# LotsMail vs Fastmail

Source: https://lotsmail.to/blog/lotsmail-vs-fastmail
Published: 2026-10-27T00:30:46.584495+00:00

Fastmail charges per person: Standard, the first business plan that takes your own domain, is $5 a user a month billed yearly ($6 monthly). LotsMail charges per domain: $5 a month or $50 a year for the whole team, with unlimited mailboxes and teammates. Pick LotsMail when everyone on a domain should share one price; pick Fastmail when you need mail apps, calendar and contacts today.

I opened Fastmail's pricing, business and help pages on 26 October 2026 for everything below, and rechecked LotsMail's pricing the same day. Prices are US dollars before tax, list prices only.

## LotsMail vs Fastmail at a glance

| | **LotsMail** | **Fastmail** |
|---|---|---|
| You pay for | Each domain | Each user |
| Entry price with your own domain | Starter $5 a month or $50 a year for 1 domain | Business Standard $6 a user a month, or $5 billed yearly. Business Basic ($4, or $3 yearly) doesn't list custom domains |
| 5 people on one domain, yearly | $50 a year (Starter) | $300 a year on Standard |
| 10 people on one domain, yearly | $50 a year (Starter) | $600 a year on Standard |
| Mailboxes and teammates | Unlimited on every plan | One paid user each |
| Storage | 10 GB shared per domain on every plan; add-ons for more | Standard: 60 GB per user (50 GB mail, calendar and contacts, 10 GB files); Professional: 150 GB per user |
| Shared addresses | Shared mailboxes like support@, unlimited, access set per mailbox | Shared addresses like support@ on every business plan, plus shared calendars and a shared company address book |
| Several domains | Starter 1 domain, Pro 5, Business 20; extra domains at your plan's rate | Standard and Professional allow 100 domains plus 1 per user |
| Mail apps | Coming soon | Third-party apps (Outlook, iPhone Mail) on Standard and up, plus Fastmail's own mobile apps |
| Calendar and contacts | No calendar | Included on every plan |
| Importing old mail | Mail only, over IMAP with an app password from Gmail, Google Workspace, Zoho, Yahoo or any IMAP host; your old provider keeps its copy | Migrate mail, calendars and contacts |
| ChatGPT or Claude | MCP and REST on every plan; read, draft or send set per mailbox; sending off until you allow it | MCP server at `api.fastmail.com/mcp`; read-only, write or send access chosen when you connect; no attachments over MCP |
| Built-in AI | None (you bring your own assistant) | None; Fastmail says it hasn't built AI into the inbox |
| Free option | 5,000 free credits, valid 90 days, no card | 30-day trial, no card |
| Compliance | Not offered | Email retention archive on Professional |

*Fastmail facts checked on 26 October 2026 on fastmail.com and fastmail.help. LotsMail facts from our live pricing and docs, checked 26 October 2026.*

## Where LotsMail is the better choice

### The whole team on one price

Fastmail adds a user for every person you add. Five people on Standard are $300 a year and ten are $600. On LotsMail Starter the whole domain is $50 a year, or $5 a month, with unlimited mailboxes, addresses and teammates. Hiring someone, or adding a role address like orders@, changes nothing on the bill.

Storage works differently, so compare it before you decide. Fastmail gives each user their own 60 GB on Standard. LotsMail gives the domain one shared pool of 10 GB on every plan, and add-ons for more storage or sending are on the pricing page. Plans differ in how many domains they cover: Pro is $20 a month or $200 a year for 5 domains, and Business $60 or $600 for 20. [See pricing](https://lotsmail.to/pricing).

### Shared inboxes with access per mailbox

On LotsMail, support@, sales@ or projects@ is another mailbox on the domain, included in the price. For each one you choose who can read it, who can read and send, and who has full control. Team members see only the mailboxes they're added to, owners included. If an owner gives themselves access to a private mailbox, that's recorded and shown to the people who use it. The difference between this and a mailing list is in [shared inbox vs group email](https://lotsmail.to/blog/shared-inbox-vs-group-email).

### A switch for your AI agent on every mailbox

LotsMail works with the AI agent you already use. ChatGPT, Claude, Claude Code, Codex, Cursor or any MCP client connects to `https://api.lotsmail.to/mcp` with your Lots sign-in, and agents without MCP use the [REST API](https://api.lotsmail.to/docs.md). For each mailbox you choose **read**, **draft** or **send**. Sending by agents is off until you turn it on, so replies wait in Drafts until you approve them. An agent can never send from a mailbox you can't send from yourself.

