worldwide.

Gmail vs Outlook Business plans:

Deciding on Outlook vs Gmail for business, all depends on your business needs and the price you’re willing to pay. Again, like with the personal email options, each email service offers different features and tools which are great for productivity and can really help optimize your workflow depending on your regular tasks.

When it comes to Gmail for business, Google introduced Google Workspace which is basically the re-branded G Suite. Workspace suite is the professional version of a regular, free Google account and it is aimed at business use. Google Workspace is the collection of Google’s collaboration and productivity tools, products and software.

For companies with up to 300 Google Workspace users, there are different plans to choose from. The lowest Google Workspace plan for businesses is the Business Starter which starts at 5.75 €/mth per user or there’s the more premium Business Plus for 17.25 €/mth per user. If your company exceeds 300 Google Workspace users, you can get information from the Workspace sales team.

Microsoft 365 also has a good range of different paid plans to fit the needs and size of any business. The lowest business price is the Microsoft 365 Business Basic for 5.60 €/mth per user and the highest business plan, Business Premium comes in at 20.60 €/mth per user with access to Microsoft’s services and tools. For more in-depth information on each Microsoft 365 plan click here.

Over the years the number of Microsoft 365 Suite users have increased, reaching 400 million users in 2023.

What are the pros and cons of Gmail and Outlook?

There are many factors to consider when trying to decide which email provider is best for you to create free email account with – and knowing the differences in features and tools can be challenging since there are so many. To help you, we’ve put together a summary of the pros and cons of Gmail and Outlook.

In summary, Gmail only provides email support while Outlook offers phone support in addition to email. Both offer a lot of storage for free, but Gmail also has ample features for free while Outlook is more limited to make you choose a paid subscription. Gmail is more user-friendly whereas Outlook offers most customization options.

The pros of Gmail:

• User-friendly interface: Gmail is known for being user-friendly. Its layout and design is clean and intuitive.
• Free storage: Users get a free Gmail account with 15 GB free storage.
• Search feature: Gmail has a powerful search feature.
• Integration: Gmail integrates easily with all Google’s tools like: Google Drive, Google Calendar and Google Docs.
• Clever spam filtering: Gmail’s advanced spam filtering identifies and filters out any unwanted emails.
• Offline Access: Users can view and compose emails for sending them later without an internet connection.

The cons of Gmail:

• Lack of privacy: Gmail scans the content of your emails to spam you with targeted ads and possibly even to train its AI tool Bard.
• Advertising spam: Because you don’t need to pay for the service, Google monetizes its free service with ads. So the interface is spammed with ads that are intrusive and distracting.
• Expensive Paid Subscriptions: Gmail offers a free plan suitable for personal use, but if you want to get more features, a basic plan begins at 5.75 € per month. Google's pricing structures are a bit higher than competitors, especially as you scale up for enterprise-level usage, where costs can increase rapidly.

If you’re not convinced that Gmail is the correct email provider for you, particularly as you might be looking for a service free of any ads, check out how Gmail compares to Tuta Mail – the best Gmail alternative.

The Pros of Outlook:

• Free storage: Like with Gmail, Outlook users using a free email account, get all the basic email features and 15 GB of free storage.
• Integration with Microsoft Office Suite: Outlook integrates effortlessly with Microsoft applications like Word, Excel and PowerPoint making it easy to use and productivity orientated.
• Advanced filtering and organization settings: Outlook has useful settings for organizing emails, this includes rules, filters and creating customizable folders.
• Offline access: Outlook users can access their email, calendar and tasks when offline.
• Focus on business and enterprise: Outlook pays great attention to meeting the needs and ever-changing requirements for business and enterprise users with its advanced features, scalability and integration with Microsoft’s suite of business tools.

