9 Best Cheap Email Hosting Providers ($6 or Less a Month)
Elizabeth Kraus has more than a decade of first-hand experience building and growing a boutique digital marketing agency and double that in small and mid-size business marketing management. She provides expert answers to marketing questions related to branding, content marketing, web development, email, social media, and SEO.
This article is part of a larger series on Business Email.
At $6 a month or less, the best cheap email hosting providers are reliable, secure, and add real value for small businesses. In fact, some of the cheapest email hosting services include email forwarding, free domains, office software, video conferencing and chat tools, and advanced features to save you time and money. Keep reading to find out who made our list and why.
- Best cheap email hosting overall: Hostinger
- Best email and office suite for collaborative teams: Google Workspace
- Most advanced business email features: Microsoft 365
- Cheapest email and domain hosting: IONOS
- Best all-in-one website, domain, and email solution: Bluehost
- Best free email hosting provider: Zoho Mail
- Best for unlimited email addresses: DreamHost
- Most secure cheap email hosting: Proton Mail
- Best cheap email hosting for small teams: Scala Hosting
Best Cheap Email Hosting Providers at a Glance
Provider | Starting Cost per Month | Expert Score Out of 5 | Free Domain | Mobile App | Email Aliases | Learn More |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | $1.49 | 4.9 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
 | $6 | 4.7 | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | |
 | $6 | 4.7 | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | |
 | $1 | 4.6 | ✓ | ✕ | ✓ | |
 | $2.95 | 4.5 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
 | Free | 4.5 | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | |
 | $2.95 | 4.4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
 | $3.99 | 4.4 | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | |
 | $4.95 | 4.3 | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
When comparing plan pricing, watch the fine print. The pricing above reflects the monthly cost with a 12-month, annually billed plan. Bluehost and DreamHost’s rates increase after the first year, whereas Hostinger and Scala Hosting offer bigger savings if you opt for a 24-month or longer contract.
Hostinger: Best Cheap Email Hosting Provider for Small Business
Overall Score:
4.9 / 5
Pros
- Standalone Titan email hosting from $1.49 with annual billing
- Web hosting and site builder plans with up to 100 email addresses from $2.99/month
- Highly rated mobile app—check email anytime, anywhere
Cons
- No free plan, unlike Zoho Mail
- IONOS is cheaper for solopreneurs
- Standalone email plans don’t include a domain and SSL* (unlike IONOS)
- Any small business that needs cheap email hosting from a highly rated and reliable provider
- Companies looking to build brand presence and save money with an all-in-one email, domain, and site builder (or hosting) plan
- Distributed teams and on-the-go professionals wanting cheap email with a mobile app
Hostinger offerings are inherently affordable, but they aren’t the cheapest. If you need a completely free option, you can create up to five free email addresses on Zoho Mail, which also comes with a mobile app and plans you can scale with. Alternatively, IONOS email hosting costs $12 annually and comes with a free domain and SSL, making it the absolute cheapest email hosting solution for small businesses.
While Hostinger is better known as a web hosting company, it scored the highest against our criteria for the best cheap email hosting services. In fact, it ticked nearly all the boxes.
Hostinger offers affordable business email hosting in a variety of options. Get standalone Titan email hosting for as low as 99 cents per month with a 48-month contract, or get the Cadillac of standalone plans under $3 a month with a whopping 50GB of email storage, email aliases, data encryption, and more. You have the option to pay monthly or 1, 2, or 4 years at a time.
If you need reliable email hosting bundled with website building tools, Hostinger has you covered. Though your costs will increase on renewal, you can get a free domain, SSL, and unlimited email (and build multiple websites) in one plan for less than $3 a month for the first 12 months with annual billing, with only a modest increase to $8.99 a month on renewal.
Hostinger’s web hosting plans come with a no-code site builder that recently made our list of the best website builders for small businesses. It’s a thoughtfully designed and intuitive all-in-one website builder, with features like artificial intelligence (AI) for writing content Messenger and WhatsApp integrations.
