11 Best Email Management Software Tools For Businesses in 2024

Remember when your team was smaller and business was, well…simpler? You could tackle the inbox yourself (and justify it too). 

As a founder, you can gain invaluable insights into what customers want and build their trust by replying to their messages directly. But at some point, it’s just no longer feasible.

I’ve seen firsthand how business growth results in (plenty of) more emails. In fact, our software was initially developed to scratch my own itch.

But when email isn’t managed effectively, it can create an overall drag on the business.

That’s why I’ve spent time testing out all the email management software I could find. Here are my picks for the 11 best tools for growing businesses.

Best email management tools at a glance

• Keeping for growing teams wanting a simple, elegant solution that works inside Gmail
• SaneBox for small teams focused on inbox organization
• Drag for small businesses requiring visual task management
• Clean Email for personal users and freelancers looking to declutter their inbox
• Gmail for individual professionals and small teams on a budget
• Zendesk for large teams requiring multiple support touchpoints
• Front for enterprises seeking centralized customer communication
• Missive for remote teams requiring real-time collaboration
• Mailbird for users preferring a downloadable software
• Zoho Mail for businesses requiring seamless integration with Zoho apps
• Freshdesk for enterprises seeking AI automation for customer service

What are email management software tools?

Email management tools include a range of software designed to help you manage your inbox more efficiently. They make it easier to automate tasks and organize messages so communication is streamlined.

Some of these tools are focused on inbox cleanup. Others are meant for customer support.

If you’re currently communicating with customers using a traditional inbox (such as Gmail or Outlook), for example, certain email management tools can allow your team to collaborate seamlessly.

An example of an email management tool.

These types of tools allow your team to:

• See when others are replying
• Set up rules and automations
• Collaborate on drafts in real time
• Convert emails into tickets (and easily track them)
• Split the workload among multiple team members

I’ve seen firsthand the issues inefficient email can cause for fast-growing companies—including lost hours, decreased morale, and unhappy customers.

I wrote this guide to help simplify the decision-making process so you can choose the ideal tool to help maximize your team’s productivity (without overpaying or overcomplicating things for your business).

Who are email management tools for?

Email management tools are for anyone (or any team) looking to streamline their email processes and make clearing the inbox easier.

They’re commonly used by:

• ✅ Small and medium-sized business owners
• ✅ Enterprises
• ✅ Customer service teams
• ✅ Sales professionals
• ✅ Marketing teams
• ✅ HR departments
• ✅ Project managers
• ✅ Executive assistants
• ✅ Freelancers and solopreneurs
• ✅ Remote workers

Which tool you should choose depends on the size of your company and your unique needs.

11 best tools for email management today

#1. Keeping – Easy-to-use customer service email management software for Gmail

Keeping (disclaimer: this is my tool) is an email management tool that works right within Gmail. Instead of downloading other software tools or having to switch tabs and platforms, it allows you to manage your team’s help desk right within your inbox. Teams can collaborate, chat, tag each other, and manage tickets in their separate private inboxes while always remaining in sync with the rest of the team.

Access shared notes in Keeping

All you do is sign up, then install the Chrome or Safari Extension to transform your inbox into a collaborative environment. From there you can easily assign, track, and prioritize customer support email right inside Gmail. As your business evolves, add more users, set up rules, and revoke access for team members who leave the department.

You also get access to analytics which can help your team make decisions, manage workload, and improve customer service with time.

Our users like it for its simplicity. Instead of learning a separate tool and creating new processes, you can just upgrade your inbox to a fully-fledged, collaborative customer support tool that does everything you need it to. That way you avoid the hassle of learning complex software and struggling under the weight of features you don’t actually need.

We’ve designed it to be scalable and affordable with growing teams in mind.

Best for: Growing teams wanting a simple, elegant solution that works inside Gmail

Type: Collaborative email management for Gmail

Free trial: 14 days

Keeping Pricing: Starts at $14/month per user (monthly billing) or $12/month per user (annual billing)

#2. SaneBox

SaneBox is a trainable AI assistant that helps you get rid of inbox clutter by organizing and prioritizing email automatically. In this sense, it’s not exactly a customer support or help desk tool. Instead, it’s an email management tool that helps declutter and simplify.