Fastmail has a real MCP server too, and it's a good one: you add its URL to your AI client, approve an OAuth screen and pick read-only, write or send access. LotsMail's difference is where the limit lives. It's set per mailbox in the dashboard, so one mailbox can be read-only for the assistant while another allows drafts. [Setup steps](https://lotsmail.to/mcp).

### Mailboxes that can only talk to the people you choose

An owner or admin can restrict any LotsMail mailbox to receive only from listed senders and send only to listed recipients, as exact addresses or a whole domain like `*@yourclient.com`. Inbound mail is checked against the sender's authenticated domain, and every To, Cc and Bcc is checked before a send, whether it comes from the inbox, the API or an agent. A contractor or an AI agent can work in a mailbox that only reaches your team or one client.

### Built for agencies with client domains

Each client gets its own workspace with its own domains and mailboxes. Client staff sign in as mailbox users, free and unlimited, without a LotsTech account, on a webmail address with the client's name, logo and colour or on one agency address. Your agency manages the mailboxes but can't read a client's mail unless given access to that mailbox. Each client domain has its own storage and sending allowance. More in [business email for agencies](https://lotsmail.to/blog/business-email-for-agencies).

### Keep your DNS and your website, and know what happens if you stop paying

You keep your DNS provider and your site. Add the records LotsMail shows you, then point mail when you're ready. SPF, DKIM and DMARC are checked for you, each send shows its delivery status, and bounces are reported. If a payment lapses, sending stops at once, incoming mail keeps arriving for 14 days and then pauses, and your mail is never deleted. It all resumes when you pay.

## Where Fastmail fits better

Fastmail is an independent email service that sells itself on privacy, and for many teams it's the right pick:

- **Mail apps, calendar and contacts today.** Standard and Professional work with third-party apps such as Outlook and iPhone Mail, and Fastmail has its own mobile apps with offline support. Calendars and contacts are on every plan, including shared calendars and a shared company address book. On LotsMail, mail apps are coming soon and there is no calendar, so today you read mail in the browser or through your assistant.
- **Bringing your old mail across.** Fastmail's business page advertises easy migration of mail, calendars and contacts. LotsMail imports mail only, over IMAP with an app password from Gmail, Google Workspace, Zoho, Yahoo or any IMAP host, so calendars and contacts stay behind. Your current provider keeps its copy, and new mail arrives in LotsMail once you point your domain to it.
- **Several domains for a few people.** Fastmail doesn't charge per domain: Standard and Professional allow 100 domains plus one for every user, so a small team with many domains pays per person only. LotsMail covers 1, 5 or 20 domains by plan and charges extra domains at your plan's rate.
- **Storage per person.** Standard gives every user 60 GB, and Professional 150 GB, so a team with large mailboxes has more room than a domain's shared 10 GB.
- **Retention and support.** Professional adds an email retention archive, and every plan lists 24/7 support from real people.
- **Familiar features.** Scheduled send, snooze, masked email addresses and integrations with 1Password and Dropbox are on the plans.

LotsMail isn't a Fastmail replacement for people who live in a mail app and a calendar. It's business email on your own domain for a whole team, priced per domain.

## Which one should you choose?

- **Choose LotsMail** if five or more people or role addresses share a domain, you're an agency that wants a workspace per client with access per mailbox, you're happy with a full inbox in the browser on every device, and you'd like ChatGPT or Claude to sort and draft with a switch for each mailbox.
- **Choose Fastmail** if people must use Outlook or Apple Mail today, you need calendar and contacts in the same account, you want calendars and contacts brought across along with your mail, or you're a few people with many domains.

For more options on both sides, see [Zoho Mail alternatives](https://lotsmail.to/blog/zoho-mail-alternatives), [how LotsMail compares with Microsoft 365](https://lotsmail.to/blog/lotsmail-vs-microsoft-365) and [business email providers with MCP support](https://lotsmail.to/blog/business-email-providers-with-mcp-support).