Standalone email hosting with Hostinger is Titan Mail. The cheapest option is Business Email. It comes with 10GB of storage, a calendar, and contacts. The Enterprise Email solution costs only nominally more but with a slew of additional functionality and storage. Both plans make doing business easier with features like templates and read receipts, and boost security with two-factor authentication, advanced anti-spam and virus protection, and data encryption.
How Much Hostinger Email Hosting Costs
The tabs below include an overview of Hostinger email hosting options. Once you know which plan might be best for your business, head over to Hostinger for more details about your chosen plan.
We’re impressed with the level of value that Hostinger has built into its cheap email and web-with-email hosting plans. Whether you are just looking for business email or you want a complete online brand-building solution, you can’t go wrong.
Google Workspace: Best Email Hosting for Collaborative Teams
Overall Score:
4.7 / 5
Pros
- From $6 per month
- From 30GB to 5TB of storage
- Real-time team collaboration across office software (Docs, Sheets, Slides) and communications (video and chat)
- Extensive integrations
- Send money through Gmail using Google Pay
- Auto language translation
- Alias emails
- No long-term commitment
- 14-day free trial
Cons
- No free domain name, unlike IONOS or DreamHost
- No multi-user plans
- Business email features aren’t as advanced as its top rival (Microsoft 365)
- Startups and small businesses that want to save money by getting office and communications apps in cheap email hosting plans
- Distributed and remote workforces that need secure, reliable collaboration tools
- Those who want to integrate other business software with email apps to streamline workflows
- Freelancers looking for the convenience of getting paid through email
- Companies doing business internationally that want automatic translation features baked in
While there’s no question as to the level of value included for email hosting with Google Workspace, it’s not a cheap multi-user solution. DreamHost allows unlimited email addresses in cheap shared hosting plans, as does Hostinger. To use Google Workspace for email hosting, you’ll also have to buy a domain, but you can get your domain free if you opt for hosting through IONOS, Bluehost, or DreamHost.
Google, Microsoft, and Zoho Mail all offer plans that include office and communications apps in addition to email hosting. However, Google Workspace (and Gmail) and Microsoft 365 (and Outlook) are the two most popular worldwide. Learn what sets each one apart in our article comparing Gmail vs Outlook email head to head.
Google Workspace is an industry-leading email and business software provider. Its Gmail business email hosting package is extremely intuitive, packed with added value, and affordably priced, starting at $6 per user, per month. Gmail is the most popular business email software in the United States, which is just one of the reasons Gmail made our list of the best email apps for small businesses.
With an uncluttered interface, straightforward navigation, and built-in collaboration tools, Gmail business email setup and customization are simple. This, along with the inclusion of Google’s productivity suite, makes Google Workspace an ideal email and collaboration solution for non-tech-savvy businesses that don’t want to spend much time on email setup or maintenance.
Notably, collaborative teams can work on documents, spreadsheets, and slides at the same time. In addition, users can communicate instantly via video conferencing or chat with teammates, prospects, and customers right from the Gmail interface. You can also integrate it with messaging apps like Slack, WhatsApp, and Messenger to streamline communication even more.
Learn more about the business email features you’ll get with Google Workspace in our list of Gmail tips and tricks.
How Much Google Workspace Email Hosting Costs
Google Workspace’s plans all come with Gmail business email, and all Gmail features come with each plan. Learn more about what else is included in the tabs below.
For teams that work collaboratively, sales-oriented companies that want a full featured communications suite, and businesses with distributed workforces, we recommend Google Workspace. With cheap plans starting from $6 a month and no long-term contracts, there’s no risk in seeing if it’s the best email host for your small business.
