Zoho Mail launched by Zoho Enterprises is giving stiff competition to tech giant Google’s email service Gmail. Since there is a lot of talk about digital privacy, productivity, and data sovereignty, the choice of email service is no longer just about convenience. It is about privacy and control of user over his data. Although Gmail continues to dominate globally, Indian email platform Zoho Mail is also slowly gaining user’s in India. Zoho e-mail is gaining popularity among privacy-conscious users and government institutions.
Recently Indian Home Minister Amit Shah to Zoho has brought the platform into the spotlight. He posted on ‘X’ that he is switching over to Zoho Mail from Gmail. Since there’s a lot of talk about Zoho Mail in this article we have mentioned some features of the Indian e-mail platform that give it an advantage over Gmail.
Productivity Tools
Both Gmail and Zoho Mail provide a set of email and productivity tools, but each caters to a different kind of user. Gmail, as part of Google Workspace, is tightly integrated with Google Docs, Sheets, Drive, and Meet. It offers a seamless experience for users deeply embedded in the Google ecosystem.
Zoho Mail, on the other hand, targets professionals and small businesses who are looking for an uncluttered interface with easy functionality. It includes built-in apps for tasks, calendars, notes, and even a social collaboration feature called Streams. Interestingly, Zoho supports email attachment sizes up to 1 GB which is significantly higher than Gmail’s 25 MB limit for direct attachments.
AI Integration
Artificial intelligence is slowly being integrated by tech companies across all thier products. This is also being done by both Google and Zoho since both are investing heavily in AI tools. Gmail uses Google’s Gemini AI to offer smart replies, writing suggestions, and content summarization to users.
Zoho on the other hand has its own assistant, Zia, powered by OpenAI. Zia can help draft emails, suggest subject lines, and even summarize long conversations. While Google’s AI feels more useful due to its widespread integration, Zia offers practical, lightweight tools without complicating things for users.
Privacy and Security
When it comes to privacy, Zoho has an upper hand. Based in India, Zoho has a strict no-ads, no-tracking policy, making it attractive to users fed up of big tech companies data practices. It offers encryption at rest and in transit, plus advanced tools like S/MIME for secure email signing.
Gmail, while secure and reliable, is part of an system that collects vast amounts of user data, often used for product development and personalization. For users who prioritize data privacy over convenience, Zoho presents a strong argument.
Pricing
Zoho Mail offers a free plan for up to five users, for startups or small teams. Whereas Paid plans start at just Rs. 59 per user per month.
Gmail’s features, which are available through Google Workspace, start at higher price of Rs 160 per user per month. While Google’s higher pricing includes access for users to its broader app suite, on the other hand Zoho’s affordability is a key advantage for budget-conscious users.
