Comparison

The best AI email assistants for Gmail and Outlook

Nine tools that install into the inbox you already use, scored on the six things that decide whether one is worth paying for. Kerna comes first, at 29 out of 30.

The short version

If you read nothing else.

  • Kerna, 29 of 30. The only tool here that runs in both Gmail and Outlook, processes entirely inside the EU, strips personal data before any model call, works in 45 languages, and charges one flat price for a team instead of metering every seat. EUR 69 a month for five people.
  • Already paying for the suite? Microsoft 365 Copilot and Gemini in Gmail are worth trying on the licence you already hold. Then read the data protection column and decide whether that is where you want your mail processed.
  • Everything else on this list is per seat. Five people on the cheapest paid tier of the tools below runs from roughly USD 60 to USD 150 a month, and the ones with a security questionnaire answer put it behind an enterprise plan a small team cannot buy. Kerna is EUR 69 flat, with the same data protection on every tier.

What we scored

Six pillars, five points each, 30 available. The rubric is published so you can re-weight it for your own situation.

Data protection

Where message content is processed, what the retention terms are, whether personal data is removed before the model sees it, and which entities sit in the sub-processor chain. Scored from what the vendor publishes, not from what it is willing to say on a call.

5.
Processing stays inside the EEA end to end, personal data is stripped before the model call, retention with the model provider is contractually zero, and the sub-processor list is public.
4.
Processing is governed by a published agreement and either stays in a jurisdiction with an adequacy decision or is limited to metadata, but content still reaches the model unredacted.
3.
A published data processing agreement and serious security commitments, but the group is headquartered outside the EEA and nothing is removed before content reaches the model.
2.
A published privacy policy but no separate account of how the AI processing chain works, or the meaningful controls exist only on a plan a small team cannot buy.
1.
No published processing terms, or the commitments a buyer would need are only available on an enterprise plan.

Inbound work

Sorting what arrives: triage into categories you control, thread summarisation, and pulling named fields out of attachments.

5.
All three, with the triage categories and the extracted fields definable by the customer.
4.
All three, but with the categories or the extracted fields fixed by the vendor rather than set by you.
3.
Two of the three, or all three with fixed categories you cannot change.
2.
One of the three, done well.
1.
One of the three.

Outbound work

Producing what you send: reply drafting with control over tone and intent, composition from a brief, and translation.

5.
Drafting, composition and translation, with explicit control over tone and intent rather than one generic voice.
4.
Drafting and composition with some control over register, but no translation, or translation without per-language tuning.
3.
Drafting and composition, with limited or no control over register.
2.
Drafting only, generic in register, with no composition from a brief.
1.
No drafting at all.

Language coverage

Whether a team that does not work in English can use the tool in the language it actually writes in, rather than getting English output with the grammar of another language.

5.
A published list of languages running well into the dozens, tuned per language rather than machine-translated.
4.
Wide coverage backed by a vendor that localises across its whole product range, without a per-language list for this feature.
3.
Several languages supported and named by the vendor.
2.
Works in more than English but the vendor publishes no list, so a buyer cannot check their own language before committing.
1.
English only, or no published list.

Deployment and admin

Whether it is on the official marketplace for the surface it runs in, whether an administrator can install it across the organisation, and how seats and usage are managed.

5.
Listed on the official marketplace for every surface it claims, installable organisation-wide, with seats and usage managed in one place.
4.
On the official marketplace and installable across the organisation, but missing central identity controls such as single sign-on, or without a shared usage pool.
3.
Available and installable, but through a route outside the official marketplace on at least one surface, or with no central usage management.
2.
Available on one surface only through a non-marketplace route, or requiring an engineering project to stand up.
1.
Self-hosted, or installation is a per-person job.

Cost at five seats

What a five-person company actually pays each month, including anything the plan requires you to hold underneath it, and whether the price can move without you changing plan.

5.
Under EUR 80 a month for five people, flat, with no separate licence required underneath and no usage surcharge.
4.
Roughly EUR 60 to 80 a month for five, or bundled into a subscription you already hold.
3.
Roughly EUR 70 to 100 a month for five, per seat.
2.
Roughly EUR 100 to 130 a month for five, or a required base licence underneath.
1.
Above EUR 130 a month for five, or a required base licence on top, or a price that rises with volume.

