7 Best SaneBox Alternatives (Tested and Compared)

SaneBox is a solid email management tool that uses AI to sort your inbox and filter out the noise. But at $7-36/month depending on your plan, it's not cheap—especially when the lower-tier plans only give you access to 2-6 features. Some users also complain that the AI needs significant training time and that the "SaneBlackHole" feature doesn't actually unsubscribe you from anything—it just moves emails to a folder.

If you're looking for something cheaper, more powerful, or just different, here are the best SaneBox alternatives worth considering.

Quick Comparison: SaneBox vs. Top Alternatives

Why People Switch from SaneBox

Before diving into alternatives, let's be clear about what SaneBox does well: it learns your email habits and automatically sorts incoming mail into smart folders like SaneLater, SaneNews, and SaneBlackHole. It works with any email provider (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, iCloud) and doesn't require downloading new software.

But here's where it falls short:

• Feature gating: The Snack plan ($7/month) only includes 2 features. The Lunch plan ($12/month) gives you 6. You need the Dinner plan ($36/month) for everything.
• No true unsubscribe: SaneBlackHole moves unwanted emails to a folder—it doesn't send actual unsubscribe requests.
• No spam management: You still need to manually mark spam through your email provider.
• No bulk cleanup: Great for incoming mail, but doesn't help with the 50,000 emails already in your inbox.
• Solo use only: Zero team collaboration features.

1. Clean Email — Best Overall SaneBox Alternative

Clean Email takes a different approach than SaneBox. Instead of just filtering incoming mail, it excels at cleaning up your existing inbox mess and then maintaining it going forward.

What It Does Better

• Bulk cleanup: Delete thousands of emails at once grouped by sender, date, or category. Users have processed 100,000+ emails in single sessions.
• True unsubscribing: Actually sends unsubscribe requests instead of just hiding emails.
• More accounts: Supports up to 10 email accounts vs. SaneBox's 4.
• Smart suggestions: Proactively tells you to delete those 500 unread Facebook notifications.
• Works everywhere: iOS, Android, macOS, and web apps.

Pricing

• 1 Account: $9.99/month or $29.99/year
• 5 Accounts: $19.99/month or $49.99/year
• 10 Accounts: $29.99/month or $99.99/year
• Free: Clean first 1,000 emails, unsubscribe from 25 lists

The Catch

Clean Email requires manual rule setup—it doesn't learn automatically like SaneBox. You're doing more work upfront to set up Auto Clean rules, but you get more control. Also no Exchange or POP3 support (IMAP only).

Best for: People drowning in existing email who want to start fresh, then maintain with automation.

2. Mailstrom — Best for Mass Email Deletion

If your main problem is a massive backlog of emails and you just want to nuke them, Mailstrom is your tool. It's less about ongoing filtering and more about brutal efficiency in bulk deletion.

Key Features

• Groups emails by sender, subject, date, or size for mass action
• Delete, archive, or move hundreds/thousands of emails at once
• "Chill" feature to delay emails until convenient
• "Expire" feature to auto-delete old emails after set time

Pricing

• Basic: $9/month or $59.95/year (1 account)
• Plus: $14/month or $99.95/year (3 accounts)
• Pro: $29.95/month or $199.95/year (20 accounts)
• Lifetime: $59.99 one-time payment
• Free trial: 5,000 emails, 25% deletion limit

The Catch

Web-only (no mobile apps—they have a separate iOS app called Chuck). No ongoing AI filtering like SaneBox—it's more of a one-time cleanup tool. Some users report the AI categorization can be unreliable.

Best for: One-time inbox cleanups when you've let things get out of control.

3. Gmelius — Best for Teams

Here's where SaneBox has a complete blindspot: collaboration. If you need shared inboxes for your team (support@, sales@, info@), Gmelius turns Gmail into a collaborative workspace.

