Webmail Smackdown!

Which Webmail is Best?

Are you still using email software that chains you to your desktop? Consider dropping Outlook, Eudora or Thunderbird, and switch to a web-based email service that allows you to send any receive email from any computer or mobile device with an Internet connection. Yahoo, Hotmail and Gmail are the three most popular webmail services, so let's take a look at each and see which is best for you.

While there is really no definitive study to determine which of the three is most popular, there is no shortage of pundits armed with statistics and opinions. In one study from April 2009, Yahoo held a 56% market share, Hotmail (which is also known as Windows Live HotMail) came in second with a 19% and Gmail had an 11% share. Another study claims that while Yahoo and Gmail continue to grow, Hotmail usage is on a decline. Interestingly, users from the Yahoo Mail website make up a substantial portion of traffic coming into Gmail. That's likely the result of many users with both Yahoo and Gmail accounts.

Yahoo Mail

Yahoo Mail offers an easy web interface to send, receive and organize your email. With unlimited storage, you can keep all your emails and never have to worry about deleting old stuff to make room for new messages. Mail filtering and folders allow you to sort and file your messages upon arrival. The reading pane lets you preview messages before you open them, and with Tabs you can have multiple messages open at once.

Yahoo gives you SpamGuard, virus protection and phishing protection for security, and insists that you sign in every two weeks. Yahoo recently added the ability to chat from your inbox, and mobile accessibility. Other features for the free email include simplified image sharing and news in your inbox. The AddressGuard features lets you create temporary disposable email addresses to use when you don't want to give out your primary address. Another positive to the free service is that you can send larger emails, up to 10MB. That's handy if you email a lot of photos. Just be forewarned that some people won't be able to receive emails that large.

Like all the other webmail contenders, Yahoo Mail is free. But if you're willing to pay $20/year, you can skip the graphical ads and get POP access, mail forwarding and ability to send 20MB messages.

Hotmail

Hotmail was one of the first webmail services. After launching in 1996, and being acquired by Microsoft a year later, it has become one of the most popular online services, with about 250 million users. If you're already using Microsoft Outlook at work, you'll feel at home with Hotmail because it has a similar look and feel.

Hotmail has spam filtering, virus and phishing protection and integrates with Messenger for chat. The preview pane, automatic address completion, spell check and calendar features provide a rich user interface. The ability to drag & drop messages to folders or the trash, as well as right-clicking to reply, delete or print are features that you might not expect in a web-based tool.

Hotmail starts you off with 5GB of storage and increases as you need it. And if you have multiple email accounts, you can use the POP3 feature to pull messages from other accounts into a folder or your inbox. Hotmail gives you options to block sites and senders and the junk folder blocks images and content that it feels may be at risk. MS is also working the ability to add contacts from social networking sites like Facebook.

Hotmail Plus ($20/year) gives you an ad-free interface, the ability send files up to 20MB, offers more custom filters to organize your mail, allows larger distribution lists, and lets you forward your Hotmail to other accounts.

Gmail

Google's Gmail service is a bit more complex than Hotmail or Yahoo but with their organizational features, it's probably the best choice for people who like to have a lot of control over their inbox. The thing I like best about Gmail is that you can do Google-esque searching of your email folders. Just enter a word or phrase, and you can quickly find all emails that match. Gmail also organizes all messages with the same sender and subject into a threaded "conversation" so that you can keep down the clutter in your inbox. This also makes it easier to delete all messages that are part of a thread.

The service has built-in chat, either by IM, voice or video. Other features include the ability to use it on your cell phone, ever-expanding message storage, keyboard shortcuts, and quick contacts to find your buds more easily. Add to that "undo send" if you think you sent a message you shouldn't have, and attachment previews without having to download. I also like the quick links that magically appear on the right side of the screen. If Gmail sees a street address in the text, it will put a link to Google Maps. Similarly, it will link up UPS/Fedex tracking numbers, or give you an "Add to calendar" link when a message contains event information.

There is, however, a negative to Gmail. All of the bells, whistles, labels and stars might make tempt you to spend more time playing with the technology than actually writing an email. A quick look at What's new with Gmail is almost more fun than should be allowed.

Webmail Feature Comparison

So which webmail is best for you? It really depends on your needs. Check out the table below which summarizes the major features of each webmail service, and pick the one that matches your style.

	Yahoo Mail	Hotmail	Gmail
Address completion	YES	YES	YES
Anti-Virus Protection	YES	YES	YES
Change From Address	NO	YES	YES
Disposable Addresses	YES	NO	NO
Drag & Drop	YES	YES	NO
Filtering and Folders	YES	YES	YES
Integrated Calendar	YES	YES	YES
Integrated Chat	YES	YES	YES
Keyboard Shortcuts	YES	NO	YES
Max Message Size	10MB	10MB	20MB
Message Threading	NO	NO	YES
Mobile Phone Access	YES	YES	YES
Multiple Messages	YES	NO	NO
Phishing Protection	YES	YES	YES
POP Access	$$	$$	Free
Preview Pane	YES	YES	NO
Quickview Attachments	NO	NO	YES
Related Links	NO	NO	YES
Right-click Actions	NO	YES	NO
Search	YES	YES	YES
Spam Filtering	YES	YES	YES
Spell Check	YES	YES	YES
Storage Limit	Unlim	5GB+	5GB+
Undo Send	NO	NO	YES

What's YOUR favorite webmail service? Post a comment below and tell me why...