Your email address is a universal digital identifier these days, so protecting it is a really important part of cybersecurity. Using just one email for everything is asking for trouble. That's where an email aliasing service like SimpleLogin becomes handy.
But what exactly is SimpleLogin? How does it work? Is it really secure, or just convenient? And what are the cons?
In this guide, you’ll learn:
- What SimpleLogin is and how it protects your identity
- Who’s behind the product (and why that matters)
- Real-life use cases: who it’s for, and when it helps
- Breakdown of its features and pricing
- Its strengths and blind spots
- The best alternatives, and why many users are switching to Atomic Mail
What Is SimpleLogin?
SimpleLogin is a privacy-focused tool that lets you create email aliases. Instead of using your real email, you create a temporary alias. Emails sent to that alias are forwarded to your actual inbox. And if the alias gets spammed, you can just disable or delete it.
This way, you can sign up for online services, newsletters, or job sites without exposing your real email address. No more sketchy mailing lists and data breaches affecting your personal inbox.
Core Architecture: How It Works
SimpleLogin works as a smart forwarding layer. Here’s a simplified process:
- You create an alias: something like newsletter.com123@
- That alias is linked to your real inbox, say alice@atomicmail.io
- When someone emails the alias, SimpleLogin captures it, strips away trackers, and forwards it
- When you reply, the recipient sees your alias, not your real address
Each alias works like an independent node in a relay network, and everything is handled server-side with end-to-end encryption principles, depending on your provider.
Who’s Behind SimpleLogin?
SimpleLogin didn’t come from Big Tech. It started as a side project by Son Nguyen Kim in France (a privacy advocate who wanted to fix one of the internet’s most annoying problems: email identity leaks).
But its breakthrough moment came in 2022 when Proton AG (the company behind ProtonMail and ProtonVPN) acquired SimpleLogin.
So today, Proton SimpleLogin is a part of the Proton ecosystem, and remains a legally distinct entity under French/EU law, while its parent, Proton AG, operates under Swiss law. This structure allows the SimpleLogin team to develop the product independently while benefiting from Proton's resources and security expertise.
This corporate backing brings:
- Improved infrastructure and server security
- Better integration with ProtonMail accounts
- Transparent development (SimpleLogin is open-source and audited)
Still, it’s worth noting: Proton SimpleLogin users operate within Proton’s data framework. If you want complete inbox independence, you might need more than aliasing.
Why Use Email Aliasing Services Like SimpleLogin?
So, why bother with this extra step? Do you really need it? The short answer is an unequivocal yes. The reasons go far beyond just avoiding a bit of spam.
- Defend Against Data Breaches: When a service gets hacked (they often do) the attackers get lists of user emails. If you used an alias, your core email is safe. They get a disposable address you can simply turn off.
- Avoid Tracking & Profiling: Email aliases stop third-party advertisers from linking your signups across sites. Your aliases are unique, disposable, and unlinkable.
- Expose Data Sellers: Have you ever signed up for one service and suddenly started getting emails from multiple others? By using a unique alias for every single service, you can see exactly who is selling your data or has suffered a breach.
- Reduce Spam & Phishing: The moment an alias starts receiving junk, you can disable it. This is particularly useful for fighting phishing attacks, where malicious emails try to trick you into revealing sensitive information. If the email can't reach you, it can't harm you.
So yes, email aliasing is no longer a niche thing. In a world full of data leaks, spam bots, and relentless tracking, this tool offers a sharp yet simple layer of defense.
SimpleLogin’s Features & Pricing Plans
SimpleLogin uses a freemium model, balancing an accessible free plan with a powerful premium tier for advanced users.
Free Plan
Here’s what you get for free:
- 10 active aliases
- 1 mailbox to receive your forwarded messages
- Basic functionality. You get the core service: creating aliases, receiving forwarded emails, and replying anonymously. The essentials are there.
That’s enough to test the waters or run a lightweight privacy setup.
Premium Plan
The premium plan for $36/year (or $4/month) opens up:
- Unlimited aliases
- Multiple mailboxes
- Custom domains
- PGP encryption support for those wanting extra layers
- Catch-all aliases (automatically generate aliases for any domain)
- 5 subdomains
- 50 directories
SimpleLogin: Free vs. Premium Plan Feature Comparison
Is SimpleLogin Truly Private and Secure?
Encryption Standards
All data is encrypted in transit between the user's browser and SimpleLogin's servers using Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocols (v1.2 and v1.3). The optional PGP feature on the premium plan allows end-to-end encryption (E2EE) of email content. When enabled, SimpleLogin encrypts the email with the user's public key before forwarding it, ensuring that the message can only be decrypted by the user in their final mailbox, rendering it unreadable to the destination email provider.
However, aliases by nature involve a degree of handling. Metadata (like timestamps, sender IP (if not stripped by sender), and headers) can still be exposed unless paired with fully private inbox providers.
Logging Policy
The privacy policy is GDPR-compliant and reflects a commitment to minimal data handling.
- Jurisdiction: As a French company with a Swiss parent (Proton AG), SimpleLogin works under EU and Swiss privacy laws.
- Minimal Data Collection: The service collects only the data necessary for functionality, using privacy-respecting analytics (Plausible) and third-party payment processors.
- Email and Log Handling: SimpleLogin does not store the content of forwarded emails; they are processed in memory and deleted once relayed. IP logs are deleted after 7 days, retained only in cases of abuse.
