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Apple and Microsoft go toe-to-toe on several fronts like Word processing apps. However, Apple aims to offer a solid email experience with the Mail app on iOS, iPadOS, and macOS, but it still leaves a lot to be desired. That's why you can't help but look at a viable alternative from Microsoft's camp - Outlook for Mac.
Recently, Microsoft revealed the brand-new look for Outlook for Mac, which is available through the Fast Insider group. That coupled with a bunch of other software integration in the Outlook for Mac app makes it a viable rival to the Apple Mail app.
In this post, we shall compare Outlook Mail for Mac to the default Apple Mail app. The comparison will be based on UI, Email Organization, Compose Mail, features, and apps integration. Let’s get started.
Cross-Platform Availability
Jan 13, 2018 1) In your Mac email app, setup another email account but select 'Exchange' as the email configuration. Then enter your email address. (even if it's the same one that you already have setup as a pop or IAMP account) 2) Now you have you should have. Outlook for Mac works with Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft 365, Outlook.com (including Hotmail and MSN), Gmail, Yahoo Mail, and iCloud Learn more about Microsoft 365 Microsoft 365 is a cloud-based subscription service that brings together premium versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneDrive, with the best tools for the way people. Sep 08, 2019 Here is an in-depth comparison between Outlook app and Apple Mail. Learn which email app is more suitable for iOS users, their features, UI, and compatibility.
I know cross-platform availability doesn’t matter much in an Email app. But I’m mentioning here so that you can expect a seamless experience on every platform. Apple Mail is only available on iOS, macOS, and iPadOS.
On the other hand, Microsoft Outlook is accessible on Android, iOS, Windows, macOS and Web.
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Read MoreUser Interface and Customization
Microsoft's plans to redesign the interface of Outlook for Mac is much needed to keep it in line with other platforms. There's a catch when it comes to trying out the new Outlook for Mac. You'll have to install it along with other Office apps through an ISO installer.
When you open Outlook for Mac, you'll notice the Compose (New Message) button and Search bar at the top. On the left sidebar, you'll find your email accounts and other folders. It is impressive how Microsoft uses a column layout style and adds the calendar integration to the extreme right. You won’t have a hard time navigating the new look.
You can change the default fonts for new mail, reply mail from the Outlook settings.
Apple Mail looks quite vanilla compared to the Outlook. The default interface shows the Email as well as folders on the left sidebar, messages list in the center, and mail view on the right. Interestingly, Apple Mail offers several customization options.
Go to Mail > Preferences > Fonts & Colors. From there, you can change the message list font, message font, and even fixed-width font. Apple Mail also allows you to change the list view preview from the default 2 lines to 3 lines or more.
Compose Mail
Apple Mail offers a bunch of editing options when you compose a mail. While writing a mail, you can change the font type, size, color, play with bold, italic options, and even add a bullet or number list.
I like how the Mail app lets you add the picture or scanned documents directly from the connected iPhone.
Outlook’s compose menu toolbar is richer than Apple Mail. It lets you highlight the words. You can even add tables and signature. Guess what? Outlook for Mac also supports templates. Yes, you can create ready-to-use templates with images and text. You can save them for later use. While composing an email, just tap on the three-dot menu above and select view templates and add a relevant one in the mail.
Such templates can be when you are composing emails related to specific subjects like marketing surveys, inquiries, and so on. Just create a master template with necessary text for each type or topic of emails you use often.
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Read MoreAdditional Features
If you like flagging emails, the Apple Mail offers a couple of options for neater organization. For instance, you can assign an orange flag for Bank mails and green flag to all finance mails. Most mail apps only support the normal flag (Red color) option.
From the flagged mail section, you can quickly jump to the exact mail that you are looking for. Apple Mail also supports Rules. You can select Mail > Preferences > Rules and create personalized email rules for you. I have created a rule to archive all the emails that come with Coronavirus in the subject.
We can only hope that Apple integrates services such as Reminders, Calendar, and Notes in the Mail app. It would be easy to set reminders for an email or create an event for the Mail app meeting.
Outlook for Mac app also supports to Rules options. I would highly recommend you to set some of the effective rules to organize emails like a pro. The app comes with Calendar, Sticky Notes, and Microsoft To-Do integration.
It works like a charm. If you are using Outlook as your mail provider and if you flag an email in it, the mail automatically gets saved into the Flagged mail section in the Microsoft To-Do app.
Email Export and Third-Party Integration
Apple allows you to export any mail as a PDF file menu. Open any mail and go to File > Export as PDF, and it will create a PDF file from the selected mail. Unfortunately, the app doesn’t offer any third-party app integration.
Microsoft offers a dedicated third-party app store. You can tap on the three-dot menu and go to Get add-ins from a dedicated store in Outlook.
For example, I use OneNote and Trello extensions in Outlook to directly send the selected mail to the OneNote or Trello.
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Click here to see our macos articles pageUse Mail Like a Pro on Mac
The comparison above gives you a clear view of the Apple Mail and Outlook’s strength and weaknesses. Apple Mail wins with the simple UI, mail organization, and iPhone integration. However, several folks complain that it is sluggish and buggy. Also, it doesn't translate to a pleasant performance on iOS either. Outlook for Mac brings a breath of fresh air with Microsoft apps integration, richer compose menu, and third-party add-ins. Hopefully, the Outlook for iOS also gets a facelift soon. As of now, I’m sticking with Microsoft’s offering. What about you? Sound off in the comments section below.