SaneBox works by analyzing your inbox interactions and taking smart actions on your behalf. This means that the more you use SaneBox, the smarter it becomes over time. SaneBox never actually reads your email. It simply analyzes your header content. 

The tool gives you daily insights and recommendations, as well as updates about email activity so it’s easier to manage your inbox. It also creates a folder which automatically groups emails that customers have not replied to.

One of the best parts about SaneBox is that it works with any email client.

Just keep in mind that it doesn’t include collaboration features for support agents hoping to manage an inbox. In this sense, it’s better for controlling spam and cleaning out your inbox than supplementing customer service.

Type: AI-powered email sorting and prioritization

Best for: Individuals or small teams focused on inbox organization

Free trial: 14 days

SaneBox Pricing: Starts at $7/month per user (monthly billing) or $59/year per user (annual billing)

#3. Drag

Drag is another tool you can use within Gmail, but with a specific focus on helping you manage your inbox visually. It’s ideal for teams that want task management built right into their customer support processes (without using Notion, Jira, or a separate platform).

When you install it, it adds Kanban board functionality to your Google Workspace so you can visually track your inbox and related tasks. Instead of viewing each item in a traditional list or inbox, you can then drag and drop. You can view activity logs which tell you which actions have been performed, plus sort and filter boards to find information more quickly. 

While it offers email management features like scheduling, automations, and rules, it definitely feels more like a project management system than an email tool.

Type: Kanban-style email and task management

Best for: Small businesses requiring visual task management

Free trial: 14 days

Drag pricing: Starts at $10/month per user (monthly billing) or $8/month per user (annual billing)

#4. Clean Email

Clean Email is an email cleaning and management tool designed to help users delete thousands of emails with a few clicks. If you’re struggling with a disorganized inbox, it can work wonders. 

For instance, the tool can gather all your newsletters and subscriptions in a single view so you can mass unsubscribe. You can also pre-screen new senders, and use smart grouping features to create folders and organize them into emails into defined categories like Ridesharing, Travel, and Finance (and many more).

After you use the tool for a while, it will start offering suggestions. You can also set up rules to automatically organize incoming emails. For instance, one I like to implement is to keep only the newest email from a specific sender in the inbox.

Clean Email supports all major email providers and is accessible via web browsers and mobile devices. 

One major plus is that they never sell your data or use it for advertising purposes. Just keep in mind that it’s not an email collaboration tool, and its main benefit is helping you declutter your inbox.

Type: Bulk email cleanup and organization

Best for: Personal users and freelancers looking to declutter their inbox

Free trial: 14 days

Clean Email pricing: Starts at $9.99/month per user (monthly billing) or $29.99/year per user (annual billing)

#5. Gmail

Gmail is a tool we’re all aware of, but many don’t know that it can be upgraded into a collaborative inbox for teams working on customer service emails. You can actually do this for free via a Google Groups collaborative inbox, but doing it this way results in a large number of limitations.

Google Workspace for business is becoming increasingly popular, although Google still has not developed a tool aimed specifically at customer service email.

You can use tools like Keeping to upgrade either Gmail or Workspace into a collaborative help desk with many added features.

Long-standing users of Google Workspace may prefer to stay within its ecosystem to manage customer service emails. This also makes it easy to integrate with other Google Workspace apps such as Google Chat, Google Meet, and Gemini.

Type: General-purpose email platform with AI features

Best for: Individual professionals and small teams on a budget

Free trial: Forever free version available

Gmail pricing: Free for basic Gmail; Google Workspace starts at $7.20/month per user (monthly billing) or $6/month per user (annual billing)

#6. Zendesk

Zendesk is a separate platform that helps you manage incoming customer support emails as tickets. You can combine email with other forms of support such as messaging and help centers to bring all your customer inquiries together into one platform. Because of its customizability, Zendesk is often used by large businesses with more complex needs.