The cons of Outlook:

• Price: Outlooks is more expensive compared to Gmail’s paid plans when broken down. Additionally they don’t have as many plan offers compared to Gmail.
• Privacy: Like Google, Outlook collects user data, sells it and uses it for targeted ads.
• Ad Spam: With the free account, a major con is the large amount of advertising spam decorated around your mailbox. If you decide to go with Outlook, we’d definitely recommend using a private browser that supports ad-blockers.
• Distracting interface: For some users the interface is cluttered and too busy - especially with the amount of advertising, which can be distracting and overwhelming for new users.

Outlook does have great organizational features and tools but this comes with an expensive subscription fee along with a loss of privacy. There are many Outlook alternatives like Tuta Mail that offer a free email account that’s fully encrypted with zero tracking and zero ads!

Gmail vs Outlook privacy concerns

Gmail and Outlook are owned by the Silicon Valley big tech companies Alphabet and Microsoft which make huge revenue from data mining, and ad targeting. With both Gmail and Outlook you can get a free email account which has great functionality and it costs no monetary value but you do pay for it with privacy. So at the end of the day what seems free is in fact being paid for with your personal information and snooping about your private emails.

Both Gmail and Outlook had legal issues in Europe due to violations of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which led to concerns whether Outlook must be declared illegal for German schools, and Gmail was even banned from Danish schools.

In addition you should know that Gmail tracks everything you buy and Microsoft once had a severe database hack - an issue that should open your eyes and make you understand that any data stored in the cloud must always be stored encrypted.

Knowing all this should make you understand that privacy must be a top concern in this modern online world with all its risks and threats. Good news is: there are alternative private email providers like Tuta Mail that don’t skim on privacy or security – and you can also sign up for free for Tuta Mail.

Which is better: Gmail or Outlook?

Deciding if Gmail or Outlook is the best email service all comes down to your personal preference and needs. Outlook and Gmail both come with their list of pros and cons as mentioned above. In summary, Outlook and Gmail both offer a free email account with 15 GB of free storage and some different functions and tools.

Outlook has advanced search functions and great organization abilities but its interface is a little less user-friendly, cluttered and crowded comparing to Gmail. If you want to make the most of Outlook and its functions, getting a paid subscription to Microsoft 365 will allow you to download the desktop apps and your Outlook mail will integrate effortlessly with all the Microsoft tools and services.

Gmail is known for its user-friendly interface, which for many ranks better than Outlook’s interface. Gmail has great spam-filtering and advanced features that users with a free account can take full advantage of. If you want to use all of Google’s tools and features, and decide to get a Google Workspace account, it integrates well with Gmail. In addition, Google Workspace offers more paid plans, giving you a wider variety to choose from.

When asking yourself “Is it better to use Outlook or Gmail”, we can simply say either (as both have great free offerings) – or neither (as both are spamming you with targeted ads).

That’s where our privacy-first option comes in: Tuta Mail.

Tired of ads? Tuta Mail is the solution.

Maybe you’ve read this article, you know what Gmail and Outlook offer and you’re not convinced either is best for you… We don’t blame you. After all, Gmail and Outlook are full of ads and you’re giving away your privacy for a ‘free’ email account!

Luckily, we have a better alternative - Tuta Mail. Tuta Mail is best known for being privacy and security as well as its focus on open source. Tuta Mail is available on all platforms, has free desktop client for Linux, macOS and Windows as well as free mobile apps for Android and iOS. This makes it the perfect solution for those wanting privacy and convenience integrated into a user-friendly interface.

Unlike most email providers, with Tuta Mail, the entire mailbox is end-to-end encrypted – by default. Your calendar, address book, and emails are so secure that not even Tuta can read them or snoop about. When sending an email automatic encryption works on all mobile and desktop devices allowing you the freedom of privacy and convenience on your chosen device! With Tuta Mail you are given top privacy, security and free open source clients for all your devices – its part of Tuta’s philosophy.

Tuta is committed to sustainability! All user data is stored on Tuta’s owned secure servers based in Germany, fully GDPR-compliant, which are powered by 100% renewable energy.

So with Tuta Mail you get a free email provider with top privacy, security, zero tracking or ads, and green emails!

Get your name as an email address with Tuta Mail now.