Microsoft 365: Most Advanced Business Email Features
Overall Score:
4.7 / 5
Pros
- Cheap plans from $6 for a full suite of office and communications software
- Email workflow automations and advanced email handling rules
- Thousands of integrations
- Launch tasks, meetings, new contacts, and more from the interface
- 50GB of inbox storage per user (plus 1TB of OneDrive storage for files)
- Advanced security
- 30-day free trial
Cons
- Some advanced features require desktop apps, which costs more
- No free domain with any plan
- No multi-user plans
- Businesses that want the advanced business email tools, features, and automations that comes in Outlook with Microsoft 365 plans
- Companies looking for email hosting with business-class security to protect users, data, and files
- Teams wanting email solutions with integrated communications tools (e.g., video conferencing and chat)
- Sales teams wanting integrated appointment booking with email
- Teams collaborating in real time on documents, presentations, and spreadsheets, and wanting real-time collaboration
- Those working with large files or lots of emails in need of a large storage limit
- Businesses with administrative staff who want the ability to manage other users inboxes and calendars
Microsoft 365 (and Outlook) provides a comprehensive and secure hosting option with tons of features and tools for business email. However, you’ll have to get a domain separately, and unlike Google Workspace, you’ll have to commit for a year at a time (though your plan will be billed monthly). It doesn’t allow multiple users in the same plan, unlike DreamHost, Bluehost, and Hostinger.
There are many benefits to using Microsoft 365 and Outlook business email. It offers advanced security, integrates the collaboration, chat, and video conferencing features of Microsoft Teams, and can automate tasks and workflows. For example, when a new email arrives, it could serve as a trigger that starts an automated workflow by creating a task, assigning a date for follow-up, or being automatically forwarded to everyone on a team.
Regarding advanced features, no other email software comes close to what you can do with Outlook via Microsoft 365 business plans. You can automate email management and handling with multi-layered, complex rules. Additionally, Microsoft 365 Exchange-based business plans have built-in appointment booking tools and allow users to manage the calendars and inboxes of other users.
For example, an administrative support professional can manage email and scheduling for a superior, or even a whole team, like a sales or customer service department. Outlook can also be used to manage corporate resources, like conference room bookings. Want to know more about what you can do in Outlook? See our list of key Outlook features for small business users.
Like Google, Microsoft 365 plans include Outlook email hosting as well as a full suite of office software. Among these are Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams (video conferencing and chat), and Microsoft Bookings. Read our comparison of Google Workspace vs Microsoft 365 to compare the office suites.
How Much Microsoft 365 Email Hosting Costs
Microsoft 365 will arguably provide the most bang for your buck, given the advanced email and office software included. Keep in mind that you’ll have to purchase a domain separately, at an additional $10 to $20 per year. Learn what comes in the cheapest plan as well as what features might require an upgrade in the tabs below.
While it comes with advanced features not matched by other providers, Outlook also makes it easy for you to organize emails. Its interface is still fairly intuitive and easy to navigate. You can even configure Outlook to create rules for each incoming email so that it can be automatically sorted into a folder you create for each message category. Take advantage of the 30-day free trial to see if it’s the best email hosting provider for your business needs.
IONOS: Cheapest Email Hosting Provider (+ Free Domain)
Overall Score:
4.6 / 5
Pros
- Ultra-cheap—from $1 per month
- Advanced security and encryption for $5
- Domain included free
- Live customer support 24/7
- 2GB-50GB expandable storage
- Cheap multi-user plans for 2-10 users
- Email forwarding aliases
- Email and domain migration services
- Full-featured browser-based app
- Domain privacy included free
- Also offers website builder and hosting plans with a free domain and email account for $1/month
Cons
- Bluehost and DreamHost are cheaper for multiple email accounts—but only the first year
- Only 2GB of storage in base plan—less than free email with Zoho
- Few sharing features for teams
- No dedicated mobile app (but easy to add to mobile email clients)
- No month-to-month payment options
- Budget-conscious businesses that need a domain and email as cheap as possible
- Light email users who don’t need a ton of storage
- Cheapest business email hosting with encryption ($5 per month Business plan) for companies needing high email security
- Affordable business email hosting with advanced virus and spam protection
- Startups and freelancers looking for inexpensive, all-in-one solutions that bundle domain, email, and web hosting or site builder
IONOS plans start at $1 per month for 2GB of storage (about 10,000 emails) and a high maximum attachment size of 100MB. However, given the comparatively low storage included, those sending lots of emails might want to use Zoho Mail or upgrade to the Business plan.
