Professional email at your domain:
the question is how many people.
The providers do not bill the same way: some per user, some per mailbox, and one gives you five users free. That is why the comparison inverts between one person and a team.
Five people or fewer: Zoho Mail is free — with one important condition.
Its free plan gives up to 5 users on one domain with 5GB each, "forever free, no credit card required" in its own words. And the condition to read before celebrating: the free plan does not include IMAP/POP/ActiveSync — so you cannot connect it to an external mail client like Outlook or Apple Mail; you use it through the web and its own apps. It is also available only in select data centres.
And if you already have hosting, check before paying anyone: Hostinger states that it includes free business email with its web hosting plans. What you are shopping for may already be in your account.
The distinction that flips the prices: Google and Microsoft charge per user, while Hostinger charges per mailbox — and each of its mail plans is a single mailbox. So $0.39 a month looks cheapest, but that is for one person; five people means five times it, while Zoho gives those five away.
Prices and limits are from the providers' own pages: Zoho Mail, Hostinger Mail, Google Workspace, Microsoft 365. Google's prices were served to us in euros and vary by country and currency. Reviewed 12 August 2026 — promotional offers change, so check before you pay.
The published prices, side by side
| Provider | Published price | Billed | Storage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zoho Mail (free plan) | Free | Up to 5 users, one domain | 5GB per user |
| Hostinger Starter | $0.39/mo | Per mailbox · 48-month term | 5GB |
| Hostinger Standard | $0.99/mo | Per mailbox · 48-month term | 20GB |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | $7.00/mo | Per user · paid yearly | 100GB |
| Google Workspace Starter | €6.80/mo | Per user | 30GB pooled |
Hostinger's prices above are promotional rates on a 48-month term; its regular rates are $2.99 and $3.99, and it renews higher after the term. Which is the same rule we repeat in every comparison: read the renewal price.
What actually flips the comparison?
Three things — not storage, and not the brand name:
- Headcount — per-mailbox billing multiplies by your team size, and so does per-user, while Zoho gives the first five away. So do the sum for your team, not for one person.
- Do you need an external mail client? If you want your mail inside Outlook or Apple Mail, Zoho's free plan will not do, because it has no IMAP/POP.
- Do you need the rest of the suite? Google and Microsoft sell you storage, documents and meetings along with the mail. If you use those, the price is reasonable; if you want only email, you are paying for what you do not use.
- Aliases — need info@, support@ and sales@? Those are normally forwarding aliases rather than separate mailboxes. Do not buy a mailbox for every address.
So what do we recommend?
Already have hosting? Start with its mail. Hostinger states business email is included with its web hosting plans, so you probably already own what you need and pay nothing extra. The full hosting arithmetic is in our comparison.
A team of one to five who do not need Outlook? Zoho Mail's free plan. Nothing is cheaper than zero, and the single limitation is clear and published.
Need mail inside an app on your computer or phone? A paid plan — and here host-bundled mail wins on price for one or two people, while per-user plans win once the team grows and needs the rest of the suite.
Team already working in Google Docs or Office? Take the suite they already work in. Saving two dollars a month is not worth splitting your team across two systems.
A mailbox is not email marketing
A common conflation worth clearing up: everything above is about a mailbox — an address you receive at and send individual messages from. Sending one message to a thousand subscribers is an entirely different service, and should not be done from your mailbox.
The reason is technical rather than commercial: bulk sending from an ordinary mailbox hits sending limits, damages your domain's sending reputation, and lands you in your subscribers' spam folder — damage that is hard to undo afterwards. Newsletter platforms handle authentication, unsubscribes and reporting for you.
If you do need a newsletter, Hostinger Reach is an email marketing platform from $1.99/mo on a 24-month term (or $2.49 on 12 months, and $5.99 month to month) for the first 500 contacts and 3,500 emails a month, rising with your contact count and sending volume. Our rule stands: do not buy a newsletter platform before you have anyone to send to — build the list first, then buy.
Hostinger Reach prices and limits are from its own page, reviewed 12 August 2026.
Before you buy: you need a domain first
Professional email is built on your domain, so there is no email before the domain. If you do not have one yet, start with our domain registration guide — which carries a warning specific to this page: register the domain with an email address you own, because whoever controls the registration email controls the domain, and therefore your company's entire email.
The full order — domain, then hosting, then site, then email — is in our website creation guide.
Some links on this page are affiliate links — they cost you nothing extra, and they do not affect how we rank recommendations. Full disclosure.
Email questions.
What is a professional email address?
Email on your own domain — like ahmed@yourcompany.com — rather than on a free provider's domain. The difference is not cosmetic: an address carrying your domain says you have a site and a going concern, and it stays with you if you change provider. It needs a domain first, so if you do not have one that is your previous step.
How do I get email at my own domain for free?
The closest genuinely free option is Zoho Mail's free plan: up to 5 users on one domain with 5 GB each, free with no card required. But read the condition: the free plan does not include IMAP/POP, so you cannot connect it to an external mail client like Outlook or Apple Mail — you use it through the web and its own apps. And if you already have hosting, email may already be included, so check before paying anyone.
Which business email provider is best?
There is no absolute best, and the right question is: how many people are on your team? Because the billing model differs — Zoho gives you 5 users free, Google and Microsoft charge per user, and Hostinger charges per mailbox rather than per user, so the price multiplies with each person. That is why the comparison inverts completely between one person and a team of five.
How do I set up email for my store?
The same steps, with one practical warning: separate order email from your personal email from the start — an address like orders@ or support@ stays with the store if whoever runs it changes. And most providers give you forwarding addresses (aliases) free, so do not buy a full mailbox for every address you need.
How should I choose the address itself?
For individuals: first name, or first and last, with no digits or hyphens. For functions: name the role rather than the person — info@, support@, sales@ — because those need no changing when staff change. Avoid long or unusual addresses: an email address gets read out on the phone and printed on a card.
No domain yet? Start here.
Email is built on the domain. Five minutes of work, three decisions you pay for yearly, and one verification email that suspends your domain if you ignore it.