What Makes It Different

• Shared team inboxes with email assignment
• Kanban-style project boards inside Gmail
• Internal notes and chat threads on emails
• Email sequences and automated follow-ups
• Integrates with Slack and Trello

The Catch

Gmail/Google Workspace only. If you're on Outlook or Yahoo, look elsewhere. This is a team tool—overkill for solo inbox management.

Best for: Teams who need to collaborate on email (customer support, sales teams, agencies).

4. Spark — Best Budget SaneBox Clone

If you like what SaneBox does but want to pay less, Spark offers nearly identical features for $60/year instead of $99-299/year.

Features

• Smart inbox that groups automated emails and frequent senders
• Priority contacts stay at the top
• First-time sender screening
• AI-powered email drafting (subtle but helpful)
• Shared inboxes on team plans

Pricing

• Free: Basic features
• Premium Individual: $60/year for AI features
• Premium Teams: $84/year for shared inboxes and read receipts

The Catch

Requires downloading a desktop app—no browser-based option. The AI features are more subtle than revolutionary.

Best for: Solo users who want SaneBox-style filtering without the SaneBox price tag.

5. Unroll.Me — Best Free Option for Newsletters

If your main email problem is newsletter overload, Unroll.Me is free and does one thing well: shows you all your subscriptions so you can mass-unsubscribe.

Features

• See all email subscriptions in one view
• One-click unsubscribe from multiple lists
• "Rollup" feature bundles newsletters into a daily digest
• Free for basic use

The Catch

Privacy concerns: Unroll.Me has faced criticism for how they handle user data (they sell anonymized purchase data). If privacy matters, pay for something else. Also, this only handles newsletters—not your general inbox chaos.

Best for: Free quick-fix for newsletter overload if you don't care about data privacy.

6. Leave Me Alone — Best Privacy-Focused Unsubscriber

Like Unroll.Me but with a cleaner conscience. Leave Me Alone focuses on subscription management with a more user-friendly interface and better privacy practices.

Features

• Visual interface for managing subscriptions
• Sort and filter who you want emails from
• High flexibility in filtering options
• Doesn't sell your data

Pricing

• Casual Emailer: $9/month for unlimited unsubscribing across 4 inboxes
• Inbox Zero Hero: $16/month adds rollups across unlimited inboxes
• 7-day pass: $19 one-time

The Catch

More expensive than free alternatives. The playful UI might feel too casual for business use.

Best for: Privacy-conscious users who want a friendly unsubscribe tool.

7. Edison Mail — Best Free Email Client

Rather than an add-on service, Edison Mail is a complete email client replacement with smart features built in.

Features

• Unified inbox for multiple accounts
• One-tap unsubscribe
• Smart sorting and blocking
• Built-in assistant
• Ad-free

Pricing

Free. Completely free.

The Catch

Requires switching email apps. If you're committed to Gmail's interface or Outlook desktop, this won't work for you.

Best for: Mobile-first users willing to try a new email app.

Should You Stick with SaneBox?

SaneBox isn't bad—it just isn't perfect for everyone. If you want AI that learns and works in the background without much setup, SaneBox does that well. Try SaneBox with a 14-day free trial if you haven't already.

But consider alternatives if:

• You need bulk cleanup: Go with Clean Email or Mailstrom
• You need team features: Go with Gmelius
• You want similar features cheaper: Go with Spark
• You just hate newsletters: Go with Unroll.Me or Leave Me Alone

Bottom Line

For most solo users frustrated with SaneBox, Clean Email is the best alternative. It costs less ($29.99/year vs. $59/year), supports more accounts, and actually unsubscribes you from things instead of just hiding them. Plus it can tackle your existing inbox disaster, not just incoming mail.

For teams, Gmelius is the obvious choice since SaneBox has zero collaboration features.

If you're on a tight budget, Spark offers free basic filtering with optional premium features at $60/year—cheaper than any SaneBox plan.

Looking to streamline other parts of your business? Check out our guides to the best CRM software or project management tools.