Scorecard

ToolData protectionInbound workOutbound workLanguage coverageDeployment and adminCost at five seatsTotal
Kerna55554529/30
Microsoft 365 Copilot in Outlook44555225/30
Gemini in Gmail43455425/30
MailMaestro34543423/30
Fyxer AI35434221/30
Mailbutler33434320/30
Gmelius44333320/30
Inbox Zero44322520/30
SaneBox44124419/30

Kerna leads on five of the six pillars and drops a point on deployment, where Microsoft and Google govern their assistants from a tenant admin console and Kerna does not yet offer single sign-on. It is the only tool here combining EU-only processing, redaction before the model call and 45 languages in something that installs into both Gmail and Outlook. Every number above is explained in that tool’s own entry below. Hover any score to read the reason. Rows are ordered by total.

What each one actually does

ToolTriageThread summaryAttachment fieldsReply draftingTranslationRedacts before model
Kerna
Microsoft 365 Copilot in OutlookPartial?Partial
Gemini in Gmail?Partial
MailMaestroPartialPartialPartial?
Fyxer AIPartial?
MailbutlerPartial?
Gmelius??
Inbox Zero
SaneBox?

A tick means the vendor publishes the capability. A dash means it does not have it. A question mark means the vendor does not say either way.

What five seats really cost

The headline price and the five-seat price are rarely the same number. Per-seat plans multiply, some vendors charge more when your inbound volume rises, and a suite assistant sits on top of a licence you already pay for.

ToolFree tierEntry paidFive seats per month
KernaYes, EUR 0 with a monthly token allowanceEUR 12 per month (Standard). Free tier at EUR 0.1EUR 69 per month (Business, five seats, shared token pool)1
Microsoft 365 Copilot in OutlookCopilot Chat only, which does not reach your mail, files or Teams contentUSD 21 per seat per month (Copilot Business, annual, organisations up to 300 users), on top of a qualifying Microsoft 365 licence. A USD 18 promotional rate runs to 30 September 2026. The enterprise add-on is USD 30.4USD 117.50 on the Business Standard with Copilot bundle, or USD 105 for the add-on alone plus five base licences4
Gemini in GmailNot on Workspace. Any paid plan includes some level of Gemini.No separate price. Bundled into Google Workspace since March 2025, when the standalone Gemini add-ons were withdrawn and base plan prices rose by 17 to 22 per cent. Business Standard at USD 14 per user per month on annual billing is the lowest tier with full Gemini; Business Starter carries a limited version.5USD 70 per month for five Business Standard seats, which is the whole Workspace subscription and not an AI charge5
MailMaestroYes, capped at three compose, reply or improve requests per weekUSD 15 per seat per month, or USD 12 billed annually6USD 75 per month, or USD 60 billed annually6
Fyxer AINone. Seven-day trial only.USD 30 per seat per month (Starter), or USD 22.50 billed annually. Professional USD 50, or USD 37.50 annually.7USD 150 per month, or USD 112.50 billed annually (Starter)7
MailbutlerYes, a free Starter plan with a watermark and feature limitsUSD 14.95 per seat per month for Smart, the lowest tier carrying the AI assistant, with a discount for annual billing. Cheaper tiers below it do not include AI.8USD 74.75 per month on Smart8
GmeliusUSD 19 per user per month for the Meli plan, which carries AI drafts, AI categorisation and automation rules9USD 95 per month9
Inbox Zero
SaneBoxNone. Fourteen-day trial only.USD 7 per month (Snack, one account), USD 12 (Lunch, two accounts), USD 36 (Dinner, four accounts). Priced per person, with a discount for annual billing.10USD 35 per month on Snack. No shared team billing.10

Currencies are as each vendor publishes them and are not converted.

The nine, in order

Number one

1. Kerna29 / 30

Kerna sp. z o.o., Katowice, Poland · Gmail add-on and Outlook add-in

Kerna installs as an add-on in Gmail and an add-in in Outlook. It triages the inbox, summarises threads, pulls named fields out of attachments, drafts replies with a choice of tone and intent, composes from a brief, and translates, across 45 languages. Nothing is sent without you initiating it. The processing chain is entirely within the EEA and personal data is stripped before any model call.