There are no plans with productivity software or video conferencing. For these, consider buying a domain through IONOS ($1 the first year) and get a Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 plan to get the productivity, collaboration, and communication software your small business needs.
Web hosting company IONOS offers affordable email hosting with a free domain name and SSL. In fact, it’s the only provider here to offer a dedicated, standalone email hosting plan that comes with a free domain—let alone at such a low cost.
Its web-based interface is intuitive and fairly robust, but you can also connect your email account to top email apps easily using IMAP and SMTP or POP. Alternatively, it’s also easy to add other email addresses to your IONOS web app to see all your emails in one place.
You can get secure email hosting through IONOS for only $1 monthly, including spam protection, modest storage, a free domain, and live customer support. Alternatively, you can purchase a domain for $1 for the first year and get a free business email address and SSL in the process.
Granted, the 2GB of storage included in IONOS cheap email hosting plans is paltry compared to the other providers on this list. However, it’s expandable up to 50GB at a cost that still comes in under $6. Plus, IONOS email security features are more advanced, and encryption is cheaper on its Business plan at $5 per month vs any other provider in a $6 or less plan.
IONOS also has cheap website builder plans and web hosting plans from $1 per month, inclusive of email, domain, and SSL, which could save your business even more as you build your brand presence online. If you’re a freelancer, startup, or small business with a limited budget, any of these plans could be right for you.
How Much IONOS Email Hosting Costs
Like Hostinger, with IONOS you can grab a standalone email hosting plan that comes with a free domain and SSL or get a web bundle to build your brand presence online. All plans are billed annually with no month-to-month option. Learn more about each option in the tabs below.
IONOS offers a variety of email hosting options that make it easy for small businesses to get both a domain and email in a cheap plan. You’ll have access to a dedicated consultant if you need help with setup, and there’s a 30-day money-back guarantee if you find it’s not right for you.
Bluehost: Best Website & Email Hosting Combo
Overall Score:
4.5 / 5
Pros
- Get email, domain, SSL, and WordPress hosting for under $4/month
- Unlimited emails and storage plans start under $6/month
- Secure and reliable
- Roundcube webmail app
- Alias email addresses
- Domain privacy
- WordPress page builder included
- Free Cloudflare content delivery network (CND)
Cons
- Pricing increases after the first year
- No monthly billing options
- No standalone email hosting plans
- No mobile app (but easy to use with your preferred email app)
- Any small businesses looking for an affordable all-in-one solution for email and web hosting
- Startups and entrepreneurs planning to build a WordPress website
- Small teams that can get by with one to five email addresses
- Larger teams looking for unlimited email hosting
Bluehost is a great choice for an all-in-one solution for online brand building, but if you don’t want to build a WordPress website, a standalone plan from IONOS that comes with a domain could be better. If you want unlimited email hosting, DreamHost offers this for $2.95 the first year vs $5.45 with Bluehost.
If you’re on a tight budget, Bluehost plans aren’t as affordable after the first year. Both Hostinger and DreamHost web hosting plans offer similar features, but also have a monthly billing option.
Bluehost is a top-recommended WordPress hosting company known for affordable first-year pricing and value-packed plans that include business email. The base plan costs $2.95 monthly for the first year and includes up to five email addresses with limited storage. The next plan tier still comes in under $6 a month and includes unlimited email and storage.
Bluehost webmail uses the free, open source Roundcube app (as does DreamHost). There’s no calendar, but it does have a contact management tool, built-in caching, and the ability to add extensions via application programming interfaces (APIs). There’s no mobile app, but it’s easy to add the email addresses you create in Bluehost to any third-party email clients via POP and SMTP settings.
One of the biggest reasons to choose Bluehost for email hosting is to save money by bundling web hosting, domain, and SSL. Doing so gets you hosting for one website in the base plan, and unlimited sites thereafter. Plans come with WordPress pre-installed and core security updates managed for you, as well as a no-code WordPress website builder that lessens the learning curve for using WordPress.
