Microsoft Exchange vs ProtonMail comparison

Microsoft and Proton Technologies are both solutions in the Email Applications category. Microsoft is ranked #3 with an average rating of 7.9, while Proton Technologies is ranked #10 with an average rating of 8.5. Microsoft holds a 10.6% mindshare in EA, compared to Proton Technologies’s 7.4% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 66% of Proton Technologies users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Exchange

Read 95 Microsoft Exchange reviews

3,412 Views
2,832 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

ProtonMail

Read 2 ProtonMail reviews

1,310 Views
1,310 Comparison Views

66% willing to recommend

Microsoft Exchange

ProtonMail

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Microsoft Exchange and ProtonMail based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Email Applications solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Exchange vs. ProtonMail Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Exchange vs. ProtonMail

December 2025

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Helped 881,227 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Exchange

Ranking in Email Applications

3rd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Wireless Email (2nd)

ProtonMail

Ranking in Email Applications

10th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Email Applications category, the mindshare of Microsoft Exchange is 10.6%, down from 11.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ProtonMail is 7.4%, up from 3.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Email Applications Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Exchange	10.6%
ProtonMail	7.4%
Other	82.0%

Email Applications

Featured Reviews

SaqibJavaid

Manager IT Support at Naubahar Bottling Company (Pvt.) Ltd. Gujranwala Pakistan

Efficient email management with seamless integration

We previously used Microsoft Exchange but have moved to an MDN email solution due to cost and user growth Microsoft Exchange is a user-friendly and easy-to-deploy solution, which is beneficial for handling emails even without professional support. It is effective in managing email integration…

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reviewer68329471

Media Content Creator Intern

Trust and anonymity play a key role in secure communications

I am uncertain about the two-factor authentication feature. I have had integrations with other Proton services and have used Proton VPN once, though it has limited features. Simple Mail, which was acquired by ProtonMail, has been very useful for me. The pricing is moderate. I have not used any paid services from ProtonMail. It is not very costly, but I have not used any premium services. I am a customer of ProtonMail. I would rate ProtonMail an eight out of ten due to their transparency and the utility of their simple login feature. My job and company name should remain hidden.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"Communication is the most valuable feature of the solution."

"We've been using Exchange as an email platform. Our clients require multi-country, multi-regional email collaboration with controlled mail flow. The most valuable feature is the capability of message tracking and the protection of user data."

"Microsoft Exchange is a user-friendly and easy-to-deploy solution, which is beneficial for handling emails even without professional support."

"It gives me benefit in terms of integration with other services such as SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, and OneDrive. It makes my work much easier."

"It is stable."

"The solution can scale well."

"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Exchange is the email storage is on the cloud. We don't have to delete emails often."

"It's user-friendly."

More Microsoft Exchange pros

"The auto encryption of attachments is valuable."

"What I appreciate most about ProtonMail is that they are trusted, which is why I choose them."

Cons

"The solution should be easier to deploy."

"I think it could be more scalable."

"There are limitations in terms of the number of emails that can be sent in a minute, which makes it a little difficult for the marketing folks."

"They keep making all these changes, and our system was down for four or five days. They finally got it up, but there are still lots of quirks."

"The filtering of spam needs significant improvement, as many spam emails are not getting detected."

"The only thing that could be improved is the pricing."

"We are not able to use Microsoft Teams due to connection issues. Thus, the product integration with Teams could be improved."

"We would prefer to be able to manage the solution on the cloud."

More Microsoft Exchange cons

"One improvement could be the integration between ProtonMail and Proton Pass, allowing sharing of specific secrets via email."

"I think it is good but I feel that only tech-savvy people use ProtonMail. It is not that popular among other people."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The platform has a reasonable price."

"This solution is expensive."

"Since my company is on Microsoft Cloud, we pay for the licenses per user. Compared to volume licensing, I would say the present licensing cost is not expensive."

"It's a little bit expensive."

"Microsoft Exchange itself does not require a license, but users who will have mailboxes will require a license. It depends on the number of users to choose which license. If you exceed 2,000 mailboxes, it's preferable to get the enterprise license."

"There is an annual cost to use Microsoft Exchange, and the price could be less expensive."

"It is not expensive."

"The price of Microsoft Exchange is reasonable."

More Microsoft Exchange pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Comms Service Provider

23%

Educational Organization

Computer Software Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	41
Midsize Enterprise	28
Large Enterprise	35

No data available

Questions from the Community

How does Zimbra Collaboration compare with Microsoft Exchange?

Zimbra is a free, open source collaborative software suite. The features I like best are the ease of integration and the email, calendar, and collaboration server with web interface. In addition, I...

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What do you like most about Microsoft Exchange?

The initial setup was straightforward and fast.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange?

I am aware of pricing aspects, and I would say it is affordable for what it is.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ProtonMail?

The pricing is competitive, offering good value on the average plan. It’s approximately $100 for annual billing.

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What needs improvement with ProtonMail?

In terms of what can be improved in ProtonMail, I think it is good but I feel that only tech-savvy people use ProtonMail. It is not that popular among other people. Therefore, we do not use it for ...

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What is your primary use case for ProtonMail?

My use cases include using ProtonMail for Drive occasionally for storing files. After some time, I stopped using that feature. Primarily, I use it for sending emails when I want to maintain anonymi...

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HCL Notes vs Microsoft Exchange

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Microsoft Exchange Online vs ProtonMail

Compared 9% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Exchange

January 2026

Download Microsoft Exchange product report

Buyer's Guide

Email Applications

January 2026

Download ProtonMail product report

Also Known As

Exchange, MS Exchange

No data available

Overview

Built to deliver the enterprise-grade security and reliability that businesses require, Microsoft Exchange provides email, calendar and contacts on your PC, phone and web browser.

Microsoft

ProtonMail is the world‘s largest encrypted email provider, with over 11 million users trusting us to secure their data every day. We are the email service of choice for security-conscious enterprises.

Proton Technologies

Sample Customers

Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Scitec Nutrition, British Airways, InnoGames, Osteology Foundation, Franz Haniel & Cie. GmbH, NTC Contracting

Wall street journal,The New york times, The Gurdian, Forbes, Fox News

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Exchange vs. ProtonMail

December 2025

Free Report: Microsoft Exchange vs. ProtonMail

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Exchange vs. ProtonMail and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.

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