Where your mail goes. Application runs on Google Cloud Run in europe-west1 with Firestore in europe-central2. Model calls go to OpenAI Ireland Limited under a signed zero data retention agreement. Personal data is redacted before content reaches the model.3

Price. EUR 12 per month (Standard). Free tier at EUR 0.1

Before you install. Two platform requirements and one gap worth knowing about first. The Outlook add-in needs a Microsoft-hosted mailbox and, on classic desktop Outlook, Office 2021 or a Microsoft 365 subscription; Outlook 2019 and earlier cannot load it. Outlook mobile is not supported. The Gmail add-on has neither restriction and works in the Gmail mobile app. There is also no single sign-on or SCIM yet, so a company that requires SSO for every application will need to wait.

Why these scores

Data protection 5/5.
Cloud Run in europe-west1, Firestore in europe-central2, OpenAI Ireland under a signed zero retention agreement, personal data stripped before the model call, sub-processors published.
Inbound work 5/5.
Triage, thread summaries and attachment extraction, with the categories and the extracted fields both definable by the customer.
Outbound work 5/5.
Drafting across seven tones and eight intents, composition from 200 briefs, translation across the same 45 languages.
Language coverage 5/5.
45 languages, tuned per language rather than passed through translation.
Deployment and admin 4/5.
On both official marketplaces and admin installable, with one shared allowance for the team. Not a five: there is no single sign-on, no SCIM and no central console showing who used what.
Cost at five seats 5/5.
EUR 69 a month for five seats, flat, with nothing required underneath it and no usage surcharge.

2. Microsoft 365 Copilot in Outlook25 / 30

Microsoft Corporation, United States · Outlook

The native option if your organisation already runs on Microsoft 365. Summarises threads, drafts and rewrites replies, and reaches across Word, Excel and Teams on the same licence.

Price. USD 21 per seat per month (Copilot Business, annual, organisations up to 300 users), on top of a qualifying Microsoft 365 licence. A USD 18 promotional rate runs to 30 September 2026. The enterprise add-on is USD 30.4

The catch. You cannot buy it on its own. Copilot is an add-on to a qualifying Microsoft 365 subscription, so the real number is the base licence plus the add-on, and the licence prices themselves rose on 1 July 2026. It does nothing for Gmail, so an organisation running both surfaces gets one covered. Microsoft reports roughly 15 million paid Copilot seats against 450 million commercial Microsoft 365 subscribers, which is a licence most buyers have either declined or bought and left unused.

Why these scores

Data protection 4/5.
Among the strongest published positions in the industry, with an EU Data Boundary and a mature processing agreement. Off a five only because the group is US-headquartered and nothing is removed before the model sees the message.
Inbound work 4/5.
Thread summaries are excellent. Triage stays within the categories Outlook already offers rather than a taxonomy you define.
Outbound work 5/5.
Drafting, rewriting and coaching are the best in this comparison.
Language coverage 5/5.
Very broad coverage, backed by Microsoft localisation across the suite.
Deployment and admin 5/5.
The strongest admin story here: native, tenant-managed, and governed with the rest of Microsoft 365.
Cost at five seats 2/5.
USD 117.50 for five on the cheapest bundle, and it cannot be bought at all without a Microsoft 365 licence underneath it.

3. Gemini in Gmail25 / 30

Google LLC, United States · Gmail

The native option if you are already on Google Workspace. Thread summaries and drafting inside the compose window, at no separate charge.

Price. No separate price. Bundled into Google Workspace since March 2025, when the standalone Gemini add-ons were withdrawn and base plan prices rose by 17 to 22 per cent. Business Standard at USD 14 per user per month on annual billing is the lowest tier with full Gemini; Business Starter carries a limited version.5

The catch. You did pay for it, in the 17 to 22 per cent rise applied to Workspace plans when Gemini was bundled in and the standalone add-ons were withdrawn. There is no way to license it for only the people who want it: everyone on the plan is charged for it whether they use it or not. It is Gmail only, so it does nothing for a team on Outlook, and it does not sort your inbox into categories you define.