How Much Bluehost Email Hosting Costs
Bluehost has two plans that come in below our $6 target cost for cheap email hosts. The base plan comes with up to five emails while the next tier allows for unlimited email hosting, and both include a free custom domain for business email. All plans are billed annually, but you also have the option of locking in low pricing for 36 months. Learn more in the tabs below.
Bluehost offers secure, reliable email hosting in its WordPress web hosting packages. You’ll get everything you need to build your brand online, but even if you just need email, it’s a great value for the price, and your domain name and SSL are included for free.
Zoho Mail: Best Free Email Hosting Solution
Overall Score:
4.5 / 5
Pros
- 5 free business email addresses on a domain you own
- Paid plans from $1/month
- Higher-tier plans come with office and communications software
- Zoho Mail mobile app makes email access from anywhere easy
- Largest attachment limits—up to 1GB
Cons
- Low storage (5GB/user) in free plan
- Paid plans are per user (no multi-user paid plans)
- No plans that include a free domain, unlike IONOS and Bluehost
- Can’t connect free email addresses to other clients
- Budget-conscious startups, freelancers, and small businesses that need free, no-frills email
- Small teams looking for all-in-one solutions with productivity software, collaboration tools, and video conferencing in a cheap email hosting service
- Those wanting a comparable alternative to Google Workspace and Microsoft 365
- Companies that want easy integration with Zoho’s other business apps
Zoho Mail is easy to set up and use, and the platform offers a wide array of business software, which could be ideal for startups and entrepreneurs looking to centralize everything. If office software is a top priority, however, Google and Microsoft offer superior features at about the same cost.
Zoho Mail doesn’t have a free domain or SSL, so you’ll need to get those separately, unlike with IONOS and Bluehost. Plus, there are no multi-user paid plans, so for each user your cost will go up. If you need a lot of email addresses without all the office software and communication tools, try DreamHost’s Shared Unlimited plan instead.
Zoho Mail made our list of the best email hosting providers for offering a free version. If you own a domain, you can set up as many as five email addresses absolutely free, forever. Zoho Mail also offers Workplace plans with communications and office software similar to Google and Microsoft for $3 to $6 per month.
Zoho’s software ecosystem extends far beyond office software, however. Zoho Mail easily integrates Zoho’s other business apps for sales, accounting, customer service, and more. To get started at no cost, read our guide for how to set up Zoho free business email accounts.
The storage limit is low at just 5GB per free email address, but it’s still higher than the 2GB included in IONOS $1 per month plans. Those needing a lot of storage should consider Hostinger’s Enterprise plan or Microsoft 365, as user mailboxes have 50GB of storage with both providers.
Zoho Mail has two Workplace plans meant explicitly for businesses. Like Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, they come with productivity software (documents, spreadsheets, and slide-based presentations), collaboration tools, backup and restoration, eDiscovery, and even video conferencing.
How Much Zoho Mail Costs
All Zoho Mail plans are $6 or less monthly. But like Google and Microsoft, these are per user, and apart from the free version, there are no multi-user plans to save you money. Learn more about the plans by clicking the tabs below.
Zoho Mail is widely known as one of the most user-friendly cheap email hosts. There are detailed, step-by-step instructions for everything from registering for a plan to connecting your domain. Should you get stuck, live chat and email ticket support are there to help, and it’s risk-free to try since you can start for free.
Need a completely free business email solution? Learn more about affordable business email, including nine legit ways to get a completely free business email.