The customer hub means that customers are notified when your support team has received their request. Agents can work together collaboratively with routing, time tracking and service level agreements which elevate customer service to a more professional level. 

A unified agent workspace makes the task of managing customer requests much easier, since employees can access every element of the interface they might need during an interaction in one dashboard.

Because of its complexity, it can take time to train and onboard staff. The feature set can also be overkill for many businesses, so it’s worth reviewing to see if you require all the bells and whistles (especially since the price increases quickly as you add more seats). 

Type: Omnichannel customer support platform

Best for: Large teams requiring multiple support touchpoints

Free trial: 14 days

Zendesk pricing: Starts at $25/month per user (monthly billing) or $19/month per user (annual billing)

#7. Front

Front is a help desk that primarily focuses on email. With a streamlined user interface that’s easy-to-use, simple features laid out intuitively, and powerful automations and integrations, it’s a popular choice for large organizations that need a robust email management solution.

More personal than a help desk and more efficient than using email on its own, Front combines the best of both worlds. You can bring multiple channels together in the same platform, and route messages based on data such as relevant keywords or account information from Salesforce. This enables businesses to create much more powerful workflows linked to their email support. 

Once you log in as an administrator, you’ll see a list of third-party integrations. Your support staff will also be shown customer data such as order history, past conversations and a customer health score for a more holistic view.

Some may find it not so intuitive to find old messages in Front due to the way they group emails into threads. But enterprises can train their staff on how to use the tool so onboarding is simplified.

Type: Shared inbox and customer communication platform

Best for: Enterprises seeking centralized customer communication

Free trial: 7 days

Front pricing: Starts at $19/month per user (monthly billing) or $29/month per user (annual billing)

#8. Missive

Missive is a comprehensive tool for managing team email. It also supports SMS and webchat, so you can bring many of your support channels together in one shared inbox. 

The first thing you’ll notice is its clean, intuitive interface.

You can add employees as either active members (who receive notifications for interactions) or observers (who receive no notifications). Your team can then collaborate to manage shared email, write up drafts, and share canned responses. It’s easy to add multiple signatures so each agent’s responses feel personalized.

There are also chat, tasks and calendar features, which make it easier to manage customer inquiries and needs within your team. If you already use Slack or another team collaboration tool, Missive could technically replace it.

Type: Collaborative email and chat platform

Best for: Remote teams requiring real-time collaboration

Free trial: 14 days

Missive pricing: Starts at $18/month per user (monthly billing) or $14/month per user (annual billing)

#9. Mailbird

Mailbird is particularly suited to managing multiple email accounts all in one desktop platform. You download and install it on your device, then add your accounts. It even works if you’re using different email providers, saving you from logging in and out of your various accounts or opening multiple tabs.

Although designed more for individual business email accounts, certain features will still come in handy for teams (such as scheduling, read receipts and undoing sent email). 

Mailbird for Business is also available, which allows you to integrate Mailbird with other productivity and collaboration apps, add unlimited accounts to your unified inbox, and use the easy migration feature. 

The fact that it’s not cloud-based will be a dealbreaker for many users, but for those individuals that prefer the simplicity of a desktop application it can be a solid option. You won’t get analytics or automations like you do with dedicated customer support tools, but it does help you unify your inboxes and make them easier to manage.

Type: Multi-account email client for Windows & Mac

Best for: Users preferring a downloadable software for managing multiple email accounts

Free trial: No free trial but offer a limited ‘forever free’ plan

Mailbird pricing: Starts at $3.25/month per user (monthly billing) or $2.28/month per user (annual billing); Pay-one-time option also available for $49.50 (then $10/year to maintain support)

#10. Zoho Mail

Zoho Mail is an email tool and productivity suite for business, comparable to Gmail or Outlook. Since the Zoho suite also includes other apps such as a CRM and help desk, you have plenty of options in terms of integrations that can make your customer service team more productive. Just keep in mind that you’ll pay for each tool separately, and that out of the box Zoho Mail itself does not allow for team collaboration.