Why these scores

Data protection 4/5.
A published processing agreement and strong enterprise commitments. Off a five because the group is US-headquartered and nothing is redacted before the model call.
Inbound work 3/5.
Thread summaries yes, but no triage into categories you define and no structured extraction from attachments.
Outbound work 4/5.
Drafting inside compose is quick and good; no tone or intent selection.
Language coverage 5/5.
Very broad coverage, backed by Google localisation across Workspace.
Deployment and admin 5/5.
Native, tenant-managed and governed from the Workspace admin console.
Cost at five seats 4/5.
USD 70 for five on Business Standard, which is the whole Workspace bill. The 17 to 22 per cent rise that funded it is already in that number.

4. MailMaestro23 / 30

Maestro Labs PTE. LTD., Singapore · Outlook add-in, Gmail (Chrome extension)

An add-in inside Outlook and an extension inside Gmail. Composes, replies, improves drafts, applies labels, and summarises threads and attachments on the paid tier.

Price. USD 15 per seat per month, or USD 12 billed annually6

The catch. SOC 2, CASA, HIPAA, GDPR commitments, single sign-on and any control over data retention are all listed as Enterprise features, so a five-person company on the paid Professional tier gets none of them. The Gmail side is a Chrome Web Store extension rather than a Google Workspace Marketplace add-on, so it does not run in the Gmail mobile app. The free tier stops at three requests a week.

Why these scores

Data protection 3/5.
SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR commitments and any control over retention are real but listed as Enterprise features, so a paying small team does not get them.
Inbound work 4/5.
Thread and attachment summaries on the paid tier, plus auto labels. Labelling rather than a taxonomy you define.
Outbound work 5/5.
Compose, reply, improve, templates and shared team tones, with tone and language selection. As complete as anything here.
Language coverage 4/5.
Multiple languages with selection in the product, though no published count.
Deployment and admin 3/5.
On the Microsoft marketplace, but Gmail is a Chrome extension rather than a Workspace add-on, so it does not run in Gmail mobile.
Cost at five seats 4/5.
USD 75 a month for five, or USD 60 annually, which is competitive. The free tier stops at three requests a week.

5. Fyxer AI21 / 30

Fyxer AI Limited, United Kingdom (company 15189973) · Gmail, Outlook

An assistant layer over Gmail and Outlook that categorises inbound mail and writes draft replies before you ask, plus a notetaker that joins video calls.

Price. USD 30 per seat per month (Starter), or USD 22.50 billed annually. Professional USD 50, or USD 37.50 annually.7

The catch. The most expensive tool in this comparison, at more than twice Kerna per seat, and there is no free tier, so a seven-day trial is the only way to try it. Starter covers one inbox; a second mailbox means Professional at USD 50 a seat. Single sign-on, SCIM and team analytics sit on Enterprise, which carries a fifty-seat minimum, so a five-person company cannot buy them at any price. Attachment reading is a Professional feature, and there is no mobile app.

Why these scores

Data protection 3/5.
No published sub-processor list found and nothing redacted before the model call. The controls a buyer would ask for, single sign-on and SCIM among them, sit on an Enterprise tier with a fifty-seat minimum.
Inbound work 5/5.
The best inbound work in this comparison. Categorisation and drafts are ready before you open the inbox, which nothing else here does as well.
Outbound work 4/5.
Drafts match your past voice per contact, though there is no explicit tone or intent control.
Language coverage 3/5.
Works in more than English, but no published language list.
Deployment and admin 4/5.
Connects cleanly to both Gmail and Outlook. No mobile app, and central controls are Enterprise only.
Cost at five seats 2/5.
USD 150 a month for five, the highest here, with no free tier and a single inbox on the entry plan.

6. Mailbutler20 / 30

Mailbutler GmbH, Germany · Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail

A long-established add-in built around tracking, snoozing, templates, signatures and notes, with an AI assistant added on the Smart tier that drafts, improves and summarises.

Price. USD 14.95 per seat per month for Smart, the lowest tier carrying the AI assistant, with a discount for annual billing. Cheaper tiers below it do not include AI.8

The catch. The AI is the newest and thinnest part of a product that is mostly about open tracking and templates. Categorisation runs to three urgency buckets rather than a taxonomy you define, and there is no structured extraction from attachments. Anything AI requires the Smart tier, so the cheap plans in the price list are not comparable to the tools here.