DreamHost: Cheapest Host for Unlimited Emails & a Free Domain
Overall Score:
4.4 / 5
Pros
- Unlimited emails, free domain, and SSL in Shared Unlimited web hosting plan for $2.95/month (intro price)
- Commitment-free dedicated email hosting for $1.99/month
- Respectable 25GB storage/inbox
- Monthly billing available for email hosting and web hosting plans
- All-in-one solution for WordPress websites and business email
Cons
- Cost of annually billed plans increases after the first year
- No dedicated mobile app
- Limited technical support vs personal consultant with IONOS if you want help with setup or configuration
- Businesses that need to create a lot of email addresses on a small budget
- Commitment-free web or email hosting with month-to-month billing
- Freelancers and entrepreneurs looking for affordable standalone email hosting plans
- Businesses wanting an easy, affordable way to build a WordPress website—plans include the BoldGrid site builder
DreamHost is primarily a web hosting service, so you won’t get the benefits of office software and communications tools that Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 provide. While inexpensive, its standalone email can’t compete price-wise with IONOS, which is nearly half the cost and comes with a free domain. IONOS also offers superior one-to-one technical assistance vs DreamHost if you need help setting up or configuring business email.
DreamHost provides cheap email hosting as a standalone product or included with web hosting plans, both of which offer monthly billing options. With 25GB per email account included with either option, it’s a good value for small businesses that need large storage at a low cost and don’t want a long-term contract.
Like Bluehost, DreamHost’s WordPress web hosting plans include a free domain for your email and website and a free no-code WordPress page builder: BoldGrid. The Shared Unlimited and WordPress Unlimited hosting plans provide unlimited emails on your domain with first-year pricing at $2.95 per month. You can access your DreamHost email account via webmail or on other apps by configuring IMAP/SMTP or POP settings.
Like Bluehost, its webmail is accessed using the Roundcube app, which is very easy to set up and use. It’s also easy to add your DreamHost email account to Gmail, Outlook, or the email client you prefer to use, and you can change some of the basic settings, including the look of your email interface.
Alternatively, you can purchase DreamHost’s email hosting service as a standalone product. Your email account comes with 25GB of storage at $1.99 per mailbox monthly on a month-to-month basis, or just $1.67 when billed annually. While this costs more than IONOS or Zoho Mail’s $1 per month (billed annually), it also includes far more storage—you’d pay $5 a month on IONOS, for example.
How Much DreamHost Email Hosting Costs
Get email hosting from DreamHost in standalone packages or in hosting bundles that come with a free domain. Find out all that’s included by clicking the tabs below.
DreamHost makes it easy to get email hosting in multiple ways, depending on what your business needs. It’s a reputable and reliable company, and virtually risk-free to try as they have an industry-leading 97-day money-back guarantee.
Proton Mail: Most Secure Cheap Email Hosting Service
Overall Score:
4.4 / 5
Pros
- HIPAA*-compliant
- Most advanced security and privacy
- Free-forever plan with 1GB of email storage and up to 150 emails/daily
- Upgrade for 15GB of storage, alias emails, and unlimited messaging
- Monthly billing options
- Alias emails (all plans)
Cons
- 1GB in the free plan is super-low compared to free Zoho Mail (5GB)
- Limited to 150 emails/day on the free plan
- Can’t use a custom domain with the free version, unlike Zoho Mail
- No plans come with a free domain
- No multi-user plans
- Freelancers and entrepreneurs wanting a completely free and highly secure business email option
- Startups and small businesses requiring the best email security features, such as those handling patient information or confidential files
- Any business prioritizing email security and privacy
With six or more users you’ll get live phone support, and all Proton Mail business plans come with a 99.95% uptime guarantee. However, IONOS offers one-to-one technical support to all business email users, so it is a better choice for less tech-savvy customers or beginners. If you don’t need the level of security that comes with Proton Mail, both Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 have higher-value bundles along with business-class email security.
*HIPAA is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, which guarantees the privacy of patient records and information.
Like Zoho, Proton Mail offers one of the best ways to get a free professional email—as long as you don’t mind your email being hosted on a subdomain instead of a domain you own. In addition to being affordable, it’s highly secure and HIPAA compliant, as it adheres to super-strict standards for encryption and complies with Swiss privacy laws.
With the upgrade to one of Proton Mail’s affordable paid plans, you can use your own domain names (from three to 10 different domains) to create email addresses for your business. You can also create up to 20 different calendars, send unlimited emails (vs 150 per day on the free plan), and get priority support.
