# InboxPilot: Full content

> The complete text of InboxPilot's blog and legal documents for LLM ingestion. See https://inboxpilot.co/llms.txt for a structured index of all pages.

# Blog

---

## Google Groups Collaborative Inbox: How to Set It Up

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/google-groups-collaborative-inbox
Published: 2026-10-21

Turn a Google Group into a Collaborative Inbox, let members take and assign email, make replies reach the customer, and fix what breaks.

To make a Google Group a Collaborative Inbox, open the group in [Google Groups](https://groups.google.com), click **Group settings**, and under **Enable additional Google Groups features** select **Collaborative Inbox**. Then turn on conversation history, give members the **Who can moderate metadata** permission, and set **Post replies to** so answers reach the customer.

You need the Owner or Manager role, and on a work or school account your admin must have Groups for Business turned on. A group adds no seat cost, while each Workspace user does: Business Starter is $7 per user per month on [Google's pricing page](https://workspace.google.com/pricing) (October 2026). For more than Google's queue, see the [shared inbox software roundup](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software).

## Turn on Collaborative Inbox for a group

Use these steps on a group you already have, such as contact@ or support@. To create one first, follow the Google Group method in [how to create a group email in Gmail](/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail).

1. Sign in to [Google Groups](https://groups.google.com) and click the group's name.
2. On the left, click **Group settings**.
3. Under **General**, find **Enable additional Google Groups features** and select **Collaborative Inbox**.
4. Still under **General**, set **Who can post** to **Anyone on the web**, so customers outside your domain can email the group.
5. Under **Posting policies**, turn **Conversation history** on. Collaborative Inbox needs it.
6. Click **Save changes**.

Note: if **Anyone on the web** isn't offered, your Workspace admin hasn't let groups receive email from outside the organization.

## Give members permission to take and assign email

The queue only works for members who hold the right permissions. Both sit under **Posting policies** in **Group settings**, and both should include everyone who answers the group's email.

**Who can moderate metadata** covers taking, assigning and marking a conversation complete. **Who can moderate content** covers approving, blocking and deleting messages, and Google's [permissions table](https://support.google.com/a/users/answer/10375787) also lists it for marking a conversation a duplicate or needing no action.

## Take, assign and close a conversation

Each email to the group becomes a conversation at groups.google.com, and the team works the queue there.

1. Open the group and click a conversation, or tick the box next to several.
2. Click **Take** to own it. To hand it on, click **Assign**, enter the member's email, add a note if you like, and click **Done**. The note goes into the email they receive. **Drop** removes the assignment.
3. When it's handled, click **Mark as complete**. Use **No action needed** for mail that needs no answer, and **Mark as duplicate** when the same person wrote twice.
4. To see what's left, click the Down arrow in the search bar, choose **Assigned to** > **Not assigned** or **Resolved status** > **Is unresolved**, and click **Search**.

Note: a conversation marked as a duplicate is locked, and deleting a resolved conversation can't be undone. Filter by status instead of deleting.

## Make replies reach the customer, not the group

When a member replies to group mail from Gmail, the group's **Post replies to** setting fills the To field. Set to **All group members**, the answer goes to your team and the customer never gets it.

1. In **Group settings**, open **Email options**.
2. Set **Post replies to** to **The author of the original message only**.
3. Under **Posting policies**, set **Default sender** to **Group address**, so replies posted from Google Groups come from the group's address.
4. Set **Who can post as group** to include the members who answer.
5. Click **Save changes**.

Replies written in Gmail still go out from the member's own address. To answer as the group from Gmail, add its address under **Send mail as**, as shown in [send as the group address from Gmail](/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail#send-as-the-group-address-from-gmail).

Steps checked against Google's [Make a group a Collaborative Inbox](https://support.google.com/a/users/answer/10375787), [Use a group as a Collaborative Inbox](https://support.google.com/a/users/answer/167430) and [group settings reference](https://support.google.com/groups/answer/2464926) on 2026-10-21.

## Collaborative Inbox not working?

If **Collaborative Inbox** is missing from **Group settings**, you aren't an owner or manager of the group, or your admin hasn't turned on Groups for Business. Ask a group owner for the Manager role, or the admin to turn Groups for Business on.

If **Take** and **Assign** don't appear for a member, their role isn't included in **Who can moderate metadata**. Add it and save.

If customers' emails never arrive, check **Who can post** first. Then check **Spam message handling** under **Posting policies**, because it can hold mail flagged as spam for a moderator instead of delivering it.

If the queue feels clunky on a phone, that's where it lives: **Take**, **Assign** and the resolved status exist only at groups.google.com, not in the Gmail app. For a shared address that works inside Gmail on desktop and mobile, compare the free options in the [Gmail shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail).

If two people answer the same customer, Groups gave them no warning. It doesn't show that a teammate is already writing, so click **Take** before you start a reply.

## If the group gets the same questions every day

Collaborative Inbox decides who answers. It doesn't help write the answer, which is the slow part when the same questions about certificates, course access or refunds arrive daily.

InboxPilot (we make it) connects to the Gmail inbox that receives the group's mail. It drafts each reply from your own documents, addressed to the person who wrote to the group, and a member checks it before sending.

Drafts come from the connected address, not the group's. It starts with a 7-day free trial, then Starter is $39 a month ([pricing](/pricing), October 2026).

---

## Best AI Email Assistants in 2026: 10 Compared

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/best-ai-email-assistant
Published: 2026-10-11

The best AI email assistant for a business inbox is InboxPilot. Ten tools compared on Gmail and Outlook support, price with AI drafting, and limits.

The best AI email assistant for a business inbox is InboxPilot (we make it). It drafts replies in Gmail or Outlook from your own documents, website, Google Sheets, Shopify orders and Stripe invoices, so answers about prices, orders and billing come from your records.

For one person's inbox, Fyxer and Superhuman Mail draft in your voice. If the problem is clutter rather than replies, SaneBox sorts mail and drafts nothing.

If you already pay for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, try Copilot in Outlook or Gemini in Gmail first. Each price is the cheapest plan that drafts replies, from the vendor's pricing page on October 11, 2026. We did not run paid trials.

| Tool | Works with | Price with AI (linked) | Main limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| InboxPilot (our pick) | Gmail, Outlook | From $39 a month | No meeting notes or scheduling |
| Fyxer | Gmail, Outlook | [$49 a person a month](https://www.fyxer.com/pricing) | Free plan doesn't draft |
| Superhuman Mail | Gmail, Outlook, in its own app | [$40 a member a month](https://superhuman.com/mail/pricing) | Auto drafts only on Business |
| Shortwave | Gmail, Google Workspace | [$18 a seat a month](https://www.shortwave.com/pricing/) | No Microsoft 365 accounts |
| Jace | Gmail, Outlook | [$25 a month](https://jace.ai/pricing) | Usage metered in credits |
| Copilot in Outlook | Outlook on Microsoft 365 | [$21 a user a month, yearly](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/copilot/business) | Drafts only when you ask |
| Gemini in Gmail | Gmail on Google Workspace | [Included from $7 a user a month](https://workspace.google.com/pricing) | Drafts only when you ask |
| Missive | Gmail, Outlook, in its own app | [$24 a user a month, yearly, plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) | AI billed as credits or your own key |
| Gmelius | Gmail, Google Workspace | [$21 a user a month](https://gmelius.com/pricing) | No Outlook |
| SaneBox | Any email account | [$9.49 a month](https://www.sanebox.com/pricing) | Sorts mail, never drafts |

## Our pick: InboxPilot

InboxPilot is an [AI email assistant for Gmail and Outlook](/ai-email-assistant) built for the inbox a business answers from. It [sorts each new email by what it asks](/features/email-triage) and drafts the reply from [your own documents](/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents) and the systems behind them.

Each draft waits for a person to approve it. When a reply should go out on its own, you can turn on auto-replies. It's [SOC 2 Type II certified](/security), and your email never trains AI models.

[Starter is $39 a month](/pricing) after a 7-day free trial, and Growth is $99 a month with auto-replies. Every plan includes unlimited team members.

It doesn't book meetings or take meeting notes, so keep a scheduling tool if that's the part of an assistant you lean on.

## If it's your own inbox

### Fyxer: one person's inbox and meetings

Fyxer is an AI email assistant for one person's Gmail or Outlook inbox. It sorts email into categories, drafts replies in your tone and records meetings to write the follow-up.

[Fyxer Pro is $49 a person a month, or $37 billed annually](https://www.fyxer.com/pricing). The Free plan gives 400 credits a month but doesn't draft replies, and working across several inboxes needs [Team, at $99 a person](https://www.fyxer.com/pricing).

Our [Fyxer alternatives guide](/blog/fyxer-alternatives) compares it head to head with Superhuman and Copilot.

### Superhuman Mail: a faster email app

Superhuman Mail is a separate email app for Gmail and Outlook accounts, built to get through mail quickly with split inboxes and reminders.

[Starter is $30 a member a month](https://superhuman.com/mail/pricing). Auto drafts, which write replies before you open an email, need [Business at $40 a member, or $33 billed annually](https://superhuman.com/mail/pricing).

### Shortwave: AI search and writing for Gmail

Shortwave is an email app for Gmail and Google Workspace. It searches your history with AI, summarizes threads and writes in your style.

[Microsoft 365 and Exchange accounts aren't supported](https://www.shortwave.com/docs/how-tos/microsoft-outlook-exchange-other-sign-in-support/), and Outlook.com mail only arrives by forwarding it into Gmail.

[Pro is $18 a seat a month](https://www.shortwave.com/pricing/), with a free plan below it and business plans from $30 a seat.

### Jace: a cheaper assistant, metered in credits

Jace is an AI email assistant that runs on top of Gmail and Outlook, Microsoft 365 and Outlook.com included, according to [Jace's documentation](https://jace.ai/llms.txt). You choose Draft with AI on a thread to get a full reply in your voice, and it can draft a follow-up when a conversation stalls.

[Plus is $25 a month, or $20 billed yearly](https://jace.ai/pricing), with 10,000 credits, up to 2 inboxes and a 7-day free trial. Jace says it never trains AI models on your email.

## If you already pay for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace

### Copilot in Outlook: Microsoft 365 companies

Copilot is Microsoft's AI assistant inside Outlook for Microsoft 365 business accounts. To draft, you open the Copilot menu, choose Draft, describe the email and click Generate ([Microsoft Support](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/draft-an-email-message-with-copilot-in-outlook-3eb1d053-89b8-491c-8a6e-746015238d9b)). Nothing is written before you ask.

The [Microsoft 365 Copilot Business add-on is $21 a user a month on a yearly plan](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/copilot/business), or $18 in the first year on purchases through December 31, 2026. It needs an eligible Microsoft 365 Business plan.

Our [Outlook AI assistant comparison](/blog/outlook-ai-assistant) covers the other options for Outlook.

### Gemini in Gmail: Google Workspace companies

Gemini is Google's AI assistant in Gmail, included with Google Workspace business plans from [Business Starter at $7 a user a month](https://workspace.google.com/pricing). It finds mail, summarizes threads and writes drafts.

To draft, you type a prompt in Compose and click Create ([Google Help](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/13955415)). Like Copilot, it writes when you ask rather than before you open the email.

## If a team shares the inbox

### Missive: a shared inbox app with AI on usage

Missive is an email app where a team shares inboxes, assigns conversations and comments on them, with SMS and WhatsApp in the same place. It works with Gmail, Outlook and other accounts.

AI drafts and AI rules start on [Productive, at $24 a user a month billed yearly](https://missiveapp.com/pricing). You pay for AI usage on top, with prepaid Missive credits or your own OpenAI, Anthropic or Google key.

### Gmelius: AI on every plan, Gmail only

Gmelius is a shared inbox and AI assistant that works inside Gmail. It drafts, sorts and takes meeting notes for teams, and it works only with Gmail and Google Workspace.

AI comes with every plan, starting with [Meli at $21 a user a month, or $19 billed annually](https://gmelius.com/pricing), and new accounts get 7 days of the Growth plan.

Both charge per seat, while every InboxPilot plan includes unlimited team members at one price. For tools built around assignment, see our [shared inbox software comparison](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software).

## If the problem is volume, not replies

### SaneBox: an AI email organizer that never drafts

SaneBox calls itself an AI email management service. It moves unimportant mail out of your inbox into folders such as SaneLater, sends a daily digest and unsubscribes you in one click, in any email client.

[Snack is $9.49 a month for one account](https://www.sanebox.com/pricing), or $4.54 a month billed every two years, after a 7-day free trial. It doesn't write replies, so pair it with a drafting tool if replies are the slow part.

---

## How to Send, Resend and Attach Stripe Invoices by Email

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/send-stripe-invoice-by-email
Published: 2026-10-06

Email a Stripe invoice from the Dashboard, resend it or the receipt, copy in a finance address, or attach the invoice PDF to a Gmail or Outlook reply.

To email a Stripe invoice, go to **Invoices** > **Create Invoice**, pick the customer, add the items, choose **Email invoice with link**, then click **Review invoice** and send it. Stripe attaches the invoice PDF to that email. To send it again, open the invoice and click **Send invoice**, or download it with **Invoice PDF** to attach to your own reply.

Every option needs an email address on the customer's Stripe record. To have invoices attached to your replies when customers ask, [connect Stripe to InboxPilot](/use-cases/stripe-email-integration) (we make it).

## Email a new invoice from the Stripe Dashboard

Use this for a one-off invoice, such as a project fee or a custom order.

1. In the Stripe Dashboard, go to **Invoices** and click **Create Invoice**.
2. Pick the customer, or click **Add new customer** and enter their name and email address.
3. Click **Add one-time item**, or pick a saved product, then enter the **Quantity** and **Price**.
4. Choose the delivery: **Email invoice with link** sends a payment page and the PDF, and **Email invoice without link** sends the PDF only.
5. Click **Review invoice**, add any extra recipients, and send it.

Note: Every invoice email from Stripe carries the PDF. You can turn that off in Stripe's [invoice settings](https://dashboard.stripe.com/settings/billing/invoice).

Subscription invoices go out on their own once **Send finalized invoices to customers** is on, under **Settings** > **Billing** > **Subscriptions and emails**. When an invoice charges a card on file instead, the receipt email carries both the invoice PDF and the receipt PDF, as long as **Successful payments** is on.

## Resend a Stripe invoice or receipt

Use this when a customer asks for another copy, which is a routine [customer service email](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation).

1. Go to **Invoices** and click the customer's invoice.
2. Click **Send invoice**. Stripe shows a preview of the invoice page, then emails it again with the PDF.
3. For a paid invoice, click **Send receipt** on the same page to send the receipt instead.

For a payment with no invoice, go to **Transactions** > **Payments** and click the payment. Under **Receipt history**, open the **⋯** menu and choose **Send receipt**. You can enter several addresses there, separated by commas.

## Attach a Stripe invoice PDF to your own email

Use this when you're answering the customer from Gmail or Outlook and want the invoice in the same thread.

1. Open the invoice in Stripe and click **Invoice PDF** to download it.
2. In Gmail, reply to the customer, click the paperclip (**Attach files**) and choose the PDF. In Outlook, click **Attach file** and choose it from your computer.
3. Put the invoice number and amount in the reply, so the customer can search for it later.

If finding the right invoice will take a while, send a [short acknowledgment](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) first and the PDF when you have it.

## Send invoice emails to a finance team as well

Use this when someone other than your contact pays, such as the customer's accounts payable team.

1. Go to **Customers** and click the customer.
2. In the **Details** section, click **Edit**.
3. Under **Billing information**, untick **Same as account email** and enter the address for the To line.
4. Click **Add more recipients** and fill in **Emails to CC**.

Stripe then uses these addresses for the customer's billing emails, receipts included. The API can't set them, so add them in the Dashboard.

Stripe steps checked against Stripe's guides to [invoicing in the Dashboard](https://docs.stripe.com/invoicing/dashboard), [customer emails](https://docs.stripe.com/invoicing/send-email) and [receipts](https://docs.stripe.com/receipts) on 2026-10-06.

## Stripe invoice email not arriving

If the customer has no email address, Stripe has nowhere to send it. Add one under **Details** > **Edit** on their page, then resend the invoice.

An invoice created with **Send invoice or payment page link manually** gets no email from Stripe. Copy its payment link and send it yourself.

Test payments don't get automatic receipts. Send a manual receipt to see what customers receive.

To check whether an email left Stripe, open the customer's page: Stripe keeps a log of customer emails from the last 60 days. Receipt links expire after 30 days, and Stripe emails a fresh one when the customer enters their address.

## Attach invoices automatically when customers ask, with InboxPilot

Use this when customers email you for invoices and the work is finding the right one. InboxPilot reads the request in Gmail or Outlook, finds the invoice in your Stripe account and drafts the reply with the PDF attached.

1. In InboxPilot, open **Integrations**, click the **Stripe** card, then click **Connect Stripe**. Or install inboxpilot from the [Stripe App Marketplace](https://marketplace.stripe.com/apps/inboxpilot).

   Note: New accounts get a 7-day free trial, and Stripe is on Growth, [$99 a month](/pricing), as of 2026-10-12.

2. In Stripe, choose your account and approve the read-only permissions.
3. Back on **Integrations**, check that the **Stripe** card shows your account as connected.

From then on, an email like "Can you resend my September invoice?" gets a draft reply with that invoice attached. It matches the sender's address to a Stripe customer, then picks the invoice by the number quoted, the month named, or else the latest one.

A reply that carries an invoice always waits as a draft for someone to send, even with auto-replies on, because a sender's address can be faked. The PDF goes only on a reply to that customer, with at most colleagues from your own domain copied in.

Someone who pays under a different email address gets a draft without the PDF.

The same connection answers questions about charges, refunds and subscriptions with the amounts and dates Stripe holds. For refunds you answer by hand, start from these [refund email templates](/blog/return-request-email-templates).

---

## Front Alternatives: 7 Shared Inboxes, Priced for 5 Seats

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/front-alternatives
Published: 2026-10-05

The best Front alternative is InboxPilot. Hiver, Missive, Help Scout, Gmelius and two free options compared too, with 5-seat yearly costs.