Like its more popular counterparts, you’ll have access to a calendar, tasks, notes and contacts within Zoho Mail.

In general, I find Zoho Mail not as intuitive as Gmail – and I know I’m not alone in that notion. But for those that are already using or plan to use Zoho apps, it can make more sense since it integrates seamlessly. But for anything outside the Zoho ecosystem, integration will be much more complex.

Free trial: 14 days

Zoho Mail pricing: Starts at $1/month per user (annual billing); Forever free plan allows for basic features and lower storage limits

#11. Freshdesk

Freshdesk is a Zendesk competitor with comparable features. It’s a separate web app that helps teams manage their customer support across multiple channels with community forums, self-service knowledge base, and chatbots.

It also has a number of integration options which can be beneficial for enterprises with more complex needs.

You can also interact further with customers by collecting satisfaction scores and conducting feedback surveys to understand how they feel about your product or service. These built-in customer experience management features save you from requiring a separate tool to gather feedback.

Most growing teams won’t require all the features Freshdesk offers so be sure to evaluate your needs to avoid paying too much for functionality you won’t use.

Type: AI-powered customer support and helpdesk software

Best for: Enterprises seeking AI automation for customer service

Free trial: 21 days

Freshdesk pricing: Starts at $18/month per user (monthly billing) or $15/month per user (annual billing)

Core features of customer service email management software

You’ve got a few options to choose from when it comes to email management tools, but they have a number of features in common. These are some of the main features that help define the true purpose of this type of software.

Collaborative dashboard

When your users log in to your email management system, they are all greeted by the same collaborative dashboard. Instead of individual inboxes, users all view the same emails, reports, templates and information. Agents can see at a glance which tickets are waiting for their attention the status of each email. 

Creating workflows

Creating workflows is a cinch in email management software. You can set up your automations and rules once, and they will work until you press pause. This makes the administrative load of managing an email inbox much lighter, since so much of the heavy lifting is done for you. Workflows also create consistency in how you handle each new ticket.

Workflows in Keeping 

Reporting and analytics

One of the most notable missing features from traditional email is reporting and analytics. Key customer service metrics are essential for tracking the health and improving the performance of your team. You could have access to email response time tracking, for example, or new tickets based on tags. 

Integrations

Your team will rarely use a single customer service tool. Integrations with other customer service platforms can be very appealing, such as live chat, a CRM or even an ecommerce solution. This means you can hop between your tools without switching tabs or requiring login credentials, and benefit from a bird’s eye view of your customers. 

Spam defenses 

Although traditional email tools like Gmail or Outlook do a good job of defending against spam, email management software can provide even more sophisticated spam protection. Spammy emails are sent to junk even before you have time to notice them, reducing inbox clutter and helping agents focus on the emails that matter. 

Autoresponders

When customers get in touch, they need to know you have received their email. Or they might email again. Sending out an automatic, carefully crafted autoresponder assures customers that you are dealing with their request. 

AI features

Businesses are excited about the possibility of implementing AI (Artificial Intelligence) in their customer service email. When it comes to composing, editing, and interpreting email, AI is certainly in a position to help. Certain tools also allow you to analyze performance with the assistance of AI, leading to greater insights.   

Organizational capabilities

Large volumes of email also require better organization, with features such as assignment, prioritization, and tagging. These features are either limited or unavailable in traditional email software, making such tools ill-suited for organizing high volumes of customer emails.

Benefits of using email management software

There are plenty of good reasons to use email management tools, no matter how big or small your company is. 

Here’s a quick overview of the most important benefits I’ve seen.

For individuals:

• Earn back valuable time: Eliminate email overload and free up time by setting up processes once and benefitting from them forever.
• Decrease anxiety: Inbox anxiety is a real thing. Use email management tools to earn back control and ensure your email inbox stays organized with tags, categories, folders and automated rules.
• Improve your focus: A clutter-free inbox helps you ensure there are no distractions standing between you and your most important messages. Not only will you be able to get more done, but you’ll eliminate missed emails and reply to messages faster.

