What a business email really costs
Updated
"Cheap professional email" can mean four different things: free Gmail, your own domain with a mail service, Microsoft 365, or a ready-made short address. They cost different amounts and you get different things. Here is the comparison, with prices checked against the providers on October 1, 2026.
The comparison
Prices below are per user, in US dollars, before tax, as listed on each provider's page on October 1, 2026. Domain registration is extra for every option that uses your own domain.
| Option | Annual commitment, per user per month | Monthly billing, per user per month | Setup | What you own |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Gmail | $0 | $0 | Minutes | Nothing. The address belongs to the provider's account system. |
| Own domain plus Google Workspace Business Starter | $7 | $8.40 | Longer: buy the domain, verify it, add DNS records | The domain |
| Own domain plus Microsoft 365 Business Basic | $7 | $8.40 | Longer: same steps | The domain |
| Own domain plus Fastmail Business Standard | $5 on a 12 month term | Not checked | Same steps | The domain |
| Own domain plus Zoho Mail Lite | $1 | No monthly plan | Same steps | The domain |
| Own domain plus Proton Mail Essentials | $6.99 on yearly billing | Not checked | Same steps | The domain |
| City .co address from us (personal name) | $190 a year, which is $19 a month | $19 a month | About five minutes, no DNS | Your mail and contacts. We own the domain. |
One, three and five people for a year
The arithmetic is the per-user monthly price times 12 months times the number of users, on the annual price. Domain fee and tax are not included.
| Service | 1 user | 3 users | 5 users |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Workspace Business Starter ($7 x 12 = $84 per user) | $84 | $252 | $420 |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic ($7 x 12 = $84 per user) | $84 | $252 | $420 |
| Fastmail Business Standard ($60 per user per 12 months) | $60 | $180 | $300 |
| Zoho Mail Lite ($1 x 12 = $12 per user) | $12 | $36 | $60 |
| Proton Mail Essentials ($83.88 per user per 12 months) | $83.88 | $251.64 | $419.40 |
| Google or Microsoft on monthly billing ($8.40 x 12 = $100.80 per user) | $100.80 | $302.40 | $504 |
| City .co addresses from us, one personal name each ($190 per address) | $190 | $570 | $950 |
The last row is per address, not per person, and each address is a separate name on a city domain. The tiers are not equal. Zoho Mail Lite, for example, has 5 GB of storage, while Google Starter lists 30 GB per user and Microsoft Basic lists 1 TB of cloud storage per user. Compare what you get, not only the price.
Where the numbers come from
- Google Workspace: Google's pricing page lists Business Starter at $7 per user per month on an annual commitment and $8.40 on the flexible monthly option. The page also shows limited-time introductory discounts for new customers, which we leave out because they change and end.
- Microsoft 365: Microsoft's Business Basic page lists $7.00 per user per month paid yearly, or $8.40 per user per month on a monthly subscription. Microsoft's pricing update notice shows Business Basic rose from $6.00 effective July 1, 2026.
- Fastmail: its pricing page lists the Business Standard plan at $5 per user per month, $60 for 12 months, and says it can make custom business addresses with a domain.
- Zoho Mail: its pricing page lists Mail Lite at US$1 per user per month billed annually, with no monthly plan, and 5 GB of mail storage. Zoho also lists a free plan for one domain and up to 5 users, but says it is only in select data centers and does not include IMAP, POP or ActiveSync, so check availability when you sign up.
- Proton: its business pricing page lists Mail Essentials at $6.99 per user per month, billed at $83.88 every 12 months. Proton shows sale badges that come and go, so check the page.
- Our prices: $19 a month or $190 a year for a personal name in every city.
We have left out a figure for the domain registration fee. It varies by registrar and by ending (.com, .net, .co and so on), and renews yearly, so look at the registrar's current price before you count it in.
Year two: renewal prices can differ
A price you see at signup is not always the price you pay at renewal. Introductory discounts, like the ones Google shows to new customers, end. Domain renewals can also cost a different amount than the first year, depending on the registrar. For one reference point, Cloudflare's registrar page says registration, transfer and renewal prices are always at or below what registries and ICANN charge it, and that it does not mark up domain prices. We read that as a sign that renewal pricing is something registrars compete on and that you should check, though that reading is ours, not Cloudflare's. Before you buy, find the renewal price, not just the first-year price, and put a calendar reminder a month before it renews.
On our side, the price is locked for 2 years from signup, and there is no domain for you to renew.
A warning about fake domain renewal invoices
If you own a domain, expect to get notices that look like renewal bills. Some are fake. The FTC warns small businesses that scammers send fake invoices for things you never ordered, such as domain registration, and says to check invoices closely and know who you are dealing with. ICANN says on its domain owner guidance page that it will never send a domain renewal request, and that you should contact your registrar directly. Report fake invoices at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
What the table does not show
Trade and category names
Names such as plumber@ or realtor@ cost 3x the city base: $147, $207 or $297 a month, depending on the city. There is only one of each per city. That is a different product from a $19 personal name, and a different decision.
Per-seat math
Google and Microsoft charge per user. One user is $84 a year plus your domain on the annual price. Five users is five times that, as the table above shows. Ours is built for one person or a small business, so if you need many staff addresses on one brand, the per-user model on your own domain is the better fit, and it gets relatively cheaper as you grow.
What those suites include
Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 are not just email. They come with calendars, shared documents, video meetings and storage. If you will use those, the price is not only for the mailbox. Our product is a mailbox, so compare it to the email part only.
Price protection
Our price is locked for 2 years from signup. Microsoft's own $6 to $7 change shows that list prices move, so check the current number when you buy and again at renewal.
What you own, and why it matters
This is the biggest difference and it is not about dollars.
- Own domain: you own yourcompany.com. Change email provider whenever you like and your address stays the same. That is the right long-term foundation for a brand.
- Free Gmail: you have an address, but you are tied to that provider.
- Ours: you rent the address. If you cancel, the name is held for 90 days and then released. Your mail is yours: here is how to export it.
How to choose
- Almost nobody emails you: stay on free Gmail.
- You want a short, local, memorable address for yourself or a tiny business, today: a city .co address fits. See the home page to check a name, or the email address ideas tool for patterns.
- You want your own brand domain, or several staff seats: buy your own domain and use Google Workspace or Microsoft 365. It is the better choice, and we would tell you the same if you asked.
Cost of the first year, side by side
For one person, the first year on a city .co personal name is $190. On your own domain with Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, it is $84 plus the yearly domain fee. The own-domain route is lower on mailbox price for a single seat. What you pay for with a city address is the short, local name and the missing setup. Whether that is worth the difference depends on how much a name like [email protected] is worth to you, which only you can say.
Related reading
Deciding between Gmail and a business address? Gmail or a business email address. Want a no-domain route? A professional email address without buying a domain.