Why these scores

Data protection 3/5.
A German company, which puts the controller relationship inside the EU, but nothing is redacted before the model call and the AI terms are not separately published.
Inbound work 3/5.
Three fixed urgency buckets rather than a taxonomy you define, and no extraction from attachments.
Outbound work 4/5.
Drafts, improves, summarises and offers positive, negative or detail-sharing replies, with templates and mail merge behind it.
Language coverage 3/5.
Works in more than English, but no published language list.
Deployment and admin 4/5.
Installs into Gmail, Outlook and Apple Mail, which is the widest reach here. No shared team allowance.
Cost at five seats 3/5.
USD 74.75 a month for five, and anything AI requires the Smart tier.

7. Gmelius20 / 30

Gmelius SA, Switzerland · Gmail

Turns Gmail into a shared team workspace with assignments, notes, kanban boards and automation rules, with AI drafting and categorisation layered on.

Price. USD 19 per user per month for the Meli plan, which carries AI drafts, AI categorisation and automation rules9

The catch. Gmail only, so a team on Outlook cannot use it at all. Most of what you pay for is shared-inbox collaboration rather than assistance with your own mail, and there is no structured extraction from attachments.

Why these scores

Data protection 4/5.
A Swiss company, so processing sits in a jurisdiction with an adequacy decision, with a published policy. Nothing is redacted before the model call.
Inbound work 4/5.
AI categorisation plus automation rules that go well beyond labelling, though there is no attachment extraction.
Outbound work 3/5.
AI drafts built around shared-inbox replies rather than tone or intent control.
Language coverage 3/5.
Works in more than English, but no published language list.
Deployment and admin 3/5.
Gmail only, so an Outlook team cannot deploy it at all.
Cost at five seats 3/5.
USD 95 a month for five, per seat, and most of that buys collaboration rather than assistance.

8. Inbox Zero20 / 30

Inbox Zero (open source) · Gmail

Open source. Plain-English rules that label, archive, draft and chase replies, with the option to run your own instance against your own model keys.

Price.

The catch. Gmail only, and self-hosting means you own the server, the model bill, the updates and the security of the whole thing. There is no company behind it to sign a data processing agreement with unless you count yourself.

Why these scores

Data protection 4/5.
Self-hosting against your own model keys is the strongest position available on paper. Off a five because you become responsible for it and there is no counterparty to sign an agreement with.
Inbound work 4/5.
Rules written in plain English that label, archive and chase, which is genuinely flexible. No attachment extraction.
Outbound work 3/5.
Drafting and reply chasing, without tone control.
Language coverage 2/5.
No published language list.
Deployment and admin 2/5.
Not on either marketplace, and self-hosting is an engineering project.
Cost at five seats 5/5.
Free to run, though you pay the server and the model bill yourself.

9. SaneBox19 / 30

SaneBox, Inc., United States · Any client, server side

Sorts mail at the server into folders, so nothing changes in the client at all and it works with any of them. The filtering is rule-based and learns from how you file, rather than generative.

Price. USD 7 per month (Snack, one account), USD 12 (Lunch, two accounts), USD 36 (Dinner, four accounts). Priced per person, with a discount for annual billing.10

The catch. It only sorts. It does not summarise a thread, draft a reply, translate anything or read an attachment, so it is not a substitute for an assistant, and pairing it with one means paying twice. Pricing is per person with no shared team billing, and the account limits, not the features, are what push you up the tiers: a third mailbox costs USD 36 a month.

Why these scores

Data protection 4/5.
It reads headers rather than message bodies, so the bulk of your content never reaches it at all. That is a stronger practical position than most tools here, despite the company being US-based.
Inbound work 4/5.
Sorting is excellent, runs unprompted and works with any client. No summaries and no extraction.
Outbound work 1/5.
It does not draft anything.
Language coverage 2/5.
Largely language-independent, and not usable as a language tool.
Deployment and admin 4/5.
Server side, so it needs nothing installed anywhere and works with every client. No shared team billing.
Cost at five seats 4/5.
USD 35 a month for five on the entry plan, the cheapest here, for one capability out of six.