Next up:Recently got a new Mac? Read the post below find the best Mac apps to stay organized.
The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.Read Next7 Best Mac Apps to Stay Organized
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Also See#macos #emailDid You Know
Ray Tomlinson is credited as the first person to send an email message.
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Frankly, there are so many mail apps for the iOS platform that it can be difficult to zero in on one. More challenging is sticking to the one you have chosen. I am guilty of hopping around productivity apps for some time now. I recently tried Outlook app after using Apple Mail for the past few months.
The experience was pleasantly positive but don’t take my word for it just yet. Read the below analysis to learn more about how Outlook is a better mailing app.
Let’s begin.
1. User Interface
When you open Apple Mail, you will be asked to enter email ID details with options for some popular providers.
Outlook automatically detected my email ID as I am using other Microsoft apps on my iPhone. You can also add email IDs from other providers, including IMAP and POP in Outlook.
Outlook has some additional options at the bottom — Search and Calendar, that we will explore in detail later.
Both the apps will ask for certain permissions to function correctly. The layout is simple and intuitive enough with everything easily accessible on both apps.
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Read More2. Reading Mails
Apple Mail comes with a bunch of mailboxes pre-configured like Drafts, Sent, and VIP among others. Contacts added as VIP will be given priority. That means you have the option to receive mail notifications for these contacts only. A time saver as you don’t have to pick up the phone every time you receive a newsletter.
To add a contact as VIP, open his/her mail and tap on the email header to mark as VIP. At the bottom, you will see regular options like reply, delete, write, flag, and move.
![Outlook Not Mail To Mac Mail App Outlook Not Mail To Mac Mail App](/uploads/1/2/6/8/126891861/145571346.png)
You can swipe right to mark the email as unread and swipe left to delete, flag, or respond to it. While you can change swipe settings by heading to Settings>Mail instead of from the Mail app directly.
Outlook also supports swipe gestures but offer more options while configuring it like schedule, read & archive, move, and more.
Outlook app has all the folders in the sidebar which you can open with a simple right swipe. There is also a Focused mailbox where important mails will land. You can manually decide which mails land there as well, and the app will learn from your behavior. All remaining mails are available under Other tab. No need to go back and forth.
Clicking on the three-dot menu icon will reveal options like delete, reply, and more. At the bottom, you will again find Search and Calendar options. They seem to be universally present.
Tapping on the three-dot menu at the top will reveal different options. You can use the Schedule button to remind you of important mails at a later date and time. It is useful when you receive a vital mail but don’t have the time to deal with it. Also valuable if the same mail has an event associated with it.
The reading experience remains more or less the same on both Apple Mail and Outlook app for iOS. However, I liked the Focused mailbox more because I don’t have to mark contacts VIP manually. Schedule option is a real lifesaver for it turns mails into a to-do list.
3. Sorting Mails
Apple Mail comes with a bunch of mailboxes as we saw earlier, but there are more hidden beneath the menu. Tap on Edit to reveal more mailboxes. Some of them are pretty useful.
Mailboxes like Attachments and Unread or Today can be very handy. Makes it easier to sort mails depending on what you are looking for. Outlook app by Microsoft removes the guesswork out of the equation by offering a Filter button. Tap on it to sort emails by attachments or Unread. There is a handy option called Mentions Me. What’s that?
It works just like in any other app. If the mail has you mention by name, you will find it here. Just another filter but more useful when you are working in a team.
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Read More4. Calendar
Both Apple Mail and Outlook are smart enough to recognize calendar events in the mail and offer to save it. In Apple Mail, you can tap on the time or date link to open a new menu. That’s where you can create or copy an event or view it in the calendar.
Where Apple offers a separate Calendar app, Outlook comes with one built-in. You can access it from the bottom bar menu, which is present on every screen. Following Apple’s design policy, you will tap on the date or time to open a menu to create events.
The difference here is that Outlook also works on other platforms like Windows and Android, whereas Apple Mail and Calendar apps are restricted to the Apple ecosystem.
Then there is the search tab where you can quickly search for mails by contact names, events, and even file names. Makes life that much easier.
5. Platform and Pricing
As mentioned in the point above, Apple Mail, or any other Apple App for that matter, doesn’t work on Windows and Android. Outlook is available on all popular desktop and mobile operating systems.
The iCloud offers 5GB free storage while Outlook offers 15GB of free storage which is three times more. That’s on par with what Google offers to Gmail or Drive users. Note that Office 365 users get 50GB storage. The iCloud storage plans begin at $0.99 for 50GB and go up to $9.99 for 2TB.
Outlook or OneDrive storage plans begin at $69.99 per year for 1TB, but you also get access to Office 365 suite of apps like OneDrive, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, among others.
Outlook Determines Outcome
Cross-platform compatibility is a must in this day and age, even for die-hard Apple fans. It might save the day one day. Plus, Outlook is easier to use with all the options and settings easily accessible from a single app. The calendar is baked into the app, which makes it more usable. And enterprise users will definitely want to benefit from Microsoft’s robust suite of exchange apps, which means it’s scalable.
For personal users, Apple Mail is a solid option, but Outlook is more flexible. Both are equally reliable.
Next up: Have you heard of Spark mail? Click on the link below to know how Outlook mail app for iOS fares against Spark mail app.
The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.Read NextMicrosoft Outlook vs Spark: Which Is the Best Email App for iOSAlso See#email #productivity
Did You Know
123456 is the most common email password.