The best Front alternative for a small team is InboxPilot (we make it). Instead of paying per seat for people to type the same answers, it drafts each reply from your own documents and Shopify orders inside the Gmail or Outlook inbox you already use, for a quarter of Front Professional's price.

If you need Front-style assignment inside Gmail, Hiver is the closest match. Mixed or Outlook teams get a Front-style shared inbox for less per seat in Missive or Help Scout.

Prices from each vendor's pricing page, checked October 6, 2026, for five seats billed yearly. We did not run paid trials. The wider category, help desks included, is compared in [best shared inbox software](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software).

| Tool | Works with | 5 seats, yearly | Main limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| InboxPilot Growth (our pick) | Gmail, Outlook | $990, AI drafts included | No per-email assignment in the mailbox |
| Front Professional (what you leave) | Gmail, Office 365, in Front's app | [$3,900; $5,100 with AI drafts](https://front.com/pricing) | SLAs, macros, load balancing need this tier |
| Hiver Growth | Gmail, as a Chrome extension | [$1,500, AI drafts included](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail) | SLAs need Pro; Outlook needs Hiver Omni |
| Missive Productive | Gmail, Outlook, IMAP, in Missive's app | [$1,440 plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) | Advanced analytics need Business |
| Help Scout Standard | Forwarded email, in Help Scout | [$1,500; $2,700 with AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) | Round robin needs Plus |
| Gmelius Growth | Gmail and Google Workspace | [$1,500, AI drafts included](https://gmelius.com/pricing) | CRM sync needs Pro ($40) |
| Google Workspace shared inbox | Gmail | $0 extra | No assignment or reporting |
| Microsoft 365 shared mailbox | Outlook | $0 extra | 25 users at most |

## Our pick: InboxPilot

InboxPilot works in the mailbox your team already reads. It [sorts each email](/features/email-triage) into your Gmail labels or Outlook categories and drafts [the reply from your own documents](/features/ai-email-replies), Google Sheets and [Shopify orders](/industries/shopify-support), and a person approves each draft before it sends.

It can also split the inbox into teams, so each email goes under that team's label and team members see their team's drafts.

For five people, Growth is $99 a month, or $990 a year, with auto-replies and unlimited team members, after a 7-day free trial ([pricing](/pricing)). Five Front Professional seats with Copilot [cost $5,100 a year](https://front.com/pricing), so that is $4,110 less.

Who takes a single email and whether it's done is tracked in a [Slack channel](/blog/slack-email-integration), not in the mailbox, and in a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox it drafts rather than sends.

## What Front does that a replacement has to cover

Front gives every conversation one owner. Its help center says to "assign conversations to give every message a clear owner," and Front shows real-time indicators when a teammate is already replying ([Front Help Center](https://help.front.com/en/categories/199)).

Comments in Front are internal, so only your team sees them. In a shared inbox, every draft is shared automatically with everyone who has access to that inbox, so a teammate can edit a reply before it goes ([Front, shared drafts](https://help.front.com/en/articles/2216)).

Those basics come with every Front plan. The rest sits on higher tiers. Front Starter costs [$25 per seat a month billed yearly](https://front.com/pricing) ($35 billed monthly), caps at 10 seats and allows 10 automation rules.

Response-time SLA rules, load balancing, macros, Salesforce and HubSpot sync, and advanced reports start on Front Professional, at [$65 per seat a month billed yearly](https://front.com/pricing) ($85 monthly). Enterprise is $105, billed yearly only.

AI reply drafts need Copilot, a [$20-a-seat add-on](https://front.com/pricing) below Enterprise, so Starter with drafts is $45 a seat. Compose, on every plan, only polishes your own draft.

Starter also limits channels, as Front's pricing FAQ puts it:

> "No, the Starter plan only supports a single channel type of Email, Front Chat, or SMS."

## Front vs Hiver: Gmail integration, collaboration and team pricing

Gmail integration: Hiver in Gmail is a Chrome extension, so the team keeps working inside Gmail ([Hiver pricing FAQ](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail)). Front is a separate app that connects your Gmail or Office 365 inboxes as channels ([Front Help Center](https://help.front.com/en/articles/205376)).

Collaboration: Hiver and Front both give each email an owner, keep internal notes with @mentions, share drafts and warn when someone else is replying ([Hiver shared inbox](https://hiverhq.com/shared-inbox)). Front Professional runs email, SMS, social and chat in one inbox. Hiver puts those channels, and Outlook, in a separate standalone app called Hiver Omni.

Team pricing: Hiver Growth is [$25 per user a month on a yearly plan](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail) ($35 monthly), with AI Copilot drafts included. Hiver's SLAs start on Pro at $55 ($65 monthly). Hiver sells seats from a 2-seat minimum up to 5, then in blocks of 5, so a 7-person team pays for 10.

For five people who need SLAs, Hiver Pro costs $3,300 a year and Front Professional $3,900. Neither trial needs a card: Front's runs 14 days with Professional features, Hiver's 7 days on its Elite plan. Hiver suits a support team that lives in Gmail; Front suits a team spread across Gmail, Outlook and chat.

## Lower seat prices on Gmail or Outlook

### Missive: for teams that want Front's shared inbox for less

Missive is a separate app that connects Gmail, Outlook and IMAP accounts, plus WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram and SMS. It has team inboxes, assignment, internal threads and collaborative drafting, where two people write one reply together.

Missive Starter is [$14 per user a month billed yearly](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) ($18 monthly) for up to 5 users. Rules, integrations and analytics start on Productive, at $24 billed yearly ($30 monthly) for up to 50 users.

AI drafts need Productive or Business, plus usage billed as Missive credits or on your own OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini key ([Missive docs](https://missiveapp.com/docs/ai/overview)).

Productive's analytics are basic; advanced reports need Business, at $36 per user billed yearly. Missive's 30-day trial of Productive needs no card.

### Help Scout: for support teams that need an SLA on a budget

Help Scout is a help desk with a shared inbox at its centre. You forward your support address from Gmail or Microsoft 365 into it ([Help Scout docs](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1752-forward-your-shared-email-in-to-help-scout)), and the team answers inside Help Scout.

Help Scout Standard costs [$25 a user each month billed yearly](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) ($30 monthly) and seats up to 25 users. It includes one basic SLA policy, basic workflows, unlimited saved replies and two inboxes, with more at $10 a month each.

Round robin routing and AI Drafts start on Plus, at $45 billed yearly. The Free plan covers 5 users and one inbox, capped at 100 contacts a month. If you're unsure a help desk is the right purchase, [shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk) sets out the difference, and [help desk software for small business](/blog/help-desk-software-for-small-business) prices the other options.

### Gmelius: for Gmail teams that also want an AI assistant each

Gmelius runs in Gmail and Google Workspace. Shared inboxes, shared labels, auto-assignment, automation rules and SLA analytics start on Gmelius Growth, at [$25 per user a month, billed yearly](https://gmelius.com/pricing) ($33 monthly).

The cheaper $19 Meli plan is one person's AI assistant for drafting and sorting their own email, without shared inboxes. Growth includes everything Meli does, so each person keeps an assistant on top of the team inbox. Gmelius offers a 7-day trial, and personal assistants like Meli are compared in [Fyxer alternatives](/blog/fyxer-alternatives).

## Free options for two or three people

### Google Workspace shared inbox: for small Gmail teams

Google Workspace admins on Business Starter, Standard or Plus can create a shared inbox such as sales@ and add delegates ([Google Workspace Admin Help](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/create-a-shared-inbox)). Delegates can read, send and delete its mail, and each sent email shows which delegate sent it.

It costs nothing beyond your Workspace licences. Google's documentation covers access and sending, not assignment, collision alerts or reporting, and the feature is still rolling out in phases.

Labels can stand in for statuses, as our [Gmail ticketing system guide](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system) shows. The setup steps are in our [Gmail shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail).

### Microsoft 365 shared mailbox: for small Outlook teams

A Microsoft 365 shared mailbox needs no licence of its own up to 50 GB, and each user [adds it in Outlook](/blog/add-shared-mailbox-outlook) from their own licensed mailbox. Microsoft says a shared mailbox "supports a maximum of 25 users" and that too many users at once "might experience connection failures or duplicated messages" ([Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide)).

People outside your organization can't be given access, and you can't stop users deleting messages. The Outlook-side options are compared in [best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook).

## What's a more affordable alternative to Front for small businesses?

For five people on Front Professional, the bill is 5 seats × $65 × 12 months = $3,900 a year, or $5,100 with Copilot. Our pick costs $990 a year for any number of team members, drafting included, the lowest paid price on this page.

Among classic shared inboxes, Help Scout Standard and Gmelius Growth both include SLA features at $25 a seat: 5 × $25 × 12 = $1,500 a year, or $2,400 less than Front.

If you don't need SLAs, Missive Productive keeps rules and integrations for 5 × $24 × 12 = $1,440 a year, against $1,500 for Front Starter. At three seats, Front Professional is $2,340 a year and Help Scout Standard $900.

Every figure here uses yearly billing, and paying monthly costs more with each vendor. Seat prices also tend to leave AI drafting out; InboxPilot's plan includes it.

## Before you cancel Front

Front's Office 365 sync is partial. New messages, sent mail and spam status sync both ways, but read status, archiving, folder changes and snoozes don't ([Front Help Center](https://help.front.com/en/articles/205376)). A team that is half in Outlook and half in Front sees different states for the same email.

Help with the move exists on both sides. Missive's pricing FAQ links a guide for migrating from Front, and Hiver says it migrates data from another help desk at no extra cost.

---

## Fyxer Alternatives: 6 AI Email Assistants Compared (2026)

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/fyxer-alternatives
Published: 2026-10-05

The best Fyxer alternative is InboxPilot. Six options compared on price, Gmail and Outlook support and drafting, plus Fyxer vs Superhuman and Copilot.

The best Fyxer alternative is InboxPilot (we make it). It drafts every reply in Gmail or Outlook from your company's own documents, sheets and Shopify orders, so answers about prices, orders and policies come from your records.

For a cheaper copy of Fyxer in one person's inbox, Jace is the closest match, and Superhuman Mail suits people who want a faster email app.

If you already pay for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, try Copilot in Outlook or Gemini in Gmail first. Prices are from each vendor's pricing page, checked October 5, 2026. We did not run paid trials.

| Tool | Works with | Price (linked) | Main limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| InboxPilot (our pick) | Gmail, Outlook | From $39 a month | No meeting notes |
| Fyxer, for reference | Gmail, Outlook | [$49 a person a month, $37 billed annually](https://www.fyxer.com/pricing) | Drafted replies start on Pro; several inboxes need Team |
| Jace | Gmail, Outlook | [$25 a month, $20 billed yearly](https://jace.ai/pricing) | Usage metered in credits |
| Superhuman Mail | Gmail, Outlook, in its own app | [$30 a member a month; auto drafts from $40](https://superhuman.com/mail/pricing) | Auto drafts only on Business |
| Shortwave | Gmail and Google Workspace | [$18 a seat a month](https://www.shortwave.com/pricing/) | Outlook only by forwarding into Gmail |
| Copilot in Outlook | Outlook on Microsoft 365 | [$21 a user a month, billed yearly](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/copilot/business) | Drafts only when you prompt it |
| Gemini in Gmail | Gmail on Google Workspace | [Included from $7 a user a month](https://workspace.google.com/pricing) | Drafts only when you prompt it |

## Our pick: InboxPilot

InboxPilot is an [AI email assistant for Gmail and Outlook](/ai-email-assistant) that connects to the inbox your business already uses and [sorts each new email by request type](/features/email-triage). It drafts the reply from [your own documents](/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents), website, Google Sheets and [Shopify orders](/industries/shopify-support), so an answer about an order or a price comes from your records.

Each draft waits for a person to approve it.

That is where it beats Fyxer. Fyxer is built around one person's working day, while InboxPilot is built around the business inbox and the information behind it, for one person or a whole team.

[Starter is $39 a month](/pricing) after a 7-day free trial, and Growth is $99 a month with auto-replies. Every plan includes unlimited team members.

It doesn't record meetings, so keep a notetaker if Fyxer's meeting notes are the part you use. The drafting itself is explained on the [AI email replies page](/features/ai-email-replies).

## What Fyxer does, and what it costs in October 2026

Fyxer is an AI email assistant built around one person's working day. It labels new email, drafts replies in your tone, records meetings and keeps a follow-up list, in Gmail, Outlook, Slack, Teams and its own hub.

Fyxer has a Free plan with 400 credits a month, but it doesn't draft replies. [Fyxer Pro is $49 a person a month, or $37 billed annually](https://www.fyxer.com/pricing), and Team is $99, or $64 billed annually. Both start with a 14-day free trial.

Usage runs on credits. Pro includes 3,000 a month per paid member after an unlimited first three months, and sorting costs one credit per five emails. Working across several inboxes at once needs the Team plan.

If your team needs a shared inbox with assignment rather than an assistant each, compare [Front alternatives](/blog/front-alternatives) instead. For assistants that aren't Fyxer rivals, such as SaneBox for sorting or Missive and Gmelius for teams, see our [comparison of AI email assistants](/blog/best-ai-email-assistant).

## If it's your own inbox

### Jace: the closest match to Fyxer, for less

Jace labels and sorts your email, and you click Draft with AI on a thread to get a reply in your voice. For emails you describe in a workflow, such as meeting requests, it drafts the reply as they arrive. It runs on Gmail and on Outlook, including Microsoft 365 and Outlook.com, according to [Jace's documentation](https://jace.ai/llms.txt).

The [Plus plan is $25 a month, or $20 billed yearly](https://jace.ai/pricing), with 10,000 credits and up to 2 inboxes. [Pro is $50, or $40 billed yearly](https://jace.ai/pricing), for up to 8 inboxes, and both come with a 7-day free trial.

Usage is metered in credits, and Jace prices its higher credit tiers separately. Jace's documentation says it never trains AI models on your personal email content.

### Superhuman Mail: a faster email app with AI built in

Superhuman Mail replaces the Gmail or Outlook screen with its own app, built for speed, with split inboxes and follow-up reminders. It works with Gmail and Outlook accounts.

[Starter is $30 a member a month, or $25 billed annually](https://superhuman.com/mail/pricing). Auto drafts, Ask AI and custom auto labels need [Business, at $40 a member a month or $33 billed annually](https://superhuman.com/mail/pricing).

If you want drafts without switching apps, Superhuman also sells [Email Assistant](https://superhuman.com/agents/email-assistant). It labels mail and drafts replies in your voice inside Gmail or Outlook, and it has a 30-day free trial.

### Shortwave: AI search and drafting for Gmail power users

Shortwave is an email app for Gmail and Google Workspace accounts, with AI search across your mail history, summaries and writing in your style. Outlook, Fastmail and Yahoo accounts only work if you connect them to a Gmail account first.

[Pro is $18 a seat a month](https://www.shortwave.com/pricing/), and the team tiers run from $30 to $120 a seat, all with a 14-day free trial. Drafts that appear without you asking come from Tasklet, a separate sister product, rather than from Shortwave itself.

## If you already pay for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace

### Copilot in Outlook: Microsoft 365 companies

Microsoft 365 Copilot is built into Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Teams. In Outlook you select the Copilot icon, choose Draft, type a prompt and click Generate ([Microsoft Support](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/draft-an-email-message-with-copilot-in-outlook-3eb1d053-89b8-491c-8a6e-746015238d9b)).

The [Microsoft 365 Copilot Business add-on is $21 a user a month, billed yearly, or $18 for the first year on purchases made through December 31, 2026](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/copilot/business). It requires an eligible Microsoft 365 Business plan.

Copilot drafts when you ask, so nothing is waiting when you open a new email. Our [Outlook AI assistant comparison](/blog/outlook-ai-assistant) covers the other Outlook options.

### Gemini in Gmail: Google Workspace companies

Gemini in Gmail comes with Google Workspace business plans, starting with [Business Starter at $7 a user a month](https://workspace.google.com/pricing). It finds, summarizes and writes email.

To draft, you open Compose, type a prompt in the prompt bar and click Create ([Google Help](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/13955415)). Like Copilot, it writes on request rather than before you open the email. On personal Google accounts, Google limits it to the US.

## Fyxer vs Superhuman

Fyxer and Superhuman Mail both draft replies in your voice. Here is how they differ on each vendor's site, checked October 5, 2026:

- Fyxer runs inside Gmail and Outlook, while Superhuman Mail is a separate email app. Superhuman's Email Assistant is its in-inbox version.
- For drafted replies, [Fyxer Pro costs $49 a person a month](https://www.fyxer.com/pricing) and [Superhuman Business costs $40 a member a month](https://superhuman.com/mail/pricing), or $37 and $33 on annual billing.
- Fyxer gives a 14-day trial of Pro and keeps a Free plan without drafted replies, while Superhuman offers a 30-day free trial of Email Assistant.
- Fyxer records meetings and drafts follow-ups from the call. Superhuman Mail covers calendar scheduling and adds CRM integrations on Business, which suits a salesperson.
- On security, Fyxer states [SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 certification, HIPAA and GDPR compliance](https://www.fyxer.com/security), and that your data never trains third-party models. Superhuman puts single sign-on and admin security controls in its Enterprise plan.
- For a team, [Fyxer Team at $99 a person a month](https://www.fyxer.com/pricing) adds shared follow-ups with owners and several inboxes, and Superhuman discounts Business for teams of five or more.

Both are built for one person's inbox. For a business inbox answered from company documents and orders, InboxPilot, an [AI email agent](/blog/ai-email-agent) built for that job, is the stronger choice than either.

## Fyxer vs Copilot in Outlook

For Outlook buyers the difference is when the draft appears. Fyxer drafts replies automatically, so they are waiting when you open the inbox. Copilot drafts when you choose Draft with Copilot and type a prompt.

[Copilot Business costs $21 a user a month on a yearly plan](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/copilot/business), against $49 for Fyxer Pro billed monthly. Copilot also works in Word, Excel and Teams. Fyxer adds meeting notes and a follow-up list.