The main reason to choose Proton Mail is its advanced email privacy and security. Email encryption is applied end to end, beginning in the free plan. They’re also the only cheap email service offering zero-access encryption, meaning even Proton Mail can’t decrypt your data.
How Much Proton Mail Costs
All Proton Mail plans, including the free one, are per user. So while they are cheap, they aren’t the most economical for multi-user business emails. However, they are the most secure. Click through the tabs below to find the best plan for your company.
Proton Mail’s business plans are fully compatible with GDPR rules and are HIPAA compliant, making them great for anyone handling confidential patient information. This makes Proton Mail the best cheap email host for businesses prizing security, hands down. You can get an idea of the user experience and interface by trying the free version today.
Scala Hosting: Best Email Hosting Service for Small Teams
Overall Score:
4.3 / 5
Pros
- Cheap multi-user standalone email hosting plans for 10-unlimited users
- Standalone plans allow from one to unlimited custom email domains
- Web hosting plans with unlimited email hosting from $2.95/month
- Daily offsite backups included to protect your data
- Free email migration services
Cons
- Only the highest tier includes a free domain
- Monthly billing is only available for the highest-plan tier (standalone plans)
- Standalone plans have shared storage limits (e.g., base tier 50GB for 10 users is about 5GB each)
- No mobile app
- Small teams needing reliable and cheap email hosting for up to 10 users
- Companies looking for scalable email hosting solutions (either standalone or bundled with web hosting)
- Those wanting additional safeguards to protect data, like daily offsite backups
- Businesses wanting to ensure their domain stays off blacklists and emails get to recipients inboxes with a dedicated IP address, free SSL, and blacklist monitoring and removal (highest cloud email plan tier or VPN plans)
- Agencies and freelancers looking to resell or manage client email with a white-labeled solution (highest plan tier)
Scala Hosting offers unique features in email, web, and VPN hosting plans that make it a standout for small teams. However, Hostinger plans will be cheaper in the long term for 50 or more email accounts. Likewise, the IONOS Business plan supports up to 10 users at $2.50 monthly, with far more per-storage user (50GB).
Like DreamHost and Bluehost, web hosting company Scala Hosting offers cheap business email hosting plans starting at just a few dollars a month for the first year. This comes in standalone email hosting, shared web hosting, and the company’s widely accoladed virtual private server (VPS) plans.
Scala Hosting is the best standalone email service for small teams. The base email hosting plan allows for up to 10 users on your domain for $4.95 a month billed annually or 2.95 a month with a 36-month contract. This includes 50GB of total storage, advanced SPAM protection, and daily offsite backups to preserve your data.
Scala’s plans also scale affordably. For $5.95, you can create up to 50 email addresses on five custom domains (100GB email storage), 100 emails on up to 10 domains for $7.95 with 150GB of total storage, or create unlimited emails with unlimited domain names starting from $19.95. The highest-tier plan also adds value with white labeling, a free domain, real-time malware protection, and a dedicated IP address and blacklist monitoring.
The highest Cloud tier is also a good option for marketing agencies and freelancers who want to resell email hosting or provide white-label services for clients. Plus, you can upgrade to a virtual private network to host unlimited accounts and websites for a few dollars more.
There are also comparable plans for web and email hosting, and all web hosting plans allow unlimited email accounts. But keep in mind that storage limits in web hosting plans apply to all files, meaning all your website and email files share the same storage.
How Much Scala Email Hosting Costs
The best plan for you will depend on what type of service your business needs most: dedicated email hosting, bundled hosting, or a highly secure VPN with dedicated resources. The tabs below showcase what’s included in each type of solution.
We featured Scala’s VPS among the plans above because of the additional security and business email benefits provided. If you are interested in the additional data security and speed that come with dedicated servers such as a virtual private network, DreamHost, Bluehost, and IONOS offer cheap VPN options, albeit with fewer features than Scala.
Scala’s cheap email hosting plans are perfect for startups and small teams. Create up to 10 email addresses in a standalone plan or get unlimited emails in web-and-email bundles, both starting under $5 a month. Scala offers an anytime money-back guarantee, so there’s no risk in trying it to see if it’s the best business email solution for your company.
