Welcome to a better internet where privacy and freedom come first
At Proton, our vision is to provide privacy and security for everyone, everywhere. Our business is to protect your privacy, not violate it. That’s why we offer Proton Mail free.
How to create a free email account
Most free email providers give you a free service by invading your privacy — tracking your every move online to sell your personal data to advertisers. You pay for the “free” service with the intimate details of your life.
We explain how to create a genuinely free email account with Proton Mail, the world’s most popular encrypted email service that puts your privacy first.
The best free email with no ads, no tracking
At Proton, our vision is to provide privacy and security for everyone, everywhere. Our business is to protect your privacy, not violate it. That’s why we offer Proton Mail free.
We do not spy on you, target you with ads, or sell your data to anyone. All our funding comes from paying members of the Proton community.
With Proton Mail, your messages and other data are protected by end-to-end and zero-access encryption, so no one but you can read them — not even Proton. With Proton Mail, you can:
- Control access to your data
- Easily import your mail and contacts from Gmail and other providers in a few clicks
- Access your inbox anywhere on any device
- Protect your information with Swiss privacy laws
- Verify our open source and transparent apps
Get a free Proton Mail account and you’ll also get free access to all Proton’s privacy-by-default services: Proton Calendar, Proton Drive, and Proton VPN (new window) .
Sign up for a free email account with Proton Mail
Signing up for Proton Mail is easy and only takes a few minutes. You can usually sign up anonymously without giving an email address or phone number, although we may require human verification in some cases.
To sign up for Proton Mail, you must create a Proton Account. You can then use that username and password to log in to all Proton services.
To sign up for a Proton Account:
1. Go to the Proton Account signup page in a web browser on your computer.
2. In the Username box, enter the username you want to use for your free email address.
3. Choose which domain you would like to use for your address: @proton.me or @protonmail.com (@proton.me is selected by default).
4. In the Password box, enter a password at least eight characters long and type the password in again to confirm.
5. Click Create account.
6. Choose Continue with Free to create your free email account (or Mail Plus if you would like to get extra features and support our mission).
7. If you’re asked to confirm you’re human, tick the I am human box and follow the instructions. Or you can choose Email or SMS to verify you’re human that way.
(Note that if you enter your email or mobile phone number, we only save a cryptographic hash of this personal data. It’s impossible to derive your phone number or email from that hash, and it’s not permanently associated with the account that you create.)
8. Enter an optional display name. This is what people will see when you send them an email. Click Next.
9. Enter an optional email address or phone number that you can use to recover your account if you ever forget or lose your password.
10. Click Save selected or Maybe later, and you’re done!
Choose Proton Mail to go straight to your new secure email account. Or try the other privacy-by-default products that you also get free with your new Proton Account: Proton Calendar, Proton Drive, and Proton VPN.
Get started with your free encrypted email
When you first sign in to Proton Mail, you’ll see our Welcome message.
Click Next to customize the look of your Proton Mail.
Click Next to start using Proton Mail and Proton’s other privacy-by-default services.
On this page
- The best free email with no ads, no tracking
- Sign up for a free email account with Proton Mail
- Get started with your free encrypted email
Welcome to a better internet where privacy and freedom come first
With Proton, your data belongs to you, not tech companies, governments, or hackers
Our encrypted services help you fight for a better internet that is secure and private by default.
Proton is privacy you can trust
Proton provides easy-to-use encrypted email, calendar, file storage, and VPN built on the principle of your data, your rules.
Your privacy is ensured by strong encryption, open-source code, and Swiss privacy laws.
Protect your communications with encrypted email that is private by default.
Your calendar is a record of your life. Keep it safe with our encrypted calendar.
Secure your files with encrypted cloud storage that gives you control of your data.
Your gateway to online freedom. Access blocked content and browse privately.
Proton Pass secures your passwords and identity with end-to-end encryption.
Fundamentally different
Most tech companies, whether it’s Google or Apple, define privacy as “nobody can exploit your data except for us.” – We disagree. We believe nobody should be able to exploit your data.
Our technology and business are based upon this fundamentally stronger definition of privacy, backed also by Swiss privacy laws.
Privacy for a better world
At Proton, we believe that a better world begins with privacy, and our mission is at the heart of everything we do. Privacy isn’t just something we talk about; it’s a deeply held core belief and the reason Proton was created in the first place.
We believe in people before profits, and we use our resources to fight for an open internet that promotes freedom of speech and freedom of information.
Over 100 million people and businesses have signed up for Proton
End-to-end encryption
Our end-to-end encryption and zero-access encryption means that no one (not even Proton) has the technical means to access your data without your permission.
We don’t sell ads and can’t share your data. At Proton, privacy isn’t a promise, it’s mathematically ensured.
Swiss privacy
Proton is based in Switzerland. This means all user data is protected by strict Swiss privacy laws.
We are a neutral and safe haven for your personal data, committed to defending your freedom.
Security made easy
Proton’s encrypted services are so simple and intuitive that anyone can use them.
Easy Switch lets you instantly import and encrypt your data from Google, Outlook, or other services in just a couple of clicks.
Open source & audited
As a company created by former scientists, we believe strongly that trust is earned through transparency and peer review.
All our apps are open source and independently audited by security experts so that anyone can use them, inspect them, and trust them.
One account, any device
Proton apps are available on all devices (Android, iPhone and iPad, Windows, Mac, Linux, and more), and with one Proton account, you can use all of our privacy-by-default services.
Proton apps have advanced anti-censorship technologies built-in, so you can access your email, files, calendar, passwords and VPN even from countries with limited online freedom.
Free forever
We believe that privacy is a human right, and that’s why Proton services are always available for free and our encryption technology is free software.
Proton has no ads and does not sell your data. You can support the service by upgrading to a paid account with more features.
An alternative to the ad-based revenue model of free services like Gmail which actively scan your emails to deliver relevant ads to you online.
Wall Street Journal
ProtonMail hosts its servers in Switzerland. so all user data is protected by strict Swiss privacy laws.
ProtonVPN has staked its reputation as a privacy-focused company.
Our story begins at CERN, where the web was born
Proton was founded in 2014 by scientists who met at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and shared a vision for a more secure and private Internet. We believe in technical excellence, integrity, and transparency.
Proton is led by scientists, including Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, and we work for the public good.
Built by the community, for the community
Proton is a community-first organization, created through a public crowdfunding campaign, and built with community input. To this day, Proton’s only source of revenue is subscriptions from users.
We exist only to serve you, not advertisers or other third parties. By choosing Proton, you join a movement of millions of volunteers, contributors, and users creating an Internet that puts people first.
Secure your business
In addition to protecting millions of individuals, Proton secures more than 10,000 businesses, including some of the world’s largest public and private organizations.
Learn how Proton can improve the security of your business and comply with data protection and privacy laws.