Gmail is probably the most widely used email service today. But now that there are only a few of them competing for the top rank, it has seen some worthy competition. A close contender is Microsoft’s Outlook, which absorbed Hotmail, one of the hottest email options during its time.
Together, Gmail and Outlook have a total of over a billion users. Both email services also manage emails in an almost similar manner, but with a few distinct features.
Gmail
Gmail takes the spot for being user-friendly and easy on the internet connection. Even with a weak signal you can still log in to your account and view your emails, because of its lightweight minimal design.
It also has good filtering options that allow you to view your emails in different ways. Messages received are also automatically sorted according to Primary, Social and Promotions. Anyone who receives email by the hundreds or even thousands, find the automatic sorting time-saving. There may be a few hits and miss. But, most of the time, it’s a hit.
Outlook
Microsoft Outlook, on the other hand, is preferred for its familiarity and organization. People who have been using the Outlook software over the years, wouldn’t think about leaving its familiar design and layout. The webmail service has also changed its look, going for something clean and easy on the eyes, with its Blue and White theme and nice clean lines.
When it comes to organizational tools, Outlook has plenty. The virtual folders, mail and conversations grouping makes it easy to keep the inbox tidy and clutter-free. It also has a flexible search that lets you search an email using a subject, recipient or even just a word or sentence in an email. In Outlook, updates on email messages, scheduling, to-do list and social networking are also kept in one place, for easy checking.
Some would argue, however, that Outlook’s approach to organizing emails as more complicated than that of Gmail. Its primary method of organization is to use folders to separate one email type to another. In fact, it has a feature called Clutter, a folder where emails of less importance are moved and kept, until you decide what to do with them. You also have the option to create more folders similar to what you normally do when organizing documents on your computer. None of this sounds like rocket science, but it is more complicated when compared to Gmail.
Security is also one of Outlook’s strongest points, with measures and features designed to filter spam, block phishing attempts and tackle online fraud better than other email services.
A stark difference between Gmail and Outlook is the storage allocation. The former offers 15GB of space, while the latter only allocates 5GB for each user. That’s a stark 10GB difference. So if you are leaning towards more storage space, Gmail is the ideal choice.
There is one thing that both Gmail and Outlook have – ads. But you can turn them off by adjusting a few settings or paying a small fee, respectively.
In the Gmail vs. Outlook.com comparison, the winner will greatly depend on a user’s preference. Which one do you like using the most?
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