How We Evaluated the Best Cheap Email Hosting Services
Small businesses and startups need safe, reliable, and affordable communication tools to connect with customers and communicate among their teams. To determine the best options for businesses on a budget, we researched low-cost business email providers with plans ranging from free to $6 a month and compared them based on 20 separate data points. Here’s how our scores were weighted:
35%
Cost
25%
Features
20%
Support
20%
Expert Score
35% of Overall Score
For startups, entrepreneurs, and small businesses on a tight budget, the cost is often the determining factor in selecting a service provider. For this reason, it was weighted most heavily when determining which email hosting services to include.
25% of Overall Score
In addition to cost is the value offered in the plans offered by email hosts. We looked for providers that include multiple email addresses, alias emails and forwarding, advanced security and data encryption, as well as those with extras like a mobile app or a free domain.
Although these services are affordable, this doesn’t mean they don’t offer niche features that add value for small businesses. Several include productivity software and collaboration tools like video conferencing, shared calendars, and team chat apps.
20% of Overall Score
While most of these services are easy to self-serve in terms of both setup and management, it’s good to know that help is there if you need it. Providers offering 24/7 customer support, live chat and phone support, email ticketing, and an online help center scored higher.
20% of Overall Score
No matter how great a provider looks on paper, how it works in the real world is critical. We have firsthand experience with each of these providers, and rated each as to which has great features for small businesses, which pack the most value into their plans, and which are easiest to set up and use. Finally, we considered the popularity of email hosting services based on real-world customer reviews.
*Percentages of overall score
Key Considerations When Choosing a Cheap Email Provider
You don’t have to pay a lot to get a lot, but you do need to have a checklist for what you want when comparing the best cheap email providers. First, consider the broader scope of what you need to build your brand presence online and off. Are there services you can bundle to save money not just now, but over time?
Second, check reviews and ratings. Sites like G2 and Clutch are great resources for learning the strengths and weaknesses of providers. Watch for things like multiple customers complaining about the same thing or what they rave about, and see how that aligns with your priorities in terms of vendors you want to work with.
Also, don’t just think about where your business is now, but how you want it to grow in the future. For example, today, you might only have five employees using email, but next year that number could be 25 to 50 or even 100. Does a provider have plans that can scale accordingly?
Lastly, and maybe most importantly, keep in mind that services like email and web hosting tend to be very “sticky” services. Once you’ve registered a domain, set up business email accounts, and maybe even built a website, changing to a new provider will be a complex and technically challenging endeavor. So take the time to fully vet your top contenders for cheap business email before committing.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How do I get a free email address?
You can get a free email address with gmail.com or outlook.com domains, but this isn’t credible for business use. The best option for businesses is to look for services that come with free email addresses, like with the purchase of a domain or web hosting. If you own a domain, however, you can get up to five free Zoho Mail business email accounts.
How much does it cost to host email?
Email hosting ranges from $1 (or even free) to around $3 to $6 to start. If you need multiple email addresses, expect to spend around $3 a month the first year and pay from $8 to $12 a month afterward. In addition, you’ll need a business domain name for email, unless one comes bundled with your plan—domains cost about $10 to $20 per year.
Can I get email hosting for free?
There are providers that offer free email hosting on your domain, like Zoho Mail, as well as email hosting on subdomains like gmail or outlook.com. Free email hosting is often included with web hosting plans as well. For more options, read our article detailing all the ways you can get a free email address.
Bottom Line
Going with a low-cost email hosting provider doesn’t necessarily mean you have to sacrifice many features. The best providers give you more than cheap (or even free) email hosting. They also provide tools businesses need, from email security and administrative controls to ample storage, tools for team chat and video conferencing, and productivity software.
Hostinger tops our list of the best options for cheap business email plans. Whatever your business need is, they have a plan for it: standalone Titan email on a domain you own, or web hosting and all-in-one website builder plans with domain, SSL, and business email. Get started today.