For a shared business address, our pick above beats both: the draft is ready before anyone opens the email, written from your own documents.

---

## Ecommerce Customer Support: A Playbook for Small Teams

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/ecommerce-customer-support
Published: 2026-10-04

The six emails that fill a small store's support inbox, which channel handles each, 2026 response-time data, and what to automate first.

Ecommerce customer support is answering shoppers before and after they buy: where an order is, how to return it, whether a product fits, and what went wrong with a delivery.

For a small store, much of it arrives by email, and most of those emails ask the same six things. Write the answers down once, put each request on the channel that suits it, and let your order data do the typing. Once the answers exist, [customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation) can draft them.

## The six emails that fill a store's support inbox

Almost every message to a small store is one of these. The third column is where the answer already lives, and that decides how far you can automate it.

| Request | Typical email | Where the answer is | Automate? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Order status ([WISMO](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation)) | "Where is order #4821?" | The order and its tracking | Yes |
| Returns and exchanges | "Can I swap this for a medium?" | Your return policy | Yes, the policy answer |
| Refunds | "When will I get my money back?" | The order and refund policy | The reply, not the refund |
| Product questions | "Is this dishwasher safe?" | Product page or spec sheet | Yes, if it's written down |
| Address or order changes | "I typed the wrong zip code" | Fulfillment status | The reply, not the change |
| Damaged, wrong or missing items | "It arrived broken" | Photos and the carrier claim | No, keep a person |

How many of these you get depends on what you sell. In [Gorgias's March 2026 merchant data](https://www.gorgias.com/research/stop-benchmarking-against-the-average), an electronics brand gets about 46 support tickets for every 100 orders, and a food and beverage brand about 20.

## Match each request to a channel

Email suits anything tied to an order. The customer can include the order number and photos, and you both keep a record of what was promised.

Chat suits questions asked while browsing, like sizing or delivery dates, when a quick answer saves the sale. Offer it only during hours someone is watching it.

Treat social messages and marketplace inboxes as a doorway. Answer general questions where they were asked, and move order problems to email with the order number. A phone line is worth listing only if someone picks it up during the hours you publish.

## Response-time targets for a small team

The [same Gorgias research](https://www.gorgias.com/research/stop-benchmarking-against-the-average) puts the median first response time at 6.3 hours for brands around $10M in yearly sales. By vertical it runs from 1.6 hours in the fastest to 9.1 in the slowest, so compare yourself with stores that sell what you sell.

Set two targets and put them on your contact page:

- Order status and product questions: a reply within a few business hours.
- Everything else: a reply the same business day, even if it only [acknowledges the email](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) and says when the full answer is coming.

## Write the policies down before you pick a tool

Every fast reply depends on an answer that already exists in writing. Before you compare software, write down your shipping times by region, the return window and condition rules, and how long refunds take to reach a card.

Add what happens with damaged items and the cutoff for address changes. Those five pages let anyone new answer on day one, and any tool you add later drafts from them.

For the return and refund replies themselves, start from these [return request and refund email templates](/blog/return-request-email-templates).

## Tools by store size: shared inbox, helpdesk or AI drafts

One or two people answering can work from a shared Gmail or Outlook inbox with labels and saved replies. It costs nothing extra, and [shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk) sets out when that stops being enough.

Once several people answer across email, chat and social, an ecommerce helpdesk such as Gorgias, Gladly or Zendesk puts every channel and the customer's orders in one queue. The priced options for small stores are in [help desk software for small business](/blog/help-desk-software-for-small-business).

Both still leave the typing to a person unless you add AI on top. If most of the queue is order status and policy questions, that typing is where the hours go, because the answers already sit in Shopify and in your policies.

Each helpdesk prices that AI its own way (checked October 6, 2026). Zendesk's Copilot, which drafts replies, is [$50 an agent a month](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/), billed yearly, on Professional plans and up, so the cheapest Zendesk with it is $165 an agent a month.

[Gorgias](https://www.gorgias.com/pricing) charges by ticket volume, from $10 a month for 50 tickets, and its AI Agent answers customers itself for $0.85 to $1.00 per automated interaction. Gladly's Team Assist drafts replies, but Gladly doesn't publish its prices.

## What to automate first

Automate in the order the answers are easiest to check:

1. Order status. The answer is the order's fulfillment status and tracking link, so a wrong draft is easy to spot.
2. Return and exchange questions, answered from your written policy.
3. Product questions, answered from product pages and spec sheets.
4. Refund timing, drafted from the order, while a person still issues the refund in Shopify.

Keep damaged or missing items, chargebacks and angry repeat customers with a person. Those need judgment, photos or money moving.

## If most of your inbox is order questions

InboxPilot (we make it) connects to your store's Gmail or Outlook account and to Shopify. When an email arrives, it looks up that customer's orders, tracking and your store policies, then drafts the reply for you to approve.

It doesn't issue refunds or create return labels, so those stay in Shopify. The setup for stores is on [AI customer service for Shopify](/industries/shopify-support), and Growth, the plan with Shopify order lookups, is [$99 a month](/pricing) after a 7-day free trial.

---

## Best Email Routing Software for Teams in 2026

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/email-routing-software
Published: 2026-10-04

Email routing software for teams: AI routing by what an email asks, round-robin assignment in Front, Hiver and Missive, and free Gmail and Outlook rules.

Gmail filters and Outlook rules route team email by sender or subject for free. To route by what an email asks, InboxPilot (we make it) files each one under your team's labels and can forward it or post it to Slack. To give each email to one person in turn, Front, Hiver, Missive, Gmelius and Help Scout add round-robin assignment.

Prices are per user per month on annual billing, from each vendor's pricing page, checked on October 6, 2026, and we did not run paid trials. Seat prices often leave AI reply drafting out, so the table shows what it adds; InboxPilot's plan price includes it. For shared inbox features beyond routing, see our [shared inbox software roundup](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software).

| Tool | Works with | Price | Main limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| InboxPilot | Gmail, Outlook | [$39 a month, AI drafts included](/pricing) | No round robin |
| Front | Gmail, Office 365 | [$25 a seat; $45 with Copilot AI drafts](https://front.com/pricing) | Load balancing on Professional |
| Hiver | Gmail; Outlook via Omni | [$25, AI drafts included](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail) | Load balancing on Pro |
| Missive | Gmail, Outlook, IMAP | [$24 plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) | No rules on Starter |
| Help Scout | Any address, by forwarding | [Free, then $25; $45 for AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) | Round robin on Plus |
| Gmelius | Gmail only | [$25, AI drafts included](https://gmelius.com/pricing) | No Outlook |
| Zoho TeamInbox | Any address | [$5](https://www.zoho.com/teaminbox/pricing.html) | One fixed assignee per rule |
| Gmail filters and Collaborative Inbox | Google Workspace | Free | Assign by hand |
| Outlook rules and shared mailbox | Microsoft 365 | Free | No assignment |

## Route by what the email asks: AI routing

Keyword rules miss the customer who wants a refund but never writes the word. AI routing reads the request instead, the same call a person makes during [email triage](/blog/email-triage).

### InboxPilot: route by meaning inside Gmail or Outlook

InboxPilot reads each new email in a connected Gmail or Outlook inbox. You describe each label in a sentence, such as "refunds, returns and damaged orders", and every email lands under the one label that fits, or none. On Outlook, the label is a category, so the email stays in the Inbox.

For other routes, write the rule in plain English under Automations > Create action > Forward or label: "invoices and receipts go to `accounting@yourcompany.com`". A Slack action posts matching emails to a channel, where the first teammate to react with 👀 or reply takes it ([Slack setup](/blog/slack-email-integration)).

Connect a team address like support@ and setup can suggest up to four teams from your recent mail. It also drafts replies to the emails it routes, for a person to approve. There is no round robin: who has an email is tracked in Slack, not inside Gmail or Outlook.

## Assign each email to one person: shared inbox apps

These tools give every email an owner, either a named person or the next one in rotation. Most also offer AI tagging that feeds the same rules.

### Front: load balancing for larger teams

Front is a separate app that connects Gmail and Office 365, including Exchange shared mailboxes. Rules match the sender, recipient, subject or keywords and assign the conversation. Round robin works on every plan, and load balancing, which picks whoever has the fewest open conversations, starts on Professional.

Starter allows 10 rules, and Professional adds 20 rules and SLA rules. Routing by meaning comes from the Autopilot add-on, at [$0.05 per triaged conversation](https://help.front.com/en/articles/4890624). Drafting replies takes Copilot, a further [$20 a seat](https://front.com/pricing).

Round robin only picks teammates who are online, so an email that arrives when nobody is signed in stays unassigned ([Front help](https://help.front.com/en/articles/1315904)). Teams leaving Front altogether can compare five-seat costs in [Front alternatives](/blog/front-alternatives).

### Hiver: round robin inside Gmail

Hiver adds a shared inbox to Gmail through a Chrome extension. Hiver Omni, a separate app, connects Google, Microsoft and Zoho inboxes. [Automations](https://help.hiverhq.com/assigning-and-routing/auto-assign-conversations) match the sender, subject or recipient and assign to one person, or among several by round robin.

Growth needs at least two seats, includes AI Copilot for drafting replies, and allows 10 automations per shared inbox. Load balancing, with a cap per person, starts on Pro, and skill-based routing on Elite. AI Tagging can tag the first email and trigger a route, but each tag needs at least 10 tagged examples first ([Hiver help](https://help.hiverhq.com/ai-agents/ai-tagging)).

### Missive: least-busy assignment

Missive is a separate app for Gmail, Outlook and IMAP accounts, built around team chat inside each thread. Its assign action can go round robin or "least busy first", and it skips teammates who are out of office ([Missive docs](https://missiveapp.com/docs/advanced-features/rules/workload-balancing)).

AI rules take a written condition and add labels, notes or drafts. Rules, auto-assignment and AI rules all start on Productive; Starter has no rules. AI usage is billed on top, as Missive credits or on your own OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini key ([Missive docs](https://missiveapp.com/docs/ai/overview)).

### Help Scout: round robin on a help desk with a free plan

Help Scout is a separate app that keeps support email looking like email. Workflows match the sender, subject, body or tags and assign a conversation to a person or a team. [Round robin](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1739-use-routing-to-automatically-assign-conversations) starts on Plus, along with AI Drafts, and balanced assignment on Pro.

The Free plan covers 5 users, 1 inbox and 100 contacts a month. A Microsoft 365 shared mailbox connects only by auto-forwarding, and replies sent from Outlook don't sync back ([Help Scout docs](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1745-auto-forward-from-a-microsoft-365-shared-mailbox)).

### Gmelius: assignment and AI dispatching for Gmail

Gmelius works inside Gmail, with web and mobile apps beside it. From Growth, rules assign by round robin among teammates marked Available, or by load balancing ([Gmelius help](https://help.gmelius.com/workflow-rules-slas/round-robin)). AI Dispatching tags the first message and routes it to the person who owns that tag.

Growth allows 10,000 rule runs a month, and the AI Draft Assistant comes with every plan. Every user needs a Google account, so there's no Outlook option.

### Zoho TeamInbox: the cheapest fixed assignment

Zoho TeamInbox is a separate app that takes email by forwarding, POP or IMAP, or a Microsoft sign-in. A rule checks the sender, recipients, subject or body and assigns matching email to a named teammate, such as every "payment" email to one person ([Zoho's example](https://help.zoho.com/portal/en/community/topic/tip-of-the-week-54-%E2%80%93-automatically-assign-emails-to-your-team-members)).

Starter allows 25 rules, and Professional removes the cap. Each rule names one person, and Zoho documents no round robin or AI routing.

## Route team email for free in Gmail and Outlook

Both built-in options route by sender, subject or words in the email. Neither reads what the customer wants.

### Gmail filters and Collaborative Inbox: Google Workspace

A [Gmail filter](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/6579) can label, star or forward new email that matches a sender, a subject or words. To give each email an owner, a Google Group set up as a Collaborative Inbox lets members take a conversation, assign it to someone and mark it complete ([Groups help](https://support.google.com/groups/answer/2467048)).

Assignment there is by hand, and an admin has to turn on Groups for Business first. Our [Gmail shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail) has the setup.

### Outlook rules and shared mailboxes: Microsoft 365

[Outlook rules](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/mail/manage-email-messages-by-using-rules-in-outlook) move, forward or redirect email by sender, subject or words. A [Microsoft 365 shared mailbox](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes) gives up to 25 people one address and needs no license of its own, but nothing in it marks who owns an email.

Microsoft 365 blocks automatic forwarding to outside addresses by default, so a forward rule can save and then bounce ([Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/defender-office-365/outbound-spam-policies-external-email-forwarding)). All rules in a mailbox share [256 KB of space](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/exchange/clients-and-mobile-in-exchange-online/outlook-on-the-web/increase-the-space-used-by-inbox-rules). The [Outlook shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook) covers the tools that connect to one.

## If routing needs SLAs and escalation

Timers that escalate an unanswered email, and reports per agent, belong to help desks. Freshdesk adds round robin and load balancing on Pro at [$55 an agent](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/), and Freddy AI Copilot, which drafts replies, costs $29 an agent more. Our [shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk) comparison shows when a team has crossed that line.

---

## Gmail Templates: How to Create, Share and Automate Them

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/gmail-templates
Published: 2026-10-04

Turn on Gmail templates, save and insert one, edit or delete it, share templates with a team, and send one automatically with a filter.

To use templates in Gmail, turn them on under **Settings** > **See all settings** > **Advanced** > **Templates** > **Enable**. Then write a message and save it with **More options** > **Templates** > **Save draft as template**. Inserting, editing, sharing and sending one automatically are below.

Gmail used to call these canned responses. They work only in Gmail on a computer. For out of office replies and the other kinds of auto reply, see the [Gmail auto reply guide](/blog/automate-your-gmail).

## Turn on templates in Gmail

You do this once per Gmail account.

1. Open Gmail on your computer.
2. At the top right, click **Settings**, then **See all settings**.
3. Click the **Advanced** tab.
4. Next to **Templates**, click **Enable**.
5. Scroll down and click **Save Changes**.

## Create and save a template

1. Click **Compose**.
2. Write the template text. Add a subject line if you want the template to carry one.
3. At the bottom of the compose window, click **More options** (the three dots).
4. Click **Templates** > **Save draft as template** > **Save as new template**.
5. Give it a name you'll recognise in a list, such as "Pricing reply" or "Order received", and save.

Use square brackets for the parts you'll change each time, like [first name] or [order number]. Gmail doesn't fill them in, so the brackets make a missed one easy to spot before you send.

## Insert a template into an email

1. Click **Compose**, or open the email and click **Reply**.
2. Click **More options** at the bottom of the compose box.
3. Click **Templates**, then pick the template under **Insert template**.
4. Replace the bracketed parts and click **Send**.

Note: The Gmail app on Android and iPhone can't insert templates. On an iPhone, a [keyboard text replacement](https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/use-shorthand-for-frequently-used-text-iph6d01d862/ios) is the nearest substitute.

## Edit or delete a template

Gmail has no edit button. You change a template by saving over it.

1. Insert the template into a new message and make your changes.
2. Click **More options** > **Templates** > **Save draft as template**.
3. Under **Overwrite Template**, pick the template's name and click **Save**.

To delete one, click **More options** > **Templates** > **Delete template**, pick the template and click **Delete**.

Note: A deleted template can't be recovered, so copy the text somewhere first if you might want it back.

## Share Gmail templates with your team

Gmail saves templates to each person's account, and there is no share button. That holds on Google Workspace too, and when your team reads one address through a [Google Group](/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail). Two workarounds are in common use:

- Keep the master copy of every template in a shared Google Doc. Each person saves the ones they use into their own Gmail. When a policy or price changes, update the Doc and ask everyone to overwrite their copy.
- Use a Gmail extension with shared templates, such as [Ablebits Shared Email Templates](https://www.ablebits.com/docs/gmail-shared-templates-create-teams/) or [Drag](https://www.dragapp.com/blog/email-templates-gmail/). One edit then reaches everyone.

The Doc is free, but copies drift as people forget to update theirs. If the team also needs to assign emails and see who replied, a [shared inbox tool for Gmail](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail) usually includes shared templates.

## Send a template automatically with a filter

Use this for a standing reply to one kind of email, such as everything sent to support@. The same filter screen can also forward those emails, for example [to a Slack channel](/blog/how-to-forward-gmail-messages-to-slack).

1. In the Gmail search bar, click **Show search options**.
2. Set the criteria, for example **To** support@yourcompany.com, then click **Create filter**.
3. Tick **Send template** and choose the template.
4. Click **Create filter**.

Note: Every matching email gets the same text, and the filter matches words, not meaning. For wording that works as an auto reply, copy one of these [automated email response examples](/blog/automated-email-response-examples).

Steps checked against Google's [Create a template in Gmail](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/14864208) and [Create rules to filter your emails](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/6579) on 2026-10-04.

## Templates not showing in Gmail?

If **Templates** is missing from **More options**, the setting isn't on. Enable it under **Advanced** and click **Save Changes** at the bottom of the page. Leaving without saving is the usual miss.

If you're in the Gmail app, there's no fix: templates only appear in Gmail on a computer. Open the email there instead.

If **Send template** in a filter offers nothing to pick, you haven't saved a template yet. Create one first, then build the filter.

## When a template can't answer the email

A template sends the same words every time. It can't quote the price for 200 units or say where order 4521 is.

[AI email replies](/features/ai-email-replies) read the email and draft the answer from your own documents and order data. InboxPilot (we make it) does this in Gmail, and each draft waits for you to approve it. It starts with a 7-day free trial, then Starter is $39 a month, and Growth, which adds order lookups, is $99 ([pricing](/pricing), October 2026).

---

## How to Reply to an Inquiry Email: 10 Templates

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/how-to-reply-to-an-inquiry-email
Published: 2026-10-04

Answer the question first, ask one qualifying question, give one next step. 10 inquiry reply templates for prices, programs, bookings and quiet leads.