- Data Access: The company does not access user information except for troubleshooting (with consent), investigating abuse, or when compelled by a valid legal order.
Account Security
User accounts are protected by two-factor authentication (2FA) options, supporting both time-based one-time passwords (TOTP) from authenticator apps and the stronger WebAuthn/FIDO standard, which allows the use of hardware security keys like Yubikey.
Open Source
SimpleLogin’s code is available on GitHub. That means any security researcher can inspect how aliases are handled. Bugs don’t hide well in open repositories.
Real-World Privacy Gaps
Let’s not sugarcoat it: If you’re replying to an alias email from your Gmail or Outlook inbox, the benefit is limited. You’re still exposed on the backend. For true anonymity, you’d need:
- An alias (SimpleLogin)
- A private inbox (like Atomic Mail or ProtonMail)
- Encrypted message content
That’s the privacy triangle. If one piece is weak, the whole setup leaks.
Interface & User Experience
A tool's effectiveness depends on its usability. SimpleLogin's UX is delivered via a web dashboard, browser extensions, and mobile apps.
The Dashboard
The web dashboard is the primary interface for managing all features. It provides a full overview of aliases, mailboxes, domains, and settings, with a status panel showing key metrics. From the dashboard, users can create, toggle, and manage aliases and contacts. While powerful, some reviews find the information-dense UI can be unintuitive for beginners.
Browser Extensions
SimpleLogin offers extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and more. However, while recent updates have improved the UI, some users report occasional sluggishness.
Mobile Apps
Native applications for iOS and Android provide on-the-go alias management. The Android app is available both on the Google Play Store and on F-Droid, an alternative app repository focused exclusively on free and open-source software. The apps allow users to view their list of aliases, create new ones, and toggle them on or off. User reviews for the mobile apps are generally positive, praising their simplicity and effectiveness for core tasks.
The User Verdict: A Synthesis of Reviews
Across various platforms, user sentiment for SimpleLogin is positive. It consistently receives high ratings, such as 4.9/5 stars from over 950 ratings on the Apple App Store and 4.8/5 stars from 125 ratings on the Chrome Web Store (as of Jul 7, 2025).
Common Praise: People appreciate how reliable email forwarding is and how it gives them peace of mind. The open-source nature of the service is often cited as the main reason for trusting it, as is the pro-consumer policy of keeping aliases active after a subscription ends.
Recurring Criticisms: Despite the praise, some common points of friction emerge from user reviews. As mentioned, the web UI is sometimes described as unintuitive or clunky, presenting a steeper learning curve for less technical users. The 10-alias limit on the free plan is seen as too restrictive by some, pushing them towards paid plans or competing services sooner than they would like. Finally, occasional bugs or sluggishness in the browser extensions have been reported.
The Limits of SimpleLogin
No tool is perfect. Understanding the limitations of SimpleLogin is not a criticism, but a vital part of recognizing how it fits into your security toolkit.
Where It Shines
- Creating throwaway email addresses in 1 second
- Stopping spam before it hits your inbox
- Keeping your real email private from trackers and marketers
Where It Doesn’t
- You’re still relying on the privacy of your main inbox provider
- No protection from backend surveillance (Gmail sees everything)
- No true zero-access encryption
- Costly paid plan
That’s a crucial point: SimpleLogin email is just a mask. The core engine (your inbox) still runs on someone else’s privacy policy.
Best Alternatives to SimpleLogin
There are quite a few alias tools out there, like AnonAddy and DuckDuckGo Email Protection, but most fall into two camps:
- Too basic (they forward only, with minimal control)
- Too clunky (hard to set up, no mobile support)
So what if you want more than a layer?
What if you want:
- An actual inbox
- End-to-end encryption by default
- No Google, no surveillance capitalism
- Built-in aliasing without bolt-ons
This is where you must consider a comprehensive, privacy-first email provider like Atomic Mail.
Atomic Mail: Email Aliasing + Full Privacy Suite
Atomic Mail isn’t just an alias tool, it’s a full replacement for Gmail and Outlook. You get:
- A real inbox, hosted with zero-access encryption and advanced end-to-end encryption for both internal and external communications
- Built-in email aliases, no browser extension needed
- Seed phrase recovery, not SMS or recovery email – protecting your anonymity
- No ads. No tracking. No logs
- Fully GDPR-compliant email
Unlike Proton SimpleLogin, Atomic Mail doesn’t stop at forwarding. It builds privacy into the foundation.
SimpleLogin vs Atomic Mail: What’s Right for You?
So which should you choose?
If you want:
- A free, fast aliasing layer for Gmail or other email providers – SimpleLogin.
- A full private email ecosystem – Atomic Mail.
SimpleLogin is a clever shield. Atomic Mail is the whole armor.
→ Try Atomic Mail today. Your inbox deserves real privacy, not just a filter. Sign up now.
Final Thoughts: Is SimpleLogin Worth It in 2025?
For many users, SimpleLogin is a great choice. It takes seconds to add a layer of privacy to your everyday browsing.
But for entrepreneurs, journalists, or anyone serious about privacy, it might not go far enough because aliases don’t encrypt. They don’t hide your inbox. And they don’t stop Google from scanning everything behind the scenes.
So yes, SimpleLogin is worth it as a tool.
But if you want true email security with built-in aliases, encrypted storage, and zero surveillance – Atomic Mail is your choice.
Don’t settle for surface-level protection. Build on a solid foundation.
