Email. Ugh. Just seeing that word can bring a wave of stress upon us like nothing else.

It wastes time, clutters both professional and personal lives, and is impossible to organise. Well, almost. Within the past few years, several new email apps have popped up, with the hopes of helping you find some inner zen.

That zen comes in the form of inbox zero, an email management theory aimed at keeping your inbox empty at all times. That's a lofty goal of course, but if it's something you're interested in, check out the apps below. We've rounded up the best Android and iOS email solutions worth trying.

Keep in mind not all of these apps are all about inbox zero, but they do have features tailored to email-clearing, and they're all well-designed, efficient, and make the chore of dealing with email a little more tolerable. But only a little.

Gmail email
Gmail
1. Best overall

It might be mainstream, but Gmail is widely used for a reason - it's very slick.

Pros
  • Such wide compatibility
  • Quick actions
  • Solid design
Cons
  • Doesn't change often

Gmail is perfect for those of you tied to Google services. It lets you switch between accounts or see them all at once, see profile pictures as part of threaded conversations, respond to Google Calendar invites directly from within the app, and organise via archiving, labeling, starring and more.

The Android version also supports rival email providers like Yahoo and Outlook.

Boxer email
Boxer
2. Runner up

This clean management app will make it way easier to keep on top of your inbox and other organisational features.

Pros
  • Clean design
  • Good integrations
  • Quick replies
Cons
  • Takes some getting used to

Boxer is an email, calendar, and contacts app built around gestures, with the purpose of letting you swipe away emails until you reach inbox zero. It also features to-do lists, push notifications, and a dashboard for important items, among many other impressive things. It even supports all major email providers including Gmail and iCloud (except for POP3-based email on iOS).

Spark email
Spark
3. Lots of control

This is a really simple but impressive email client that makes it easy to customise your views.

Pros
  • Looks great
  • Nice swipe options
  • Useful inbox categories
Cons
  • Some paid features

If you like the inbox zero concept, as well as customisable, quick swiping inputs, consider Spark by Readdle. It offers short and long swipes (both left and right), and they're completely customisable. You can short swipe to the right to archive a message, for instance, or long swipe to the right to delete. Spark also offers badges, allowing you to view a count for your whole inbox, rather than just unread messages.

Spark also has a dedicated Apple Watch app.

Outlook email
Outlook
4. Modern classic

It might seem traditional, but Outlook has moved with the time and remains a top-class email client.

Pros
  • Great professional features
  • Good integration
  • Frequent security updates
Cons
  • A bit boring

Outlook for Android and iOS is a next-generation app. It supports Microsoft Exchange, Office 365, Outlook.com, iCloud, Gmail, Yahoo Mail, and IMAP accounts, covering all the popular email services. It features customisable quick-swipe options for archiving and scheduling emails, breaks your inbox into two sections ("Focused" and "Other), and lets you filter things like flagged or unread emails.

It also integrates your calendars and files from services like Google Calendar, Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, etc.

Proton Mail
Proton Mail
5. Best for encryption

For those who have security and encryption as a top priority, there's no better choice.

Pros
  • Great security
  • Nice new design
  • Handy features
Cons
  • Requires a new email address

ProtonMail is perfect for users who want a totally safe and secure email application. Developed by students at CERN, ProtonMail offers end-to-end encryption so it's impossible for any one but you and the other person you're emailing with to access your emails. You can even set a timer so that the emails you're sending will self-destruct at a certain point after you send them.

The downside to that security is that the application requires a new ProtonMail specific email address, but if you're worried about security and don't mind setting up forwarding on your existing accounts ProtonMail is the best option for you.