To reply to an inquiry email, answer their question in the first two lines, ask the one thing you need to know, and end with a single next step. "Thank you for your inquiry" can open it, as long as the answer follows. Below are 10 templates to copy, grouped by what the inquiry asks for.

Reply the same day if you can. [Speed to lead](/blog/speed-to-lead) covers why the first hour matters and how small teams get there. If you can't answer yet, [acknowledge the email](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) with a date instead.

## Price and quote inquiries

### When they ask what it costs

Use it when the price is fixed or published.

> Subject: Re: [Their subject]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Thanks for your inquiry. [Product or service] is [price] [per month / per person / one-off], and that includes [the two things people ask about most].
>
> Most [customers / teams / students] in your position choose [option], because [one-line reason]. Is that close to what you need, or is your situation different?
>
> If it helps to talk it through, you can book 15 minutes here: [booking link].
>
> [Your name]

### When the price depends on the details

Use it when you can't quote until you know more. Ask for every detail at once so they can answer in one email.

> Subject: Re: [Their subject]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Thanks for reaching out about [product or service]. Prices usually run from [low] to [high], depending on [the main factor].
>
> To send an exact quote, I need [quantity or scope], [the date you need it by] and [delivery location or spec]. Reply with those and I'll send the quote by [day].
>
> [Your name]

Note: for supplier quote requests with line items and lead times, use the [RFQ response templates](/blog/rfq-response-email-templates).

## Questions about a product, service or program

### When they ask whether it fits their case

Use it when the inquiry is "can you do X for me". If the answer is no, skip to the decline template below.

> Subject: Re: [Their subject]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Yes, [product or service] handles [their case]. [One sentence on how, with a concrete detail.]
>
> One thing to check first: [the requirement that rules people out, e.g. it works with X but not Y]. Does that match your setup?
>
> If it does, the next step is [trial / demo / sample], and you can start here: [link].
>
> [Your name]

### When a prospective student asks about a program

Use it for course, program and certification inquiries that come in from a form. The same shape works for any [education or certification program](/industries/education-certification).

> Subject: Re: [Program name] inquiry
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Thanks for your interest in [program name]. It's [online / in person / hybrid], takes [length], and the next cohort starts [date]. Tuition is [amount], and you can [payment option, e.g. pay in three monthly installments].
>
> [Credit or accreditation detail, e.g. The program is approved for 30 continuing education hours.]
>
> So we can point you to the right track, what's your current role, and when are you hoping to start? If you'd like to talk to an advisor, book a time here: [booking link].
>
> [Your name]
> [Title], [School or program]

Note: if applications close soon, add the date: "Applications for the [month] cohort close on [date]."

### When they ask about availability or a booking

Use it for dates, slots, rooms and appointments.

> Subject: Re: [Their subject]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Thanks for your inquiry. [Date or slot] is [available / taken]. [If taken: The closest openings are [option 1] and [option 2].]
>
> For [number of people or the service], the total comes to [price], including [what's included]. I can hold it for you until [date and time].
>
> Would you like me to book it? Reply with [names, address, phone number] and I'll send the confirmation.
>
> [Your name]

## Next steps and documents

### When they're ready to go ahead

Use it the moment they say yes, so nothing waits on a second round of questions.

> Subject: Next steps for [product, program or booking]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Great to hear you'd like to go ahead. First, [step one, e.g. fill in the application form: link]. Then send us [document 1], [document 2] and [document 3].
>
> Once we have those, we'll [confirm your place / send the contract / schedule the work] within [timeframe].
>
> If anything's unclear, reply to this email and I'll sort it out.
>
> [Your name]

### When you need something from them before you can answer

Use it when the right answer depends on a document or detail they haven't sent.

> Subject: Re: [Their subject]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Thanks for your question about [topic]. The answer depends on [factor], so could you send [the document or detail, e.g. a copy of your transcript / a photo of the part / your current plan]?
>
> Once I have it, I'll get back to you by [day] with [what they'll receive].
>
> [Your name]

## Inquiries you can't take on

### When you can't help yet

Use it when you're full, closed for the season or not yet open in their area.

> Subject: Re: [Their subject]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Thanks for getting in touch. We're [fully booked until / not taking new clients until / not yet running the program in] [date or place].
>
> I can [add you to the waitlist / let you know when the next cohort opens / hold a slot for [date]]. Would you like that?
>
> [Your name]

### When it isn't a fit

Use it when you don't offer what they need. A referral leaves them with somewhere to go.

> Subject: Re: [Their subject]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Thanks for thinking of us. We don't [offer the thing they asked for / take on projects under [size] / serve your area], so we're not the right fit for this one.
>
> [Another provider or resource] does [what they need], and you can reach them at [link or contact].
>
> If you need [what you do offer] later, I'd be glad to help.
>
> [Your name]

## Follow up when the lead goes quiet

### Two or three days after your reply

Use it in the same thread, so your first answer sits right below it.

> Subject: Re: [Their subject]
>
> Hi [First name],
>
> Following up on my note about [product, program or booking]. [One new useful detail, e.g. The spring cohort has six places left / I've attached the spec sheet you asked about.]
>
> Is [the next step] still something you're considering? A one-line reply either way is fine.
>
> [Your name]

Note: send one follow-up, two at most, and stop as soon as they answer.

## Phrases to use and to avoid

| Instead of | Write | Why |
|---|---|---|
| "Thank you for your inquiry. We will get back to you shortly." | "Thanks for your inquiry. [The answer.]" | The first line does the work |
| "Please find attached our brochure." | "[The answer], and page 3 of the attached guide has the details." | They asked a question, not for reading |
| "Let me know if you have any questions." | "[One specific question]?" | A specific question gets a reply |
| "Dear Sir or Madam" | "Hi [First name]" | Form inquiries carry a name |
| "Our team will review your request." | "I'll send the quote by Thursday." | A date tells them when to look |

An automatic receipt can buy you a few hours. The real answer still has to follow, and these [automated email responses](/blog/automated-email-response-examples) show how to set a reply time in the receipt.

## If inquiries arrive faster than you can answer them

If your answers already live in a price list or a program guide, InboxPilot (we make it) drafts each reply in Gmail or Outlook from those documents. The draft can end with your qualifying question and booking link, and a person approves it before it sends.

When your form sets Reply-To to the prospect, the draft is addressed to them. It doesn't book meetings, so the reply carries your calendar link. There's a 7-day free trial, and Starter is [$39 a month](/pricing).

---

## Return Request and Refund Email Templates: 14 to Copy

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/return-request-email-templates
Published: 2026-10-04

Return approved, declined, refunded, late or partial: 14 return request and refund email templates with subject lines, for stores and for customers.

A good return or refund email gives the answer in line one, names the order and item, and ends with the next step and a date. Below are 14 templates to copy, grouped by what you're telling the customer, plus three for when you're the customer.

Each uses [brackets] for what you fill in. Returns are one part of [ecommerce customer support](/blog/ecommerce-customer-support), and they follow the same rule as any [customer service email](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation): the answer first, the reason second.

## Replies when you approve a return

### Return approved

For a request that meets your policy, when the item has to come back.

> Subject: Your return for order [#1042] is approved
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Your return for [item] from order [#1042] is approved. Pack it in the original box, attach the label [linked here], and drop it at any [carrier] location by [date].
>
> We'll refund [amount] to your [original payment method] within [2] business days of receiving it, and email you when it's done.
>
> [Your name]

### Refund issued

> Subject: Your refund of [amount] for order [#1042] is on its way
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> We've refunded [amount] to your [card ending 4242] for [item]. Your bank decides when it shows, which is usually within [10] business days.
>
> If it isn't there by [date], reply here and we'll chase it with our payment provider.
>
> [Your name]

### Partial refund

When only part of the order comes back, or it comes back used or incomplete.

> Subject: Partial refund for order [#1042]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Your return arrived, and we've refunded [amount] of the [order total]. The difference is [the original shipping cost / the missing charger / the restocking fee in our return policy].
>
> If you think we've got this wrong, reply with a photo and I'll look again.
>
> [Your name]

Note: Link the line of your policy you're applying. A partial refund with no reason reads as a mistake.

### Store credit instead of a refund

> Subject: Your [amount] store credit is ready
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> As you asked, we've issued [amount] in store credit instead of a refund. It's saved to the account for [email address] and applies at checkout. [It doesn't expire / It's valid until date.]
>
> [Your name]

### Exchange instead of a refund

> Subject: Swapping your [item] for a [size or colour]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Happy to swap it. We've set aside a [size 9] in [colour], and it ships [today / as soon as the carrier scans your return].
>
> Use the attached label to send the [size 8] back by [date]. The exchange costs you nothing.
>
> [Your name]

### Damaged or wrong item

> Subject: Sorry about order [#1042], a replacement is on the way
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for the photo. That [item] arrived [damaged / in the wrong size], and that's on us. A replacement shipped today with tracking number [number], due by [date].
>
> You don't need to send the first one back.
>
> [Your name]

## Replies when the answer is no

Say no in the first sentence, give the reason once, then offer what you can do.

### Return declined: outside the return window

> Subject: About your return request for order [#1042]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> I'm sorry, we can't accept a return on [item]. It was delivered on [date], and our return window is [30] days from delivery, which ended on [date].
>
> What I can do is [send a discount code for a replacement / pass on the manufacturer's warranty details].
>
> [Your name]

### Return declined: final sale

> Subject: Your [item] from order [#1042]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> I've checked, and [item] was sold as final sale, so we can't take it back or refund it. [The product page and your order confirmation both marked it final sale.]
>
> If it's faulty, that's different: send a photo of the fault and we'll [repair or replace it] under [the warranty].
>
> [Your name]

### No refund, but a reason to stay

For a refund you can't give to a customer you want to keep.

> Subject: A different fix for your [item]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> I can't refund [item], because [it was used / it's past our window / it was made to order]. I don't want you stuck with something that doesn't work for you, though.
>
> Here's what I can do today: [store credit for the full amount / a free alteration / a replacement part]. Reply with the one you'd like and I'll set it up.
>
> [Your name]

## Replies when the refund is late

"Where's my refund?" works like an [order status email](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation): give the status and a date before the customer has to ask twice.

### Refund sent but not showing

Use it when the refund has gone through but the customer can't see it yet. If you take payments with Stripe, a [Stripe email integration](/use-cases/stripe-email-integration) can fill in the amount, date and card for you.

> Subject: Re: Where is my refund?
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> We issued your refund of [amount] on [date], reference [refund ID]. Banks can take up to [10] business days to show it, so you should see it by [date].
>
> If it's not there by then, send me a screenshot of your statement and I'll trace it with our payment provider.
>
> [Your name]

Note: Shopify Payments marks a refund Pending for up to 2 business days, and banks can take up to 10 ([Shopify Help Center](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/payments/shopify-payments/payouts/refunds), checked October 4, 2026).

### Return received, refund still processing

If the customer only needs to know the parcel arrived, a [short acknowledgment](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) is enough. This one adds the refund date.

> Subject: We've got your return for order [#1042]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Your return reached us on [date]. We're checking it now and will refund [amount] by [date]. You'll get an email the moment it goes through.
>
> [Your name]

## When you're the customer

### Return request email

> Subject: Return request: order [#1042], [item]
>
> Hi [Store name],
>
> I'd like to return [item] from order [#1042], delivered on [date]. [It doesn't fit / It isn't what I expected], and it's unused with the tags on.
>
> Could you send a return label or the return address? I'd like a refund to my original payment method [or an exchange for a size 9].
>
> Thanks,
> [Name]

### Refund request email

> Subject: Refund request: order [#1042], [item] arrived [faulty]
>
> Hi [Store name],
>
> [Item] from order [#1042] arrived on [date] [with a cracked screen / not as described]. Photos are attached.
>
> I'd like a full refund of [amount] to my original payment method. Let me know if you need the item back and how to send it.
>
> Thanks,
> [Name]

### Following up on a refund

> Subject: Refund for order [#1042] not received
>
> Hi [Store name],
>
> On [date] you confirmed a refund of [amount] for order [#1042]. It hasn't reached my [card ending 1234] yet. Could you send the refund reference so I can check with my bank?
>
> Thanks,
> [Name]

## Phrases to use and to avoid

Save the replies you send most as [Gmail templates](/blog/gmail-templates), Outlook Quick Parts or macros in your [help desk software](/blog/help-desk-software-for-small-business), then fix the wording once.

| Instead of | Write | Why |
|---|---|---|
| "Per our policy" | "Our return window is 30 days from delivery." | States the rule |
| "Your refund has been processed." | "We refunded [amount] to your card ending 4242 on May 3." | Answers the next three questions |
| "Return within 30 days" | "Ship it back by May 20." | No argument about when the clock started |
| "Unfortunately, we are unable to" | "We can't [X], but we can [Y]." | Leads to the option |
| "Please allow 5 to 10 business days." | "You should see it by May 17." | A date, not a range to count |

## If return emails fill your day

Each reply above changes with the order, the item and your policy, and that lookup is the slow part. InboxPilot (we make it) reads the Shopify order the customer is writing about and your store's refund policy, then drafts the reply in Gmail or Outlook for you to approve.

It doesn't issue the refund or create the return label; you still do that in Shopify. Here's [how it drafts replies for Shopify stores](/industries/shopify-support). After a [7-day trial](/pricing), Growth, the plan with Shopify order lookups, is $99 a month.

---

## Speed to Lead: What It Is and How to Improve It by Email

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/speed-to-lead
Published: 2026-10-04

Speed to lead is the time from a new lead to your first useful reply. How to measure it in Gmail or Outlook, and how to cut it when leads arrive by email.

Speed to lead is the time between a new lead's form or email arriving and your first reply that answers them or moves them forward. For leads that arrive by email, aim for a useful reply within the hour.

If your leads come in through a website form or straight to an inbox, speed to lead is an email problem. Most of the delay comes from four causes, and each one has a fix you can make this week.

| Why the lead waits | The fix |
|---|---|
| Form notifications land in an inbox nobody watches | Send them to the person who replies, or to a shared address with an owner |
| You hit Reply and it goes to the form tool's no-reply address | Map the form's email field to the notification's Reply-To |
| The answer needs fees, dates or requirements you have to look up | Keep the answers in one document the whole team uses |
| The lead writes at 9pm and waits until morning | Have the reply drafted before the first person logs in |

## Speed to lead statistics

The most cited research comes from a [2011 Harvard Business Review study](https://hbr.org/2011/03/the-short-life-of-online-sales-leads) by James Oldroyd, Kristina McElheran and David Elkington. They sent a web test lead to 2,241 US companies. Only 37% responded within an hour, 23% never responded, and the average reply took 42 hours.

The same article reports a second study of 1.25 million sales leads at 42 companies. Firms that tried to reach a lead within an hour were nearly seven times as likely to qualify it as firms that tried an hour later.

> "...and more than 60 times as likely as companies that waited 24 hours or longer."

Email inboxes are no faster today. SuperOffice's [customer service benchmark](https://www.superoffice.com/blog/customer-service-benchmark-report/), last updated in March 2023, found that 62% of 1,000 companies never answered a customer email.

## How to measure lead response time in Gmail or Outlook

You don't need a CRM report to get your number. Your inbox already has both timestamps.

1. Search your inbox for your last 20 form notifications or new-lead emails.
2. For each one, note when it arrived and when your first reply went out (open the thread, or search Sent).
3. Count only replies that answered the question. "Thanks, we'll be in touch" stops no clock for the lead.
4. Take the median, not the average. One lead you missed for a week drags the average for months.
5. Split the leads that arrived outside working hours into their own group. That group is usually where the hours go.

Do it again a month after each change, so you can see which fix moved the number.

## What a fast reply has to say

Speed only helps if the first reply is useful. A lead who asked about fees, start dates or eligibility wants those answers, plus one next step. A fast acknowledgment with no answer still leaves them comparing you with the next provider.

Write the first reply to answer the question in the first two lines. Then ask for the one thing you need to move forward, such as a call time or a document. Our [inquiry email reply templates](/blog/how-to-reply-to-an-inquiry-email) show this for pricing, booking and program questions.

When you can't answer yet, say what you're checking and when you'll be back. The [acknowledgment format](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) covers that case.

## Inbound lead qualification by email

Long forms slow leads down before they reach you, and they still leave questions. Qualify in the first reply instead, with the one or two questions that decide fit.

A certification program might ask which intake the person is aiming for and whether they meet the prerequisite. A consultancy might ask about scope and timing. Ask both questions in one email, so the lead can answer in one go.

This is how [education and certification programs](/industries/education-certification) run admissions by email. Prospects fill out a form, then send questions, transcripts and payment queries before they enroll. Speed matters at each step, not only the first.

## When the slow part is writing the reply

If your reply is slow because each answer needs a fee schedule or a program guide, AI lead follow up can help. InboxPilot (we make it) drafts replies in Gmail or Outlook from your own documents.

It addresses each draft to the form's Reply-To, so it reaches the lead and not the form tool. A person approves each draft before it sends.

It doesn't call, text or book meetings, so put your scheduling link in the reply. There's a 7-day free trial, then [Starter is $39 a month](/pricing) (checked October 12, 2026).

For the rest of the inbox, see [customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation).

## More inbound lead guides

- [How to reply to an inquiry email: templates](/blog/how-to-reply-to-an-inquiry-email)
- [Education and certification programs: admissions email](/industries/education-certification)

---

## How to Fix Your Email Problem as a Mortgage Lender

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/how-to-fix-your-email-problem-as-a-mortgage-lender
Published: 2026-09-30

Borrowers chasing status, documents asked for twice, leads waiting a day. How loan officers fix their inbox, with InboxPilot or a free workaround.

Most of a loan officer's email is borrowers asking where their loan is, documents going back and forth, and third parties who all reply at once. Fix it by answering status before borrowers ask, confirming every document you receive, and getting a draft in front of each new lead within the hour.

An [AI email assistant](/ai-email-assistant) like InboxPilot (we make it) writes those replies in Gmail or Outlook for you to send. Where a free workaround does the job, it's below too.

