Betterbird vs Mozilla Thunderbird: privacy compared
Betterbird and Mozilla Thunderbird are both rated in email clients against the same 8 public criteria. Betterbird does better on no trackers or telemetry. Mozilla Thunderbird does better on independent audit. Betterbird is based in Germany (Fourteen Eyes); Mozilla Thunderbird is based in the United States (Five Eyes).
| Criterion | Betterbird Our pick | Mozilla Thunderbird |
|---|---|---|
| Grade | Grade B B (89/100) | Grade B B (86/100) |
| Jurisdiction | Germany Fourteen Eyes | United States Five Eyes |
| Open source Is all the source code needed to run the product public? | Yes source | Yes source |
| No trackers or telemetry Are the website and apps free of third-party trackers, with any analytics anonymous and any telemetry off by default? | Yes source | Partial source |
| No ads or data sales Is the product funded without advertising, ad targeting or selling user data? | Yes source | Yes source |
| Independent audit Has an independent security or privacy audit been published within the last three years? | No | Partial source |
| OpenPGP support Can the app encrypt and sign mail with OpenPGP, built in or through an official add-on? | Yes source | Yes source |
| Connects directly Does the app connect directly to your mail server, without passing mail or passwords through the vendor's servers? | Yes source | Yes source |
| Blocks remote content Are remote images and tracking pixels blocked by default? | Yes source | Yes source |
| Works with any provider Does the app work with any standard IMAP and SMTP provider? | Yes source | Yes source |
Summaries
Betterbird. Betterbird scores 89 out of 100 (grade B) on the email clients criteria. It meets 7 of 8 criteria: open source, no trackers or telemetry, no ads or data sales, OpenPGP support, connects directly, blocks remote content and works with any provider. It does not meet independent audit. It is based in Germany: Fourteen Eyes member; EU member (GDPR).
Mozilla Thunderbird. Mozilla Thunderbird scores 86 out of 100 (grade B) on the email clients criteria. It meets 6 of 8 criteria: open source, no ads or data sales, OpenPGP support, connects directly, blocks remote content and works with any provider. It partly meets no trackers or telemetry and independent audit. It is based in the United States: Five Eyes member; subject to the US CLOUD Act.