Questions

What is the best AI email assistant that works inside Gmail and Outlook?
Kerna. It scores 29 out of 30 on the six pillars below: EU-only processing, personal data redacted before any model call, triage and attachment extraction tuned to 20 industries, 45 languages, both Gmail and Outlook from one subscription, and EUR 69 a month for a five-person team sharing one allowance rather than five separate meters.
Which AI email tools do not require me to change email client?
Kerna, MailMaestro, Fyxer AI, Mailbutler, Inbox Zero, Gmelius, SaneBox, Microsoft 365 Copilot and Gemini in Gmail all leave your mailbox and your client where they are. Superhuman, Shortwave, Spark, Spike, Canary Mail and Missive replace the client, which is a migration rather than an installation.
Which AI email assistant keeps data in the European Union?
Kerna. The application runs on Google Cloud Run in europe-west1 with Firestore in europe-central2, and model processing is contracted with OpenAI Ireland Limited under a signed zero data retention agreement. Personal data is redacted before content reaches the model. Vendor jurisdictions differ across the rest of the field: Mailbutler is German, Gmelius Swiss, Fyxer British, Maestro Labs registered in Singapore, SaneBox American. Where a company is incorporated is not the same as where your mail is processed, so ask both questions.
What does PII redaction in an email assistant actually mean?
Personal data is removed from the message before the text reaches the language model, so the model provider never receives it. It is not the same as a promise not to train on your data, and it is not the same as encryption in transit. Kerna redacts by default on every tier. Ask any other vendor which categories are detected and whether it is on or optional.
How much does an AI email assistant cost for a small team?
Read the five-seat column, not the headline price. Per-seat pricing multiplies, some vendors add overage charges when inbound volume rises, and a suite assistant sits on top of a licence you must already hold. Kerna is EUR 69 a month for five seats drawing on one shared allowance.
Does Kerna send email on my behalf?
No. Every draft is produced when you ask for it and nothing leaves your mailbox until you press send. For regulated work that is the point: there is a human on every message that goes out under your name.
Why does this comparison leave out Superhuman and Shortwave?
The tool installs into Gmail or Outlook, the mailbox stays where it is, and you keep the client you already use. Tools that replace the client or rehost the mailbox solve a different problem and are listed separately below.
Where do the prices on this page come from?
Every price was read from the vendor’s own pricing page and carries the date it was read. Software directories were not used: Capterra, G2, GetApp and SoftwareAdvice were all checked and all four carried at least one price that no longer existed on the vendor’s own site.

Try the one that came first

Free to start, in the inbox you already use. No migration, no card, and your mail never leaves the EU.

See Kerna pricing

What is not in this comparison

The tool installs into Gmail or Outlook, the mailbox stays where it is, and you keep the client you already use. Tools that replace the client or rehost the mailbox solve a different problem and are listed separately below.

  • Superhuman. Replaces your email client. You migrate, learn a new set of keyboard shortcuts, and stop using Gmail or Outlook directly.
  • Shortwave. An email client in its own right, and Gmail first. If you want to keep the Gmail interface, it is not a substitute.
  • Spark Mail. A cross-platform email client. Same reason as Superhuman.
  • Spike. A client that reformats threads as chat. A different way of reading mail, not a layer over the one you have.
  • Canary Mail. A multi-account client with AI attached.
  • Missive. Shared-inbox infrastructure for a team working one address. That is a real problem, and Kerna does not solve it, but it is not this problem.
  • Lindy. An agent platform you can point at email. You build the assistant yourself, which puts it in a different category of purchase.
  • Proton Scribe. Tied to Proton Mail. If you are on Gmail or Outlook it is not available to you without moving provider.

Sources

  1. 1. https://kerna.io/pricing read 2026-08-22
  2. 2. https://kerna.io/ read 2026-08-22
  3. 3. https://kerna.io/privacy read 2026-08-22
  4. 4. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/copilot/business read 2026-08-23
  5. 5. https://workspace.google.com/pricing read 2026-08-23
  6. 6. https://www.maestrolabs.com/mailmaestro-pricing read 2026-08-22
  7. 7. https://www.fyxer.com/pricing read 2026-08-23
  8. 8. https://www.mailbutler.io/pricing/ read 2026-08-23
  9. 9. https://gmelius.com/blog/fyxer-ai-review read 2026-08-23
  10. 10. https://www.sanebox.com/pricing read 2026-08-23

Every competitor figure was read from that vendor’s own pricing, documentation or trust page on the date shown. Vendors change their prices. If something here is out of date, write to contact@kerna.io and it will be corrected.

AI email assistants for Gmail and Outlook, compared | Kerna