## The emails that fill a mortgage inbox

Open any loan officer's inbox on a Tuesday and it's the same handful of subject lines. "Any update?" from a borrower who hasn't heard from you since Friday. "Did you get my W-2?" from one who sent it twice.

Then a title company asking about a fee and a realtor asking about the closing date. And a web lead who filled in a form at 11pm and is comparing you with two other lenders.

None of them is hard to answer. There are just a lot of them, and each one waits until you have time.

## From an email arriving to an approved InboxPilot draft

1. Connect the loan inbox with Google or Microsoft. InboxPilot drafts a reply to one recent email straight away, so you judge it on your own mail.
2. Add your condition list, upload steps and common answers under **Knowledge Base**.
3. A borrower writes. Within a minute a reply waits in **Drafts**, in the same thread.
4. You edit if needed and send. Nothing goes out on its own unless you switch on auto-send for routine replies.

<Figure src="/m-static/images/blog/mortgage-first-draft-card.webp" width="1536" height="272" maxWidth="720" alt="InboxPilot dashboard card: Your first draft is ready. A reply to Re: Proof of rental income for the Elm St refinance is waiting in Gmail. Nothing sends until you do. Open in Gmail button." caption="What you see after connecting: a link straight to the first draft." />

It works on individual Gmail and Outlook inboxes and on Microsoft 365 shared mailboxes.

## Borrowers shouldn't have to ask for an update

When the borrower has to chase you, it shows. In [STRATMOR's borrower surveys](https://floify.com/blog/method-contact-affects-borrower-satisfaction) (October 2016 report), contact the borrower started scored 61, the lowest of any method measured. Updates the loan officer started scored highest.

InboxPilot reads the whole thread before it drafts, so a reply says what's actually true: "Your file is with underwriting. The appraisal came in at value, so the last item is a pay stub from the past 30 days."

It doesn't read your loan origination system. Anything recorded only in the LOS still needs a person to add.

The free version is a short Friday email on every open file. It works, but on 30 files it's an afternoon.

## Confirm every document, and ask for the right one

Borrowers' most common complaints, per [Floify's roundup](https://floify.com/blog/3-common-complaints-mortgage-lending), are unanswered emails and being asked for the same document twice, or told it never arrived.

Put your condition list and upload instructions in InboxPilot's **Knowledge Base**. When a borrower sends a lease, the draft thanks them and asks for exactly what's still missing:

<Figure src="/m-static/images/blog/mortgage-draft-rental-income.webp" width="1440" height="572" maxWidth="720" alt="An InboxPilot draft reply: Hi Jordan, thanks for the lease. To count the rental income we also need your 2025 Schedule E, or 12 months of bank statements showing the rent deposits if the lease is under a year old. You can upload either to the secure portal link from your application email. Once it is in, underwriting can finish the income review this week. Best regards." caption="A document request, waiting in Drafts for the loan officer." />

With one loan officer and a handful of files, saved Gmail templates per condition cover most of this for free.

## When agents, title and underwriting reply at once

Processors describe the same pattern: a quiet morning, then five files moving in one afternoon. InboxPilot files each email under the labels or Outlook categories you already use and drafts a reply for a person to check. Figures like a recording fee on a closing disclosure always get checked by a human before anything goes out.

With Slack connected, those emails can also post to a channel, where whoever owns the file claims it.

## Answer new leads within the hour

Speed decides who gets the loan. In [Harvard Business Review's study of 1.25 million leads](https://hbr.org/2011/03/the-short-life-of-online-sales-leads), firms that replied within an hour were seven times as likely to qualify the lead. Here's [how to measure your lead response time](/blog/speed-to-lead) in Gmail or Outlook.

A lead asking for a rate can't be quoted until you know the price, the down payment and the credit range. InboxPilot drafts that reply with your booking link within a minute, even when you're at a closing. Keep rate sheets out of the knowledge base, since rates change daily.

Advice matters as much as speed. In [J.D. Power's 2025 origination study](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251112610250/en/Mortgage-Customer-Satisfaction-Surges-as-Originators-Adopt-Advisory-Style-Approach-to-Lending-J.D.-Power-Finds), borrowers who rated their lender highest for guidance were 2.3 times as likely to use them again.

## What stays with a person

Pricing and rate locks, anything about whether a borrower qualifies, adverse action, and every number on a disclosure. InboxPilot drafts and a licensed loan officer decides, so your compliance review doesn't change.

For sorting mail by file, see [email triage](/blog/email-triage). For how the knowledge base shapes each draft, see [drafting replies from your documents](/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents).

---

## How to Automatically Forward Gmail Messages to Slack

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/how-to-forward-gmail-messages-to-slack
Published: 2026-09-27

Automatically forward Gmail messages to Slack as they arrive. Pick a channel, choose which messages post, and follow the setup below.

To automatically forward Gmail messages to Slack, connect the Gmail account, connect Slack, then choose the channel that should receive the mail. Each matching message posts to that channel as it arrives, and the work happens in the thread.

<Figure src="/m-static/images/slack-gmail-thread-result.webp" width="773" height="914" maxWidth="480" alt="A Gmail message automatically forwarded to Slack. The thread is a refund request sent from a personal Gmail to a work inbox. Replies ask for an order number, confirm the send, and label the email pricing." caption="A refund email, sent from a personal Gmail to a work inbox, then handled in the Slack thread." />

That thread is a real one. The email arrived in the work inbox, InboxPilot posted it with a draft, and the replies in Slack did the rest: rewrite the draft to ask for an order number, send it after a yes, and add a pricing label.

The clicks below are the ones in InboxPilot (we make it). A Gmail filter that forwards to a Slack channel address is a different setup, covered in the [Slack email integration guide](/blog/slack-email-integration). New accounts get a 7-day free trial, as of 2026-09-30. [Pricing](/pricing) lists the rest.

## Connect Gmail

Open **Connect & settings** in the sidebar.

<Figure src="/m-static/images/connect-first-inbox.webp" width="1130" height="858" maxWidth="680" alt="InboxPilot Connect and settings, with the sidebar item marked. No accounts are connected, and the button reads Connect your first account." caption="Connect & settings, before any inbox is connected." />

The page says **No accounts connected yet**. Click **Connect your first account**, choose Gmail, and approve the access Google asks for. The address then shows on this page.

## Give InboxPilot access to Slack

Open **Integrations**.

<Figure src="/m-static/images/integrations-slack-connected.webp" width="1125" height="863" maxWidth="680" alt="InboxPilot Integrations, with Integrations marked in the sidebar. The Slack card reads Emails in channels, handled from the thread, and shows Manage." caption="Integrations. The Slack card is where you grant access. Manage means Slack has already allowed InboxPilot." />

On the Slack card, click **Connect** and approve InboxPilot for the Slack workspace. That is the access grant. Slack asks you to allow the app, and after you do, the card shows a green dot and **Manage**, which is the state in the screenshot. If **Manage** is already there, access is already granted.

Private channels you belong to show in the channel list after you reconnect Slack. Invite @InboxPilot into a private channel, or email will not arrive there.

## Choose the Slack channel

Open **Automations** and click **Post email to a channel** on the Slack card.

<Figure src="/m-static/images/automations-post-email-to-slack.webp" width="1128" height="855" maxWidth="680" alt="InboxPilot Automations. The Slack card is marked, and its actions include Post email to a channel and Post everything." caption="Post email to a channel starts the forward. Post everything is the same dialog with every message included." />

The dialog is titled **Post email to Slack**. It opens on a channel dropdown. Search it when the workspace has a long list.

<Figure src="/m-static/images/slack-pick-a-channel.webp" width="1126" height="856" maxWidth="680" alt="A searchable list of Slack channels, including new-channel and social." caption="Choose the channel this action posts to. Another action can use a different channel, or the same one, with its own rules." />

Pick the channel. **Save** stays grey until one is selected. A private channel InboxPilot is not in yet is marked **Invite @InboxPilot**. Add another action when a different set of mail should go to a different channel.

One connected Gmail is the inbox this channel receives, so there is no inbox picker. With two or more inboxes, an **Inboxes** row appears here and you can limit which addresses post.

## Choose which Gmail messages to forward

Pick the channel, then set the rule on the same dialog and click **Save**.

<Figure src="/m-static/images/slack-which-gmail-to-forward.webp" width="1131" height="859" maxWidth="680" alt="The Post email to Slack dialog for a channel, with Only some selected so a rule can be typed, and the thread options switched on." caption="Only some, so this channel gets matching mail. All new email posts the whole inbox." />

**All new email** posts the whole inbox. **Only some** is the other choice: type the rule in the box. A useful rule looks like "Refund requests, or anything from a VIP account." If the inbox has labels, a label list appears under the box.

**What the post shows** is the next choice: the summary alone, the summary with sender, subject and files, or the full email. A preview under the buttons shows the post as Slack will draw it, so there is nothing to imagine.

**Reply from Slack**, on by default, lets a reply in the Slack thread edit the draft, send it, forward it, archive it, or label it. Chat between teammates is ignored. Off, Slack only receives the post.

**Track who has it**, also on by default, keeps each email open until someone reacts with 👀 to take it or ✅ to close it. Writing "on it" or "done" counts too. Two settings sit under it: remind the channel if nobody takes the email, and post what is still open. Leave both off when the only job is to forward the mail.

Click **Save**. An empty rule is refused, with the message "Choose all new email, or describe which emails to post."

## Check that the Gmail message arrived in Slack

Send a new email that matches the rule to the connected Gmail, from an address other than that inbox. The thread at the top of this page is that test: a refund request sent from a personal Gmail to the work inbox.

The channel post names the sender and the subject, with **Open email**. The draft is the first reply. From there the thread is the control:

1. "ask them for their order number" rewrote the draft in place.
2. "ok send it" did not send yet. InboxPilot asked for a yes in the thread, and named the recipient and the inbox the reply would leave from. "yes" sent it.
3. "can you label that email pricing" added the label. The message already had a refund label, so both stayed on.

A message that was already in Gmail before you clicked **Save** is not the test. Send a fresh one.

## When a Gmail filter is enough

Use a Gmail filter when the team only needs to see certain emails in Slack and will still answer them in Gmail. Slack can give a channel its own email address (**Automations**, **Send emails to this channel**, **Get Email Address**). You add that address under Gmail's **Forwarding and POP/IMAP**, confirm it from the message that lands in the channel, then create a filter with **Forward it to**. The steps, and the paid-Slack-plan requirement for that address, are in the [Slack email integration guide](/blog/slack-email-integration).

| | Gmail filter to a channel address | InboxPilot |
| --- | --- | --- |
| What lands in Slack | The email | A post with the sender, the subject, and a drafted reply |
| Who can answer | Whoever opens Gmail | Anyone in the channel, from the thread |
| Which mail | A Gmail filter on sender, subject, or label | **All new email**, or a rule in plain words |
| Slack plan | A channel address needs a paid Slack plan | Posts through the Slack connection, so no channel address |
| Older mail | A filter forwards only mail that arrives after you create it | Test with a new message after **Save** |

Zapier, Make, and Power Automate can post a formatted message too. They bill by the run, and a reply from Slack needs a second automation that writes back into the Gmail thread. For the wider set of ways to automate the inbox itself, see [how to automate Gmail](/blog/automate-your-gmail). To keep a record instead of a channel post, [send Gmail data to Google Sheets](/use-cases/gmail-to-google-sheets).

## Why the Gmail message never shows in Slack

**The rule matches nothing.** Only some is selected and the box is empty, or the words are narrower than the email you sent. Save is refused until you choose **All new email** or describe which emails. If it did save, send a message that obviously fits the sentence you typed.

**You needed a second rule.** Add another action. It can post to a different channel, or to the same channel with a different rule. An email that matches two actions for one channel is posted there once.

**The channel is private and @InboxPilot is not in it.** It can appear in the dropdown. Invite the app in Slack or the post will not arrive. If private channels are missing, reconnect Slack from **Integrations**.

**Slack is disconnected.** On **Integrations**, the card should show a green dot and **Manage**. If access was revoked, connect it again. Channel rules stay.

**You tested with old mail.** Send a new message to the connected Gmail after **Save**, from an account other than that inbox if the rule is about incoming customer mail.

---

## How to Add a Shared Mailbox in Outlook (Every Version)

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/add-shared-mailbox-outlook
Published: 2026-09-23

Add a shared mailbox in new and classic Outlook, Outlook on the web, Mac, iPhone and Android, send from it, and fix one that is not showing.

To add a shared mailbox in Outlook, your Microsoft 365 admin first has to give you access. After that, in most cases you only need to close and reopen Outlook and it appears in your folder list on its own. If it does not, you add it by hand, and the steps depend on which Outlook you use: new Outlook, classic Outlook, Outlook on the web, Mac, or mobile.

This guide covers all five, taken from Microsoft's own support pages, plus how to send from the shared address, how to fix a mailbox that will not show up, and when a shared mailbox is the wrong tool. If you are comparing a shared mailbox with dedicated shared inbox software, see our [shared inbox tools comparison](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software).

## Before you start: the admin steps

A shared mailbox is created and shared by a Microsoft 365 admin, not by the people who use it. In the Microsoft 365 admin center, the admin goes to **Teams & Groups**, then **Shared mailboxes**, selects **+ Add a shared mailbox**, names it, then under **Next steps** selects **Add members to this mailbox** ([Microsoft Learn, Create a shared mailbox](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/create-a-shared-mailbox?view=o365-worldwide)).

Three permissions decide what each member can do:

| Permission | What it allows |
|---|---|
| **Full Access** | Open the mailbox, read, file and delete messages. Not enough to send. |
| **Send As** | Send email that appears to come from the shared mailbox itself |
| **Send on Behalf** | Send email that shows "[Your name] on behalf of [shared mailbox]" |

Microsoft's own note: Full Access and Send As are both needed "for successful shared mailbox operation."

## How to add a shared mailbox in new Outlook for Windows

**Automatically:** once your admin has added you, close and restart new Outlook. The shared mailbox should appear in your folder pane.

**Manually, if it does not appear:**

1. Select **Mail** in the navigation pane.
2. Right-click your account name and choose **Add shared folder or mailbox**.
3. Type the shared mailbox's name or address, such as info@yourcompany.com, and confirm.

Source: [Microsoft Support, Open and use a shared mailbox in Outlook](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/sharing/open-and-use-a-shared-mailbox-in-outlook).

## How to add a shared mailbox in classic Outlook for Windows

**Automatically:** with automapping, the shared mailbox appears in your folder pane after you restart Outlook.

**Manually, if automapping did not add it:**

1. Select **File**, then **Account Settings**, then **Account Settings**.
2. On the **Email** tab, select your account and choose **Change**.
3. Select **More Settings**, open the **Advanced** tab, and choose **Add**.
4. Type the shared email address.
5. Select **OK**, **OK**, **Next**, **Finish**, then **Close**.

## How to add a shared mailbox in Outlook on the web

1. In the left pane, right-click **Folders** (or your mailbox name, on Exchange on-premises).
2. Choose **Add shared folder or mailbox**.
3. Type the shared mailbox name and confirm.

Outlook on the web is also the quickest way to check whether your access works at all: if the mailbox opens here, the permissions are fine and any problem is in the desktop app.

## How to add a shared mailbox in Outlook for Mac

Outlook for Mac does not support automapping, so Mac users always add the mailbox themselves ([Microsoft Support, Open a shared folder or mailbox in Outlook for Mac](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/open-a-shared-mail-calendar-or-people-folder-in-outlook-for-mac-1)).

**New Outlook for Mac:**

1. Go to **Tools**, then **Accounts**, and select the account that has access.
2. Choose **Delegation and Sharing**, then the **Shared With Me** tab.
3. Select **+** and add the shared mailbox.

Or use **File**, then **Open**, then **Shared Mailbox**.

**Legacy Outlook for Mac:** go to **Tools**, **Accounts**, **Advanced**, **Delegates**, and add the mailbox under **Open these additional mailboxes**.

## How to add a shared mailbox in Outlook for iPhone and Android

1. Sign in to your own work account in the Outlook app.
2. Tap **Add Account** in the left pane, then **Add a Shared Mailbox**.
3. If you have several accounts, pick the one that has access to the shared mailbox.
4. Finish the setup. The shared mailbox appears in your account list.

Both your mailbox and the shared mailbox must be in Exchange Online ([Microsoft Support, Add a shared mailbox to Outlook mobile](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/add-a-shared-mailbox-to-outlook-mobile)). Microsoft notes that a shared mailbox can only be added in the Outlook app on mobile, not in other mail apps.

## How to send from a shared mailbox

**New Outlook and classic Outlook:** start a new email. If the **From** field is hidden, open **Options** and choose **Show From**. Select the **From** dropdown and pick the shared address.

**Outlook on the web:** start a new email, choose **More actions**, then **Show From**. Right-click the address in **From**, choose **Remove**, and type the shared address.

Recipients see only the shared address when you have Send As permission. With Send on Behalf, they see your name "on behalf of" the shared mailbox.

**Where the sent email is saved:** by default, a message sent from a shared mailbox is saved in your own Sent Items, not the shared mailbox's, so teammates cannot see the reply there. An admin can change this so a copy is also kept in the shared mailbox's Sent Items ([Microsoft Learn, Messages sent from a shared mailbox aren't saved to the Sent Items folder](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/troubleshoot/exchange/user-and-shared-mailboxes/sent-mail-is-not-saved)).

## Shared mailbox not showing in Outlook? Six causes

1. **You were added a few minutes ago.** Microsoft says a newly added mailbox "may take a few minutes" to appear. Close Outlook fully, wait, and reopen it.
2. **Access was granted through a security group.** Automapping is set per user, so "if you try to use a security group to manage who has access to the shared mailbox, automapping won't work" ([Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/create-a-shared-mailbox?view=o365-worldwide)). Add it manually, or ask your admin to grant access to you directly.
3. **You are on a Mac.** No automapping; use the Mac steps above.
4. **Automapping was turned off for you.** Some admins disable it deliberately. Add the mailbox manually.
5. **You can open it but cannot send.** A new mailbox can show "You do not have the permission to send the message on behalf of the specified user" for about an hour while the change replicates across Microsoft's data centers ([Microsoft Learn, About shared mailboxes](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide)). If it persists, ask your admin for Send As permission.
6. **Send As fails in the desktop app only.** Send As and Send on Behalf do not work in desktop Outlook if the mailbox is hidden from the address list. That is an admin setting to change.