## Moving a domain from Fastmail to LotsMail

Domains, DNS, mailboxes, team access and billing are yours in the LotsMail dashboard, which does the whole job on its own. Your assistant can walk you through it and then take over the inbox work:

1. Sign in at [lotsmail.to](https://lotsmail.to) and add your domain. New accounts get 5,000 free credits, valid 90 days, no card.
2. Ask your assistant for the setup steps, then add the records at your DNS provider.
3. Create the mailboxes and shared inboxes you need, invite your team and set access per mailbox.
4. Point mail to LotsMail when you're ready. New mail arrives in LotsMail from then on. To bring your old mail across, open the mailbox in the console, choose Import mail and sign in to Fastmail over IMAP with an app password. The import reads your mail and doesn't delete anything at Fastmail; Trash, Spam and Drafts aren't imported, and calendars and contacts aren't either, so keep your Fastmail account until you've saved what you need.
5. Connect ChatGPT or Claude from the [connect page](https://lotsmail.to/mcp) and choose read, draft or send for each mailbox.

Prompts to try once it's connected:

> In LotsMail, give me the steps to connect my domain and the link to finish it.

> In LotsMail, open the support@ mailbox. List the unread threads, tell me who is waiting on us, and write a reply draft for each one. Don't send anything.

The first uses `start_domain_setup`; the second uses `list_mailboxes`, `list_threads`, `get_thread` and `create_draft`. More in [connecting ChatGPT or Claude to your business email](https://lotsmail.to/blog/connect-chatgpt-or-claude-to-business-email).

## FAQ

### Is LotsMail a good Fastmail alternative for a team?

Yes, if the team shares one domain and doesn't need a mail app or calendar yet. LotsMail Starter is $50 a year for the whole domain, against $60 a year per user on Fastmail Standard, with unlimited mailboxes, addresses and teammates. If people must use Outlook or Apple Mail today, Fastmail fits better.

### How much does Fastmail cost for a business?

On 26 October 2026 Fastmail's business plans were Basic $4 a user a month ($3 billed yearly), Standard $6 ($5 yearly) and Professional $10 ($9 yearly). Basic doesn't list custom domains; Standard and Professional do. Each plan is per user, with a 30-day free trial and no card.

### Does Fastmail work with ChatGPT and Claude?

Yes. Fastmail has an MCP server at api.fastmail.com/mcp. You approve an OAuth screen and choose read-only, write or send access, and attachments aren't supported over MCP. LotsMail has its own MCP server and REST API on every plan, where you choose read, draft or send access for each mailbox and sending by agents stays off until you turn it on.

### Can I use Outlook with LotsMail like I do with Fastmail?

Not yet. Mail apps over IMAP and SMTP are coming soon. Today LotsMail works in the browser on any phone, tablet or computer, and through ChatGPT, Claude or any MCP client. Fastmail's Standard and Professional plans work with third-party apps now.

### Can I move my Fastmail mail to LotsMail?

Yes, the mail. An owner or admin can import it from a mailbox in the LotsMail console over IMAP with an app password. Calendars and contacts aren't imported, Trash, Spam and Drafts are left behind, and Fastmail keeps its copy, so keep your Fastmail account until you've saved what you need. Without an import, new mail arrives in LotsMail when you point your domain to it and old mail stays in Fastmail.

### Does LotsMail have a calendar like Fastmail?

No. LotsMail has no calendar. Fastmail includes calendars and contacts on every plan, with shared calendars for teams.

### What happens to my email if I stop paying?

On LotsMail, sending stops at once, incoming mail keeps arriving for 14 days and then pauses, and your mail is never deleted. It all resumes when you pay.

## Sources (all opened 26 October 2026)

- LotsMail: [pricing](https://lotsmail.to/pricing), [connect page](https://lotsmail.to/mcp), [skill](https://lotsmail.to/skill.md), [API docs](https://api.lotsmail.to/docs.md), [tool list](https://api.lotsmail.to/tools.json)
- Fastmail: [pricing](https://www.fastmail.com/pricing/), [Fastmail for business](https://www.fastmail.com/business/), [account limits](https://www.fastmail.help/hc/en-us/articles/1500000277382-Account-limits), [connecting AI tools via Fastmail's MCP server](https://www.fastmail.help/hc/en-us/articles/15869557281295-Connecting-AI-tools-via-Fastmail-s-MCP-server), [an MCP server for Fastmail](https://www.fastmail.com/blog/an-mcp-server-for-fastmail/)