For teams:

• Improve teamwork and accountability: Break down siloed communication and allow your team to collaborate in real time. Monitor progress, assign ownership, and track analytics to ensure top-notch customer support.
• Keep customers happier: Build trust and loyalty with your customers by minimizing response times, tracking follow-ups, and ensuring swift conflict resolution.
• Increase efficiency: Eliminate redundant tasks through automations, create shared templates, and delegate emails to maximize team productivity.

For businesses:

• Drive revenue growth: Gain insights into your customer interactions, track key metrics and uncover trends or patterns that can help improve operations. Boost customer satisfaction by providing better support to drive repeat business and increase revenue.
• Improve your brand image: Differentiate your business from competitors by providing a superior customer experience across all touchpoints.
• Ensure workers are happy and productive: Streamline operations for support staff to minimize stress and anxiety associated with email overload, boost morale, and improve employee retention.

How to choose the right email management software

Follow these steps to simplify the decision-making process when selecting an email management tool for your unique needs:

Step 1: Decide where you want to manage your email.

Consider your current workflows and make a decision about which type of tool fits best.

• Within Gmail: Great for teams who love the Gmail interface and want to enhance it with added features without having to manage customer inquiries through multiple tabs and platforms.
  • Example: Keeping  
• Separate web app: Some larger teams who require additional features or customization might prefer to have a separate, dedicated platform for email management. These are usually more expensive and require switching between apps.
  • Examples: Zendesk, Freshdesk
• Downloadable software: Users who need offline access, prefer to self-host, or need a desktop-based email client may opt for downloadable applications.
  • Example: Mailbird 

Step 2: Consider your business size and budget. 

Now that you’ve narrowed down your options, ensure your tools match your needs and budget.

• Small to medium-sized businesses: Growing businesses may benefit from more user-friendly email management software tools that are easier to set up and minimize the need for onboarding or additional training. Such options tend to be more affordable and have the essential features that businesses need.
  • Example: Keeping
• Large business and enterprises: Larger businesses may need to put more emphasis on scalability, customization, advanced features, and detailed analytics. Larger budgets are required for these added features, which are typically offered by dedicated web applications.
  • Examples: Front, Missive, Freshdesk

Step 3: Determine your must-have features.

Do one final check to ensure your chosen tool has the essential features you need:

• Shared Inbox: Do you need a central hub for managing team emails and collaborating on responses? This is crucial for efficient customer support and project management.
• Ticketing System: Do you need to track customer inquiries, assign them to team members, and monitor their progress? A ticketing system brings order and accountability to your support process.
• Basic Organization and Automation: At a minimum, look for features like filtering, labeling, and basic automation rules to help you tame your inbox and save time.
• Real-Time Collaboration: Do you need to work together on emails with features like shared drafts, internal comments, and simultaneous editing? This fosters teamwork and ensures everyone is on the same page.
• Task Management and Delegation: Look for tools that allow you to assign tasks to team members, set deadlines, and track progress directly within your email workflow.
• Performance Metrics: Do you need insights into team performance, such as response times, email volume handled, and individual contributions? Analytics help you identify areas for improvement and optimize your team’s efficiency.
• CRM Integration: Do you need to connect your email with your customer relationship management (CRM) system to get a complete view of customer interactions?
• Advanced Automation: Explore tools with more sophisticated automation capabilities, such as auto-responders, workflow automation, and AI-powered features to streamline repetitive tasks.
• Analytics and Reporting: Do you need to track key metrics like response times, email volume, and customer satisfaction? Robust analytics help you identify areas for improvement and measure the impact of your efforts.

Frequently Asked Questions About Email Management Software

Master your inbox

Email management software makes it easy to streamline communication.

Whether you’re a solopreneur or the CEO of a fast-growing startup, upgrading should be a no-brainer if you’re looking to take back control over your inbox.

With the help of these tools, you can eliminate the need to answer the same questions again and again, plus set up simple rules and processes that cut down on time spent in the inbox.

This gives you and your staff more time and energy to truly connect with your customers and keep operations running smoothly.