## How to remove a shared mailbox from Outlook

- **Added manually in classic Outlook:** go back to **File**, **Account Settings**, **Account Settings**, **Change**, **More Settings**, **Advanced**, and remove it.
- **On mobile:** **Settings**, **Accounts**, tap the shared mailbox, and choose **Delete Account**.
- **Added automatically:** it will reappear on the next restart until your admin removes your access or turns off automapping for you. Microsoft documents how in [Remove automapping for a shared mailbox](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365-apps/outlook/profiles-and-accounts/remove-automapping-for-shared-mailbox).

## Shared mailbox vs distribution list

| | Shared mailbox | Distribution list |
|---|---|---|
| **Where mail lands** | One mailbox everyone opens | A copy in each member's own inbox |
| **Replies come from** | The shared address | Whoever replies, from their own address |
| **Sent replies are saved in** | The sender's own Sent Items by default; an admin can also keep a copy in the shared mailbox | The sender's own Sent Items |
| **Good for** | support@, info@, orders@ | Announcements, team-wide notifications |
| **License** | None needed up to 50 GB | None |

Use a shared mailbox when a team answers mail together. Use a distribution list when everyone just needs to receive a copy.

## How to create a distribution list in Outlook

"Distribution list" covers two different things in Outlook, and the steps depend on which one you need:

- **A personal contact list** (called a contact group in classic Outlook) lives in your own contacts. You type its name in the **To** line and Outlook expands it into the member addresses. Only you use it.
- **An organization distribution list** has its own email address, such as sales@yourcompany.com, that anyone can write to. A Microsoft 365 admin creates it.

### A personal contact list in new Outlook and Outlook on the web

1. Select **People** in the side panel.
2. Select a contact you want on the list.
3. Choose **Add to list** (right-click or use the ribbon), then **New contact list**.

After that, you can rename the list, add more contacts and add a description. Microsoft notes that in new Outlook, "Contact Lists" are what classic Outlook called "Contact Groups."

### A contact group in classic Outlook

1. Select **People** in the side panel.
2. Choose **New Contact Group** from the ribbon.
3. Enter a **Name** for the group, then select **Add Members**.
4. Select **Save & Close**.

Source: [Microsoft Support, Create a contact group or distribution list in Outlook](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/people/create-edit-or-delete-a-contact-list-or-contact-group-in-outlook).

### An organization distribution list (admin)

In the Microsoft 365 admin center ([Microsoft Learn, Create distribution lists](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/setup/create-distribution-lists?view=o365-worldwide)):

1. Select **Show all**, then **Teams and groups**, then **Active teams and groups**.
2. Open the **Distribution list** tab and select **+ Add a distribution list**.
3. Enter a name and description, then select **Next**.
4. Assign owners, who manage the group and its members, then select **Next**.
5. Add members, then select **Next**.
6. On **Edit settings**, enter the group email address. If customers or suppliers need to email it, also select **Allow people outside of my organization to send email to this Distribution group**.
7. Review the details and select **Create group**.

### Distribution list, Microsoft 365 group or shared mailbox?

Microsoft's [comparison of group types](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/create-groups/compare-groups?view=o365-worldwide) draws the lines this way:

| Type | What Microsoft says it is for |
|---|---|
| **Distribution list** | "Sending notifications to a group of people," such as everyone in one building |
| **Microsoft 365 group** | Collaboration: members get "a group email and shared workspace for conversations, files, and calendar events" |
| **Shared mailbox** | "When multiple people need access to the same mailbox, such as a company information or support email address" |

For an address that customers write to and a team answers, the shared mailbox is the usual choice, and the rest of this guide applies. If that team keeps colliding on replies, see [shared inbox tools for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook).

## Know the limits before your team relies on one

From Microsoft's own documentation ([About shared mailboxes](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide)):

- **25 users maximum.** Beyond that, or with heavy simultaneous use, people "might experience connection failures or duplicated messages."
- **50 GB without a license.** Past that, or for archiving or litigation hold, it needs an Exchange Online Plan 2 license (or Plan 1 with Exchange Online Archiving).
- **No way to stop members deleting messages.**
- **Email sent from a shared mailbox cannot be encrypted.**
- **No external users.** People outside your organization cannot be given access.

The bigger limit is not on that list: a shared mailbox gives access, but it does not show when a colleague is already replying, assign messages, or track what is still open. When two people answer the same customer, that is the sign you have outgrown it. Our guides to [shared inbox tools for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook) and [shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk) cover what comes next, and [shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply) covers acknowledging every message to the shared address.

## Related reading

- [Best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook): tools that add assignment and collision detection on top of Microsoft 365.
- [Shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply): setting up automatic replies on a team address.
- [How to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook): rules, Quick Steps and Power Automate for Microsoft 365.
- [Shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk): the signs a team has outgrown shared email.

---

*Steps and limits quoted from Microsoft Support and Microsoft Learn pages checked on 2026-09-23. Microsoft changes Outlook's menus often, especially in new Outlook. InboxPilot is the publisher of this guide.*

---

## Automated Email Response Examples: 24 Auto Replies to Copy

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/automated-email-response-examples
Published: 2026-09-23

24 automated email response examples: out of office, after hours, support, sales and order auto replies, and where to set each up in Gmail or Outlook.

An automated email response is the message your inbox sends on its own when an email arrives. The good ones do three jobs in a few lines: confirm the email landed, say when a person will answer, and point to a faster route if it cannot wait. Below are 24 examples you can copy, grouped by the situation they cover, followed by where to switch each one on and the rules that keep them from misfiring.

If you are setting one up in Gmail, our guide to the [Gmail auto reply, vacation responder and filter templates](/blog/automate-your-gmail) has the steps. For Microsoft 365, see [how to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook).

To keep any of these on hand for replies you send yourself, save it as a [Gmail template](/blog/gmail-templates).

## What a good automated response includes

Read a dozen auto replies and the useful ones share a shape:

1. **Confirmation.** One line saying the email arrived. People who hear nothing assume it went nowhere and write again.
2. **A real time.** "Within one business day" or "on Monday 6 October", not "as soon as possible". Only promise what the team actually meets.
3. **The faster route.** A colleague, a phone number, a help page or an order tracking link, for the sender whose question cannot wait.
4. **One thing the sender can do now.** Include the order number, attach the drawing, reply with the quantity. It shortens the thread when a person picks it up.

Leave out apologies for the auto reply itself, marketing, and anything you would not want a stranger to read, because an automatic reply goes to whoever writes in, spammers included.

## 24 automated email response examples

Replace the bracketed parts. Every example is written to stay true when sent to anyone, since that is what an auto reply does.

### Out of office

**1. Standard out of office**

> Hi,
>
> Thanks for your email. I am out of the office until [day, date] and will reply when I am back.
>
> If it is urgent, please contact [colleague name] at [email address].
>
> [Your name]

**2. Short out of office**

> Thanks for your message. I am away until [date] with limited access to email. For anything urgent, email [colleague] at [email address].

**3. Holiday out of office**

> Hi,
>
> I am on holiday until [date] and not checking email. I will reply to your message when I am back on [day].
>
> For anything that cannot wait, [colleague name] is covering and can be reached at [email address].
>
> [Your name]

**4. Extended leave, with a named contact**

> Hello,
>
> I am on leave until [month] and will not be reading this inbox. Your email will not be forwarded automatically.
>
> For [account, project or topic], please write to [name] at [email address], who is looking after it while I am away. For anything else, [team address] reaches the rest of the team.
>
> Thank you,
> [Your name]

**5. Travelling or at an event**

> Thanks for writing. I am at [event or location] until [date] and reading email once a day, so replies will be slower than usual. If you need an answer before [date], please call [phone number] or email [colleague] at [email address].

The holiday and extended-leave versions name a colleague rather than a mobile number. That keeps a personal number out of every reply sent to spammers and mailing lists that slip through.

### After hours and weekends

**6. After hours**

> Thanks for your email. Our team works [hours], [days], [time zone], and it is outside those hours now. We will reply on the next working day.
>
> If this is about an order, you can check its status any time at [tracking link].

**7. Weekend**

> Thanks for getting in touch. We are closed for the weekend and will reply on Monday. Messages are answered in the order they arrive.
>
> [Company name]

**8. Office closed for a public holiday**

> Thanks for your message. Our office is closed on [date] for [holiday] and reopens on [date]. We will reply as soon as we are back.
>
> Orders placed during the closure will ship from [date].

### Receipt and acknowledgment

**9. Thank you for your email**

> Thank you for your email. This is an automatic reply to confirm we have received it. A member of our team will get back to you within [one business day].
>
> [Company name]

**10. Acknowledgment with what happens next**

> Hi,
>
> Thanks for contacting [Company]. Your message is with our [team name] team, and we usually reply within [time].
>
> If you need to add anything, reply to this email and keep the subject line so it stays in the same thread.

**11. Acknowledgment that asks for the missing detail**

> Thanks for your email, it has reached us. If you have not already, reply with your [order number / account email / invoice number]. It lets us look your request up straight away instead of writing back to ask.

For one-to-one acknowledgments written by a person rather than sent automatically, our [15 acknowledgment email templates](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) cover documents, payments, complaints and requests you cannot answer yet.

### Customer support

**12. Support inbox**

> Hi,
>
> Thanks for contacting [Company] support. We have your message and reply to every email within [one business day], usually sooner.
>
> Many questions are answered in our help center: [link].
>
> The [Company] support team

**13. Busier than usual**

> Thanks for your patience. We are receiving more email than usual and replies are taking up to [time]. Your message is in the queue and does not need to be sent again.
>
> If your question is about [delivery times / a known issue], the latest update is at [link].

**14. Known issue or outage**

> Thanks for reporting this. We are aware of a problem affecting [feature or service] since [time] and are working on a fix. Updates are posted at [status page].
>
> You do not need to reply. We will email you when it is resolved if your message was about this issue.

**15. Refund or complaint received**

> Thank you for letting us know. Your message has gone to a member of our team who will look into it personally and reply within [time].
>
> If you have photos or an order number that help explain what happened, reply to this email with them.

Refunds and complaints are where a fixed reply should stop at "we have it". The answer needs a person, or at least a draft a person checks.

### Sales and quote requests

**16. Sales inquiry received**

> Thanks for your interest in [product or service]. Your message has reached our sales team and someone will reply within [time].
>
> If it helps us prepare, reply with your [company size / use case / timeline].

**17. Quote request received**

> Thank you for your request for quote. We are reviewing it and will send pricing within [time].
>
> To quote accurately we need the item numbers or specifications, quantities, delivery location and required date. If any of those were not in your email, reply with them and we will include them.
>
> [Company name] sales

Note: if the price list already covers the request, send the quote instead. See [quote requests answered from your price list](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation).

**18. Demo or meeting request**

> Thanks for asking for a demo. You can pick a time that suits you here: [booking link]. If none of the slots work, reply with two or three times and we will confirm one.

### Orders and shipping

**19. Order question received**

> Thanks for your email about your order. We will reply within [time].
>
> You can check the latest status any time at [tracking link] with your order number and email address.

**20. Return or exchange request**

> Thanks for your return request. Please reply with your order number and the item you would like to return if they were not in your message.
>
> Our returns policy, including the return window and how to send items back, is here: [link].

**21. Holiday shipping cutoffs**

> Thanks for your message. We are answering email within [time] during the holiday period.
>
> To arrive before [holiday], orders need to be placed by [date] for standard shipping and [date] for express.

### Shared addresses and changes

**22. General inbox (info@) that routes**

> Thanks for writing to [Company]. This inbox is read by our whole team and your message will reach the right person.
>
> If your email is about an existing order, [orders@] is the fastest route. For invoices and payments, write to [accounts@].

**23. No longer with the company**

> Thank you for your email. [Name] no longer works at [Company] and this inbox is not monitored.
>
> Please send your message to [name] at [email address], who is now handling [area].

**24. New email address**

> This address is no longer in use. Please resend your email to [new address] and update your contacts. Messages sent here are not forwarded.

On team addresses like support@ or info@, auto replies behave differently from a personal inbox, and some tools cannot run them at all. Our guide to [shared mailbox auto-replies](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply) covers the options and why canned text often creates duplicate work for a team.

## Where to set up each auto reply

| Situation | In Gmail | In Outlook | What to know |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Away for days | Vacation responder (Settings, General) | Automatic replies, with a time period | Gmail runs whole days, from 12:00 AM on the first to 11:59 PM on the last |
| After hours or weekends | No built-in time-of-day reply | Automatic replies with start and end times, one window at a time | A recurring nightly reply needs a script, a flow or another tool |
| Every email to support@ or sales@ | A filter with the Send template action | A rule that replies with a template | Fires on every match; narrow the filter so it skips automated senders |
| Specific senders or keywords | A filter on sender, subject or words | A rule with those conditions | Matches words, not meaning |
| Answering the actual question | Not possible natively | Not possible natively | Needs a tool that reads the email and drafts from your data |

Gmail's vacation responder replies to each sender once, and again only if they write after four days or you edit the message. It skips mail in spam and mail sent to a mailing list you are on, according to Google's help page on [automatic replies](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/25922). A filter has no such limits built in, so it answers whatever matches. The step-by-step setup for both, desktop and phone, is in our [Gmail auto reply guide](/blog/automate-your-gmail).

In Outlook, Microsoft warns that replies sent outside your organization go to everyone, newsletters and junk included, so write the external message with that in mind. The full walkthrough for new Outlook, classic Outlook and the web is in [how to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook).

## Rules that keep auto replies from misfiring

**Promise only what you meet.** "We reply within 2 hours" sent on a Friday evening is a promise broken by Saturday morning. Use working-day language, or a time the team hits even on its worst week.

**Keep automated senders out.** Receipts, newsletters and other auto replies do not need an answer, and two auto replies answering each other can loop. Gmail's vacation responder skips mailing lists, but a filter will reply to anything that matches. Scope filters to the address people write to, and exclude senders like noreply@ where you can.

**Say less than you think.** An auto reply goes to everyone, including people you have never heard from. "Away until the 14th" is fine. Your travel plans, a personal phone number and your home time zone are not.

**Test it from another account.** Send yourself an email from a personal address and read what arrives. Typos and broken links in an auto reply get sent hundreds of times.

**Switch it off, or set an end date.** An out of office still running a week after you are back tells every sender you are away. Setting the last day when you turn it on avoids the problem.

## Automated email response software: where a fixed reply stops

Every example above has the same limit: it sends the same words whatever the email says. That is right for "we have your message". It is wrong for the emails that make up most of a business inbox, such as "where is order 4521?", "can you quote 200 units of part 88-B?", or "is this in stock in blue?". Those need the answer, and the answer lives in your order system, price list or policies.

Built-in automatic email reply settings can't do that. It takes automated email response software that reads the message, an [AI email assistant that answers the question](/ai-email-assistant), and drafts the reply from your own data. InboxPilot (we make it) does that inside Gmail and Outlook. It sorts incoming email by request type, then drafts replies from your documents, website, past replies and connected systems such as order data. Every draft waits in the inbox for a person to approve by default. Once a category is consistently right, you can let that one category send on its own and keep review on everything else. The [customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation) page shows the before and after on a support inbox, and [order status emails answered from your orders](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation) covers "where is order 4521?". For a store, see [Shopify order and refund emails](/industries/shopify-support).

There's a 7-day free trial, Starter is $39 a month, and order lookups and automatic sending are on Growth ($99 a month) and above ([pricing](/pricing)). A Microsoft 365 shared mailbox gets drafts only. For time away and after-hours notices, the vacation responder and the examples above are the right tool, and they are free.

## Related reading

- [Gmail auto reply: vacation responder, templates and AI](/blog/automate-your-gmail): the setup steps for every Gmail auto reply, on desktop and phone.
- [How to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook): automatic replies, rules, Quick Steps, templates and Power Automate.
- [How to acknowledge an email](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email): 15 templates for acknowledgments written by a person.
- [Shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply): what changes when the address belongs to a team.
- [Customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation): replies drafted from your orders and policies, with a person approving.

*Gmail behavior is taken from Google's Gmail Help article "Send an automatic reply when you're out of office" and Outlook behavior from Microsoft Support, both checked September 2026. Names, dates and links in the templates are placeholders.*

---

## Email Triage for Business Inboxes: Methods, Rules and AI

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/email-triage
Published: 2026-09-23

How to triage a business inbox: the four outcomes for every email, how to set categories and priorities, and when rules or AI should do the sorting.

Email triage is deciding what each incoming email needs before anyone starts writing a reply: what it is, how urgent it is, who should handle it, and what happens next. For one person's inbox that is a productivity habit. For a business inbox such as support@, sales@ or orders@, it is the difference between a queue that moves and a queue where urgent requests sit behind newsletters.

On a shared address, triage comes down to four outcomes, a category list and an urgency rule, with rules or AI doing the sorting. InboxPilot (we make it) is [AI email triage software for Gmail and Outlook](/features/email-triage): it runs that triage on a shared inbox, and its [AI email assistant](/ai-email-assistant) drafts the replies.

## Triage, filtering and sorting are not the same thing

| | Filtering | Sorting | Triage |
|---|---|---|---|
| **What it decides** | Where an email goes, by fixed rule | Which folder or label it belongs in | What the email needs and who owns it |
| **How** | Sender, subject or keyword matches | A person, a rule, or AI | Judgment about meaning and urgency |
| **Good at** | Newsletters, receipts, alerts | Keeping the inbox tidy | Getting the right email to the right person first |
| **Misses** | Anything phrased differently | Urgency | Nothing, if done well; it is the slowest by hand |

Filtering and sorting are tools triage uses. Triage is the decision.

