Proton Mail: Strong in privacy, less suitable for teams

When I chose Proton Mail, I did so with conviction. The focus on privacy, end-to-end encryption and transparency appealed to me enormously. Proton is one of the few parties that consistently shows that they want to make the internet safer and freer. And for private use, I remain loyal to it.

But business ideals sometimes seem to clash with practical requirements. The end-to-end encryption is fantastic, until you want to collaborate with external tools. Think of email clients like Thunderbird: for that you have to Proton Mail Bridge install – an application that decrypts encrypted messages on your local machine. That's fine for individuals, but not scalable for a professional environment. If you do not want to use that Bridge, you are dependent on your own Proton clients (web and mobile). That's understandable from a security point of view, but it limits your freedom to choose your own email tools and tailor integrations.

“Privacy is not a luxury – but its implementation can become one.”

The Limits of Integration

My IT ecosystem runs largely on Nextcloud: a powerful, open source platform that integrates files, calendars and email in one environment. Only: Nextcloud Mail and Proton Mail do not speak the same language. Without Proton Mail Bridge, integration is impossible, and with the Bridge it suddenly becomes complicated. Because then I have to run Nextcloud on a server with a desktop environment — only to be able to use the bridge software.

That goes against my principles of scalability and maintainability. I want a headless server – not a desktop. And so I started to wonder: Is this still the right choice?

“When technology forces you into unnecessary complexity, you lose focus on what really matters.”

Linux: Community-driven, but not always supported

As a Linux user, I'm used to building, tweaking, and sometimes struggling. Proton Mail Bridge officially only supports Windows and macOS. For Linux, there is a workaround: You can compile the Bridge yourself from the source code. But if it doesn't work, you're out of luck - Proton's support is then limited to friendly referrals to forums.

The community is helpful, but not a substitute for professional support. For personal use, I accept this uncertainty. Not for business. I want stability, predictability and support – and that means Proton Mail is no longer the right match here.

“Freedom without support is sometimes as restrictive as having no choice.”

Scale means choosing flexibility

Another factor is the pricing structure. At Proton you pay per user. That sounds logical, but in practice it means that any expansion can be a doubling of costs. For a sole proprietorship, that is not a problem, but as soon as you grow, you feel that threshold immediately. I am looking for a solution that scales better – both technically and financially.

A good mail provider needs to be flexible: Growing with your team, easily integrated into your existing stack, and widely supported. Privacy remains important, but should not come at the expense of workability.

“Sustainability in IT means: be ready for tomorrow, without locking yourself up today.”

The search begins

And so my search for an alternative begins. I'm going to orientate myself through the platform European Alternatives, which provides a good overview of European, privacy-friendly email providers. My demands are clear: good integration with open source tools, scalability, Linux support and transparent pricing model.

Proton stays in my private world – because that's where it belongs: as a beacon of privacy. But in business, I say goodbye. The bridge is beautiful, but my infrastructure prefers an open road.

“A choice is not a betrayal of the past – it is an investment in the future.”