## The four outcomes of business email triage

Every email that reaches a business inbox should leave triage with exactly one outcome. This is our framing, and it maps directly onto what tools can automate:

1. **Reply.** The email needs an answer and someone on this inbox can give it: an order status, a price ([RFQ email automation](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation) covers quotes), a policy question. These are the emails worth drafting automatically.
2. **Route.** The email needs someone else: a custom quote for the estimator, a legal question for a manager, an invoice for accounts. It should be forwarded or assigned, with nothing lost in the handoff. The [email routing software](/blog/email-routing-software) comparison shows how tools automate this step.
3. **Record.** The email needs no reply but its contents matter: an order confirmation, a signed document, a supplier update. It should be filed or logged, for example in a spreadsheet, and archived.
4. **Ignore.** Newsletters, notifications, cold pitches, spam. Out of the inbox without anyone reading them.

A triage system is working when a new email reaches one of these four within minutes, and nobody on the team has to open it to find out which.

## Step 1: build categories from your real mail

Pick the last 100 emails that reached the inbox and write down, for each one, what the sender wanted in five words or fewer. Group the list. Aim for six to ten groups: fewer is too coarse to route, and with many more nobody remembers them. For example:

- Order status and delivery questions
- Quote and pricing requests
- Returns, refunds and complaints
- Account or billing changes
- Supplier and partner messages
- Documents sent in (invoices, contracts, forms)
- Notifications and newsletters

Admissions teams add course enquiries and student questions, as in [admissions and student-support email](/industries/education-certification).

Name categories after what the sender wants, not after your internal team names. "Where is my order" is a category; "Ops queue" is not. Give each category an owner, and decide which of the four outcomes it usually gets.

## Step 2: decide what counts as urgent

Urgency should be a rule the whole team applies the same way, not a feeling. Common triggers for a business inbox:

- **Money is at stake:** a quote with a deadline, a failed payment, a refund dispute.
- **A customer is blocked:** they cannot use what they paid for.
- **A date is close:** a delivery, an event, a filing deadline.
- **Risk:** legal, security, or anything a regulator might care about.

Everything else is normal priority, answered in order. Write the triggers down where the team can see them.

## Step 3: choose how the sorting happens

There are three ways to run triage on a business inbox, and most teams end up combining them.

| Method | How it works | Works well for | Breaks when |
|---|---|---|---|
| **By hand** | A person reads each email and labels it | Low volume, one owner | Volume grows, or the owner is out |
| **Rules** | Gmail filters or Outlook rules match sender, subject or keywords | Predictable mail: receipts, alerts, known senders | A customer phrases the same request differently |
| **AI triage** | A model reads the email and assigns a category by meaning | Customer and partner email in natural language | Categories are vague, or nobody reviews the edge cases |

**Rules first, for the predictable mail.** Receipts, system alerts and newsletters come from known senders in fixed formats, and rules handle them for free. Our guides on [Gmail automation](/blog/automate-your-gmail) and [automating email in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook) have the setup steps.

**AI for the rest.** Customer email does not follow a format. "Has my package shipped?", "where's my order" and "tracking says delivered but nothing arrived" are one category to a person and three different keyword sets to a rule. This is where AI for email management earns its place: it reads the request the way a person would.

## AI email triage: personal tools vs business inboxes

AI triage tools split into two groups, and the difference matters for a business inbox.

- **Personal AI assistants** sort one person's inbox by importance: Microsoft 365 Copilot in Outlook can help triage email ([Microsoft Support](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/triage-email-with-microsoft-365-copilot-in-outlook)), and tools such as SaneBox, Superhuman and Fyxer do versions of the same. They answer "what should I look at first?" Our [Fyxer alternatives comparison](/blog/fyxer-alternatives) prices the personal assistants side by side.
- **Business-inbox tools** sort by request type and outcome: which category, which owner, reply or route. They answer "what does this email need, and who handles it?"

For a support@ or orders@ address, the second question is the one that matters. Our comparison of [AI assistants for Outlook](/blog/outlook-ai-assistant) covers the personal tools in detail.

## How InboxPilot triages an inbox

InboxPilot connects to a Gmail or Outlook mailbox and files each new email under the label it belongs in (a category, in Outlook). You describe each existing label in one line, such as "customers asking where their order is", and it matches email by meaning. It never creates labels, and an email that doesn't clearly match stays unlabeled.

From there, each of the four outcomes has a place:

- **Reply:** it drafts the answer from your own sources, such as price lists, policies, a Google Sheet, or Shopify orders. Drafts wait for a person to approve by default. On a support inbox this is how you [automate customer service email](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation).
- **Route:** a workflow forwards a type of email to the right person, and matching emails can post to a Slack channel, where a teammate takes each one and marks it done.
- **Record:** matching emails can be logged to a linked Google Sheet.
- **Ignore:** a workflow can label and archive the mail that needs nothing.

Sorting into your labels is on every plan, including Free. Free and Starter include one workflow, and Growth, at $99 a month, has unlimited workflows ([pricing](/pricing)). The [email triage feature page](/features/email-triage) shows a sorted inbox and a full workflow.

Note: it sorts new email from the moment you connect. Older mail stays as it is.

The [AI email agent guide](/blog/ai-email-agent) walks through triage and drafting on a real mixed inbox.

## Set up triage in an afternoon

1. **Read the last 100 emails** and write the six to ten categories they fall into.
2. **Assign each category an owner and an outcome:** reply, route, record, or ignore.
3. **Write the urgency triggers** on one line each.
4. **Create a label or folder per category** in Gmail or Outlook.
5. **Add rules for the predictable mail:** receipts, alerts, newsletters. For the record outcome, [log sorted email to Google Sheets](/use-cases/gmail-to-google-sheets).
6. **Decide who or what sorts the rest:** a named person each day, or an AI tool with someone reviewing its choices for the first week.
7. **Check after a week:** which category is biggest, and which of those emails could have been answered without a person writing from scratch?

That last question is where triage turns into time saved; a loan inbox is a clear case, walked through in [how to fix your email problem as a mortgage lender](/blog/how-to-fix-your-email-problem-as-a-mortgage-lender). If one category is mostly the same answer from the same documents, see [how to generate emails using your documents](/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents).

## Related reading

- [What an AI email agent does](/blog/ai-email-agent): triage and drafting on an inbox that mixes quotes, support and sales.
- [AI email tools and data privacy](/blog/ai-email-tools-data-privacy-guide): what to check before connecting an inbox to any AI tool.
- [Shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk): when a team needs tickets on top of triage.
- [How to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook): rules and flows for the predictable mail.

---

*Product details checked against the current product in September 2026.*

---

## Email Ticketing System for Gmail and Outlook: 5 Options

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/gmail-ticketing-system
Published: 2026-09-23

5 ways to run an email ticketing system on Gmail or Outlook: AI drafting with Slack ownership, labels, in-inbox tools and free help desks, with prices.

An email ticketing system turns every customer email into a ticket with one owner, a status, and the whole conversation attached, so each request is answered once. Neither Gmail nor Outlook ships one.

If most of your queue is repeat questions, InboxPilot (we make it) labels each email and [drafts the reply](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation) inside Gmail or Outlook, and your team claims emails from Slack. For classic tickets in a separate app, Help Scout and Zoho Desk have free plans. Prices were checked on each vendor's own pricing page on October 6, 2026.

## What an email ticketing system does

Strip away the feature lists and an email ticketing system does four jobs:

1. **Capture:** every request lands in one place, no matter which colleague it was sent to.
2. **Own:** each request has exactly one person responsible for it.
3. **Track:** you can see what is open, waiting on the customer, or done.
4. **Measure:** you know how long replies take and where requests pile up.

Gmail handles the first job well. The options below differ in how they add the other three, and at what cost.

In a dedicated help desk, the mechanics are the same everywhere. Your support address forwards (or connects) to the ticketing system, each new email opens a ticket, replies from the ticket go back to the customer as ordinary email from your address, and a customer's reply lands back on the same ticket instead of starting a new thread. The team works in the help desk's app rather than in Gmail or Outlook.

## 1. InboxPilot: every email sorted, drafted, and owned in Slack

**Cost:** 7-day free trial, drafts included. Starter is $39 a month, not per seat, and adds Slack; Shopify, Stripe, Notion and Pipedrive come with Growth at $99 a month ([pricing](/pricing)).

When most of a queue is the same ten questions ([order status replies](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation), pricing, availability, policies), have each reply drafted before anyone opens the email. InboxPilot files each incoming email into your existing labels and drafts a reply from your own sources: uploaded documents, a Google Sheet, Shopify orders, Notion, or Pipedrive.

By default, a person approves each draft before it sends. Ownership happens in Slack: each email posts to a channel with its draft, a teammate takes it and marks it done, and anything nobody took gets chased ([how the Slack flow works](/blog/slack-email-integration)).

There are no ticket numbers or response-time reports, so a team that reports on service levels still needs a help desk.

## 2. Gmail on its own: shared address, labels, and filters

**Cost:** included with Google Workspace.

Google Workspace admins can create a shared email address from the Admin console that appears inside Gmail for everyone who needs it ([Google Workspace admin docs](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/create-a-shared-inbox)). Add labels such as "Open", "Waiting on customer", and "Done", filters that label incoming mail by sender or subject, and a team rule that whoever replies moves the label.

Google's own help desk guidance for Workspace admins stops short of naming a product. It suggests collecting requests through Google Forms and using "an internal ticket system" to track volume and resolution time ([Google Workspace help desk guidance](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/getting-started/set-up-your-help-desk)).

**Where it stops:** nothing prevents two people answering the same email, labels only change when someone remembers, and there is no reporting. It works at two or three people and low volume.

## 3. A ticketing extension inside Gmail

**Cost:** $14 to $25 per user per month on annual billing, and AI reply drafts come only with the $25 tools, Hiver and Gmelius.

These tools add assignment, statuses, and internal notes to the Gmail interface itself, so nobody opens a second app.

| Tool | Works with | Entry price | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Keeping** | Gmail and Google Workspace | $14/user/month annual, $19 monthly | No built-in AI reply drafts; two-user minimum, 14-day trial ([pricing](https://www.keeping.com/pricing/)) |
| **Gmelius** | Gmail only | $25/user/month annual for shared inboxes, AI drafts included; $19 Meli is a personal assistant | No Outlook, no free plan, 7-day trial ([pricing](https://gmelius.com/pricing)) |
| **Hiver** | Gmail (Hiver Omni adds Outlook) | $25/user/month annual, $35 monthly, AI Copilot drafts included | Two-seat minimum, 7-day trial ([pricing](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail)) |

**Where it stops:** per-seat pricing grows with the team, and the Gmail-only tools do not help if part of the company is on Outlook. Our [shared inbox tools comparison](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software) goes deeper on Hiver and Gmelius.

## 4. A free email ticketing system: help desk free plans

**Cost:** free for small teams, then per agent.

A help desk is the full email ticketing system: every email becomes a ticket with a number, a status, an assignee, and reporting. Your Gmail address forwards into it, and the team works in the help desk's app.

| Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Help Scout** | Up to 5 users, 1 inbox | $25/user/month annual; $45 on Plus for AI Drafts | Email arrives by forwarding ([docs](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/830-get-your-email-into-help-scout), [pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/)) |
| **Zoho Desk** | Free edition, 3 users | Express $7/user/month annual, with AI replies through your own OpenAI key; Zia AI from Professional, $23 | Free email ticketing; trials fall back to the free plan ([pricing](https://www.zoho.com/desk/pricing.html)) |
| **HubSpot Service Hub** | Up to 2 users, basic ticketing | Paid seats on the pricing page | Free plan carries HubSpot branding ([pricing](https://www.hubspot.com/pricing/service)) |
| **Freshdesk** | No free plan listed; 14-day trial | Growth $19/agent/month annual; $84 with Freddy AI Copilot | Separate app ([pricing](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/)) |

**Where it stops:** it no longer feels like email. Replies happen in another app, and a help desk is more process than a three-person team usually needs. If you are weighing a paid help desk, our guide to [help desk software for small business](/blog/help-desk-software-for-small-business) compares seven options and what five agents cost in year one.

## 5. Outlook ticketing system options

The same choices exist for teams on Microsoft 365, with two differences worth knowing.

- **The built-in route** is a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox with categories and folders. Microsoft documents a maximum of 25 users per shared mailbox and warns about duplicated messages when too many people use it at once ([Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide)).
- **Forwarding needs an admin.** Microsoft 365 blocks automatic forwarding to outside addresses by default, so help desks that receive mail by forwarding, such as Help Scout, need that setting changed first ([Help Scout docs](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1269-forward-from-microsoft-365-outlook)).

InboxPilot works the same way in Outlook as in Gmail, labelling mail with categories and drafting replies, in a user mailbox or a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox. Hiver Omni, Zoho Desk, and Freshdesk also support Outlook mail; Keeping and Gmelius do not. Our [Outlook shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook) covers the Microsoft side in full.

## Which option fits your team

| Your situation | Start with |
|---|---|
| The queue is mostly repeat questions (orders, pricing, availability) | InboxPilot |
| Email support for a Shopify store | InboxPilot ([Shopify support](/industries/shopify-support)) |
| Two or three people, low volume, Google Workspace | Gmail shared address, labels, filters |
| Small Gmail team that wants tickets without leaving Gmail | Keeping or Hiver |
| Up to five people who are fine with a separate app | Help Scout free plan |
| Up to three agents, lowest cost | Zoho Desk free edition |
| Service-level targets, portals, and queue reporting | A full help desk such as Freshdesk or Zoho Desk paid plans |

## How to set up a simple Gmail ticketing system today

1. **Create one shared address** for customer requests, such as support@, so nothing arrives in personal inboxes.
2. **Make three labels:** Open, Waiting on customer, Done. Keep it to three; more labels means more that nobody updates.
3. **Add filters** that apply "Open" to everything arriving at the shared address.
4. **Agree on one ownership rule,** such as "reply from the shared address and move the label in the same minute."
5. **Log each request to a sheet** if you want counts: you can [track Gmail requests in a Google Sheet](/use-cases/gmail-to-google-sheets).
6. **Review the Open label daily** and move up to a tool from the list above once two people answer the same email in a week.

## Related reading

- [Best shared inbox tools, compared](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): assignment and collision detection across Gmail and Outlook.
- [Shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk): when a small team actually needs a help desk.
- [Help desk software for small business](/blog/help-desk-software-for-small-business): seven options priced, and when you do not need one.
- [Gmail shared inbox and shared mailbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail): the Google Workspace options in depth.
- [Shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply): acknowledging every request the moment it arrives.
- [Slack email integration](/blog/slack-email-integration): claiming and closing customer emails from a Slack channel.

---

*Prices checked on each vendor's pricing page on October 6, 2026, and stated per user per month unless noted. Vendors change plans often, so confirm before buying.*

---

## 7 Best Help Desk Software for Small Business, Priced

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/help-desk-software-for-small-business
Published: 2026-09-23

Help desk software for a small business: when you need one, when you don't, and 7 options with free plans and what five agents pay in year one.

Most small businesses do not need help desk software until two things happen at once: more than one person answers customer email, and requests start slipping through or getting answered twice. Before that point, a shared inbox with labels does the job for free.

After it, the cheapest real options are free plans from Help Scout (5 users), Zoho Desk (3 users), and HubSpot (2 users). Paid seats start at $7 to $25 an agent a month, and AI reply drafts usually cost extra.

If most requests are the same questions, InboxPilot (we make it) [drafts the replies](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation) inside Gmail or Outlook, with a 7-day free trial. Prices below were checked on each vendor's pricing page on October 6, 2026.

## Do you need help desk software yet?

The test is not team size. It is whether you have a coordination problem.

**Signs you need one:**

- Two people answered the same customer this month, or one customer got no answer at all.
- You cannot say how many requests are open right now, or how long replies take.
- Someone outside the support team (a manager, a client) wants reports on response or resolution times.
- Customers ask for a portal, a knowledge base, or a way to check their request's status.

**Signs you don't, yet:**

- One or two people answer everything, and they sit next to each other or share a chat.
- The queue is mostly the same handful of questions, answered quickly.
- Everyone lives in Gmail or Outlook and nobody wants a second app.

## Ticketing system for small business: when a help desk is too much

If the "signs you don't" list fits better, you need a ticketing system, not a full help desk. A shared address with labels, or one of the in-inbox tools in our [email ticketing system guide](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system), gives each request an owner and a status without a second app. The longer version of this decision, with costs for both paths, is in [shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk). For an online store's queue, from order status to returns, see [ecommerce customer support for small teams](/blog/ecommerce-customer-support).

## Before a help desk: draft the repeat replies

InboxPilot is not a help desk. It works on the Gmail or Outlook mailbox you already have, filing each incoming email under your Gmail labels or Outlook categories. It drafts a reply from your own sources, such as uploaded documents, a Google Sheet, Shopify orders, Notion, or Pipedrive, and by default a person approves each draft before it sends.

It is an [AI email assistant](/ai-email-assistant) for when most requests are [order status](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation), pricing, availability, or policy questions that already have an answer somewhere in your business. Ownership runs through Slack: each email posts to a channel with its draft, a teammate takes it and marks it done, and anything nobody took gets chased ([how the Slack flow works](/blog/slack-email-integration)).

Pricing is per plan, not per seat, and AI drafting is included. There's a 7-day free trial, Starter is $39 a month and adds Slack, Growth is $99 a month with auto-replies, and every plan includes unlimited team members ([pricing](/pricing)).

There are no ticket numbers, service-level targets, or customer portal. If you need those, pick a help desk below and keep InboxPilot in front of it for the repeat replies.

## Help desk software for small business, compared

| Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Email intake | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **InboxPilot** (not a help desk) | No free plan; 7-day trial | Starter $39/month total, not per agent, AI drafts included | Connects to Gmail or Outlook | A queue of repeat questions |
| **Help Scout** | Up to 5 users, 1 inbox | [Standard $25/user/month yearly; Plus $45 for AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) | Forwarding | Email-first teams of up to five |
| **Zoho Desk** | Free edition, 3 users | [Express $7/user/month yearly, AI replies with your own OpenAI key; Zia AI from Professional, $23](https://www.zoho.com/desk/pricing.html) | Forwarding | The lowest paid entry price |
| **HubSpot Service Hub** | Up to 2 users, basic ticketing | Paid seats listed on the pricing page | Connected inbox | Teams already on HubSpot CRM |
| **Freshdesk** | No free plan; 14-day trial | [Growth $19/agent/month yearly; $84 with Freddy AI Copilot](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/) | Forwarding | Teams that want phone and chat later |
| **Zendesk** | No free plan; 14-day trial | [Support Team $19/agent/month yearly; $165 with Copilot](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/) | Forwarding | Businesses planning to grow into a large support team |
| **osTicket / FreeScout** | Free, open source, self-hosted | Hosting and someone's time | Mailbox connection | A team with a technical person and no budget |
| **Hiver** | No free plan; 7-day trial | [$25/user/month yearly, AI Copilot included](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail) | Works inside Gmail | Gmail teams that won't leave Gmail |

Sources, all checked October 6, 2026: [Help Scout](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/), [Zoho Desk](https://www.zoho.com/desk/pricing.html), [HubSpot](https://www.hubspot.com/pricing/service), [Freshdesk](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/), [Zendesk](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/), [osTicket](https://osticket.com/), [FreeScout](https://freescout.net/), [Hiver](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail).

## The seven options

### 1. Help Scout

A help desk that still feels like email: conversations look like threads, not forms. The free plan covers up to 5 users, 1 inbox, and 1 knowledge base site.

Paid plans are Standard at $25 per user per month and Plus at $45, billed yearly ($30 and $54 monthly) ([Help Scout pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/)). AI Drafts come with Plus; Standard has only AI Assist, which edits what you write. Your support address forwards into Help Scout ([Help Scout docs](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/830-get-your-email-into-help-scout)).

**The catch:** the free plan is one inbox. A second address, such as sales@ next to support@, means paying. AI answers are an add-on billed per resolution.

### 2. Zoho Desk

The cheapest paid entry point on this list. The free edition covers 3 users and includes email ticketing, and Express is $7 per user per month billed annually. Paid plans come with a 15-day trial ([Zoho Desk pricing](https://www.zoho.com/desk/pricing.html)).

**The catch:** the interface carries more settings than a three-person team needs, and it fits best if you already use other Zoho apps. Its generative AI, reply suggestions included, runs on your own OpenAI or DeepSeek key, so you also pay that provider.

### 3. HubSpot Service Hub

HubSpot's free customer service tools cover 2 users with basic ticketing and a shared inbox that carries HubSpot branding ([HubSpot pricing](https://www.hubspot.com/pricing/service)). Tickets sit next to your contacts and deals, which matters if sales and support talk to the same customers.

**The catch:** two free users is a small ceiling, and the paid tiers above Starter add one-time onboarding fees. It makes the most sense if HubSpot is already your CRM.

### 4. Freshdesk

A full help desk with room to add phone and chat later. There is no free plan on the current pricing page, only a 14-day trial. Growth is $19 per agent per month billed annually, Pro $55, and Enterprise $89 ([Freshdesk pricing](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/)).

**The catch:** per-agent pricing climbs quickly once you move past Growth, and the product is built for dedicated support agents rather than a founder answering email between other jobs. Freddy AI Copilot, which drafts replies, is $29 an agent on Pro or Enterprise only, so drafts start at $84 an agent.

### 5. Zendesk

The help desk most large support teams end up on. Support Team is $19 per agent per month billed annually. Suite Team, the most popular tier, is $55 and adds AI agents and more channels. There is a 14-day trial and no free plan ([Zendesk pricing](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/)).

**The catch:** a small business pays for scale it does not use yet, and the useful features sit in the Suite tiers rather than Support Team. Copilot, which drafts replies, is $50 an agent on Professional and higher, so with Suite Professional it's $165 an agent.

### 6. osTicket or FreeScout (open source)

[osTicket](https://osticket.com/) and [FreeScout](https://freescout.net/) are free to download and run on your own server. FreeScout works like a shared inbox; osTicket is a classic ticket system with forms and departments.

**The catch:** the subscription cost becomes someone's time. You host it, patch it, back it up, and fix it when email stops arriving.

### 7. Hiver (the help desk that stays in Gmail)

Hiver adds assignment, statuses, and reporting inside Gmail instead of a separate app. It is $25 per user per month billed annually, AI Copilot drafts included, with a two-seat minimum and a 7-day trial ([Hiver pricing](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail)). Hiver Omni extends it to Outlook and other channels.

**The catch:** it is priced like a help desk while living in Gmail. For a two-person team, Gmail labels may do the same job for nothing. Our [shared inbox software comparison](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software) covers Hiver next to the other in-inbox tools.

## What five agents pay in year one

| Tool | Plan | Year-one cost for 5 agents |
|---|---|---:|
| Help Scout | Free (5 users, 1 inbox) | $0 |
| Help Scout | Standard, billed yearly; Plus for AI Drafts | $1,500; $2,700 with AI Drafts |
| Zoho Desk | Express, billed annually, AI through your own OpenAI key | $420; $420 plus your OpenAI usage with AI |
| Freshdesk | Growth, billed annually; Pro with Freddy AI Copilot | $1,140; $5,040 with Copilot |
| Zendesk | Support Team, billed annually; Suite Professional with Copilot | $1,140; $9,900 with Copilot |
| Hiver | Growth, billed annually, AI Copilot included | $1,500 |
| osTicket / FreeScout | Self-hosted | $0 in licenses, plus hosting and time |
| InboxPilot | Growth, billed annually, unlimited team members, AI drafts included | $990 |

Calculated from the list prices above (price × 5 agents × 12 months), before taxes and Zoho's OpenAI usage. InboxPilot is one flat plan price rather than per agent, and it includes AI drafting, which most seat prices here leave out. HubSpot is left out because its free plan stops at 2 users.

## What to look for in small business help desk software

1. **Email intake that fits your mailbox.** Ask how your existing address gets in: forwarding, a connected mailbox, or an add-on. On Microsoft 365, automatic forwarding to outside addresses is blocked by default, so forwarding-based help desks need an admin to allow it ([Help Scout docs](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1269-forward-from-microsoft-365-outlook)).
2. **The limit on the free plan that you will hit first.** Help Scout's is one inbox, Zoho Desk's is three users, HubSpot's is two.
3. **Per-agent pricing against how many people answer.** If five people answer occasionally, per-seat pricing charges you for five full agents.
4. **How AI is billed.** Several help desks now charge AI answers per resolution on top of seats. Help Scout's AI Answers add-on, for example, is priced per resolution ([Help Scout pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/)).
5. **Reporting you will actually read.** Response time and open-ticket count are the two numbers most small teams need. Everything else is optional.

## Which to choose

| Your situation | Start with |
|---|---|
| The queue is mostly repeat questions | InboxPilot, alone or in front of any help desk here |
| A Shopify store answering orders, returns and refunds | InboxPilot ([AI customer service for Shopify stores](/industries/shopify-support)) |
| One or two people, one support address | A shared address with labels ([how to set one up](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system)) |
| Up to five people, one inbox, no budget | Help Scout free plan |
| Up to three people, lowest paid price when you grow | Zoho Desk free edition, then Express |
| Sales and support share customers on HubSpot | HubSpot Service Hub free |
| Gmail team that won't use a second app | Hiver |
| A technical person on staff, no budget | osTicket or FreeScout |
| Planning to grow into phone, chat, and a large team | Freshdesk or Zendesk |

Whatever you choose, answer every new request quickly, even if the full reply takes longer. Our [email acknowledgment templates](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) cover what that first reply should say.

## Related reading

- [Customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation): support replies drafted from your orders and policies, approved by a person.
- [Email ticketing system for Gmail and Outlook](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system): five ways to track customer email, from free labels to help desks.
- [Shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk): the signs you have outgrown shared email, and what each path costs.
- [Best shared inbox software](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): ten tools compared on platform support and year-one cost.
- [How to acknowledge an email](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email): 15 templates for the first reply.

---

*Prices checked on each vendor's pricing page on October 6, 2026, and stated per user or agent per month unless noted. Vendors change plans often, so confirm before buying.*

---

## How to Automate Emails in Outlook: 7 Ways, Built-In and AI

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook
Published: 2026-09-23

Automate email in Outlook with rules, automatic replies, Quick Steps, templates, scheduled send, Power Automate and AI. Steps for new and classic Outlook.

You can automate email in Outlook in seven ways: rules that sort and forward mail as it arrives, automatic replies, Quick Steps for one-click actions, templates, scheduled send, Power Automate flows, and AI that drafts the replies themselves. The first six are built into Outlook or Microsoft 365.

For the seventh, InboxPilot (we make it) drafts each reply from your own price lists, orders and policies, so replies stop being the same text for everyone. Each method has steps for new Outlook, classic Outlook and Outlook on the web, from Microsoft's own support pages. For Gmail, see the [Gmail version of this guide](/blog/automate-your-gmail).

## The seven ways compared

| Method | Runs on its own? | Best for | Main limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Rules** | Yes, on arrival | Sorting, flagging, forwarding, categorizing | Fixed conditions; client-side rules need classic Outlook open |
| **Automatic replies** | Yes | Out of office, holiday cover | Same message to everyone |
| **Quick Steps** | No, one click | Multi-step actions you repeat daily | Manual |
| **Templates** | No, you insert them | Answers you type often | Manual, and static text |
| **Scheduled send** | Yes, at the set time | Sending at the right hour | Classic Outlook must be online |
| **Power Automate** | Yes, on a trigger | Moving email data into other apps | You build and maintain the flow |
| **AI drafting (InboxPilot)** | Yes, on arrival | Replies that answer the question from your data | A person reviews each draft by default |

## 1. Rules: sort, flag and forward mail as it arrives

Rules act on incoming messages that match conditions you set: a sender, words in the subject, a recipient address. They can move a message to a folder, flag or categorize it, forward it, or delete it.

**New Outlook for Windows:** right-click a message, hover over **Rules**, and select **Create rule**. Choose the folder and select **OK**. For conditions, actions and exceptions, select **More options**.

**Outlook on the web:** select **Settings**, then **Mail**, then **Rules**, and **Add new rule**. Name it, choose a condition and an action, and add exceptions if needed. **Stop processing more rules** is on by default.

**Classic Outlook for Windows:** right-click a message and choose **Rules**, then **Create Rule**, or go to **File**, **Manage Rules & Alerts**, **New Rule** to start from a template. Tick **Run this new rule now on messages already in the current folder** to apply it to existing mail.

Source: [Microsoft Support, Manage email messages by using rules](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/mail/manage-email-messages-by-using-rules-in-outlook).

**Where rules stop:** Microsoft notes that new Outlook does not support rules for third-party accounts like Gmail, Yahoo and iCloud, that client-side rules created in classic Outlook may not work in new Outlook, and that Outlook.com cannot run rules on messages already received. Rules also match on words and addresses, not meaning: "where is my order" and "has my package shipped" need two conditions.

### Forwarding rules and the Microsoft 365 block

A rule that forwards to an address outside your company often bounces with `5.7.520 Access denied, Your organization does not allow external forwarding`. Microsoft 365 controls this in the outbound spam policy, and since 2021 the default has been **Off - Forwarding is disabled** for new organizations ([Microsoft Learn, Control external email forwarding](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/defender-office-365/outbound-spam-policies-external-email-forwarding)). Forwarding between colleagues inside the organization is not affected. If you need external forwarding, an admin has to allow it, ideally only to specific domains.

## 2. Automatic replies: out of office and holiday cover

**New Outlook:** select **View**, then **View settings**, then **Accounts**, **Automatic Replies**. Turn **Automatic replies** on, tick **Send replies only during a time period** to set dates, write the message and **Save**. Work accounts can also choose **Send replies outside your organization**.

**Classic Outlook:** select **File**, **Automatic Replies**, tick **Send automatic replies**, optionally set start and end times, and use the **Inside My Organization** and **Outside My Organization** tabs for different messages.

**Outlook on the web:** **Settings**, **Account**, **Automatic replies**.

Source: [Microsoft Support, Send automatic out-of-office replies](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/mail/how-to-set-up-out-of-office-automatic-replies-in-outlook).

Automatic replies are not supported for Gmail, Yahoo or POP/IMAP accounts in new Outlook. And Microsoft's own warning applies: replying outside your organization answers everything, newsletters and junk included. For a team address such as support@, our guide to [shared mailbox auto-replies](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply) covers the options and their limits.

## 3. Quick Steps: several actions in one click

Quick Steps bundle actions you repeat, such as "move to Done, mark as read, forward to the account manager", into one button or keyboard shortcut.

**New Outlook:** on the **Home** tab, open the dropdown next to **Quick steps** and choose **Manage quick steps**, then **+New quick step**. Name it, choose actions, optionally assign a shortcut from Ctrl+Shift+5 to 9, and **Save**.

**Classic Outlook:** on **Home**, in the Quick Steps group, select **Create New**, name it, add actions, and save.

Source: [Microsoft Support, Automate common or repetitive tasks with Quick Steps](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/mail/automate-common-or-repetitive-tasks-with-quick-steps-in-outlook).

Quick Steps do not run by themselves. They are the right tool when a person should decide, then act fast.

## 4. Templates: the answers you type every week

Outlook has two template features. **Mail Templates** is built in: write the email, including recipients, subject and attachments if you want them, open the **More options** menu in the message window and choose **Save as template**. The **My Templates** add-in stores short reusable text you insert from the **Message** tab. Both need a qualifying Microsoft 365 subscription ([Microsoft Support, Create email templates in Outlook](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/create-email-templates-in-outlook)).

Templates are static. They work when the answer is the same every time and break when it depends on the order, the customer, or today's price list. Quote replies are the usual casualty; this is how you [automate RFQ and quote replies](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation).

## 5. Scheduled send: send at the right time

**New Outlook and Outlook on the web:** while writing, open the dropdown next to **Send**, choose **Schedule send**, pick a time and select **Send**. The message waits in **Drafts**.

**Classic Outlook for Windows:** open **Message Options** from the **Tags** group, tick **Do not deliver before**, set the date and time, select **Close**, then **Send**. The message waits in the **Outbox**, and Microsoft notes that "Outlook needs to be online and connected for this feature to work," so a laptop closed overnight means the email goes out when it next connects.

Source: [Microsoft Support, Delay or schedule sending email messages](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/mail/delay-or-schedule-sending-email-messages-in-outlook).

## 6. Power Automate: connect Outlook to your other apps

Power Automate runs cloud flows that start on an Outlook event and act elsewhere. Work and school accounts use the **Office 365 Outlook** connector, personal Microsoft accounts use **Outlook.com**. Triggers include events such as **When an email is flagged (V3)**, and actions include sending mail, creating contacts and scheduling meetings ([Microsoft Learn, Using Outlook and Power Automate](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-automate/email-overview)).

Typical flows: save attachments from a supplier to a SharePoint folder, add a row to a spreadsheet when an order confirmation arrives, or post a message in Teams when a VIP customer writes.

**Where it stops:** flows move data between systems; they do not understand an email. Someone on the team designs each flow, handles its failures, and updates it when a process changes. For Google Sheets specifically, see [updating a sheet when an email arrives](/blog/update-google-sheets-when-an-email-arrives).

## 7. AI drafting: replies that answer the question

Every method above either moves mail or sends text someone wrote in advance. None of them reads "can you quote 40 units delivered by Friday?" and answers with a price. That is the gap an [AI email assistant for Outlook](/ai-email-assistant) fills.

InboxPilot connects to an Outlook mailbox when you sign in with Microsoft. Each incoming email gets the category it belongs under and stays in the Inbox, and a reply is drafted from your own sources: uploaded price lists, policies and catalogs, a Google Sheet, Shopify orders, Notion, or Pipedrive. Drafts wait in Outlook for a person to send them by default.

Plain-English workflows can also forward, move, or log specific kinds of email, and on Growth a category can be set to send on its own once it is reliably right. There's a 7-day free trial, Starter is $39 a month, and Shopify, Notion and Pipedrive come with Growth at $99 ([pricing](/pricing)).

There is no Outlook add-in, so settings live in the InboxPilot web app, and in a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox it drafts replies rather than sending them.

Microsoft's own option is Copilot. Copilot Chat in Outlook can summarize and draft from your inbox for business users on eligible plans, and grounding drafts in company documents needs the paid Microsoft 365 Copilot add-on. Our [comparison of AI assistants for Outlook](/blog/outlook-ai-assistant) sets out the prices and the alternatives.

## Which method to use for which job

| The job | Use |
|---|---|
| Newsletters and receipts out of the inbox | A rule that moves them to a folder |
| Away for a week | Automatic replies with a time period |
| "Move, mark read, forward to finance" several times a day | A Quick Step |
| The same answer typed every week | A template |
| An email that should land at 8 a.m. in the recipient's time zone | Scheduled send (new Outlook if the laptop may be closed) |
| Attachments or order details into another system | Power Automate, or an integration in your AI tool |
| Customer questions answered from price lists, orders or policies | AI drafting with InboxPilot, reviewed by a person |

Most teams end up with three layers: rules to sort, a template or two for the true boilerplate, and AI drafting for the questions that need a real answer.

If the real problem is several people answering one address and stepping on each other's replies, that is coordination rather than automation. The tools built for it are compared in our guide to the [best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook).

## Related reading

- [Gmail auto reply and automation](/blog/automate-your-gmail): the Gmail equivalents: vacation responder, templates, filters and AI drafts.
- [Best AI assistant for Outlook](/blog/outlook-ai-assistant): Copilot, InboxPilot, Fyxer and five more, compared on price and Outlook support.
- [Fyxer alternatives](/blog/fyxer-alternatives): AI email assistants that work in Outlook and Gmail, with current prices.
- [Best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook): when the problem is coordinating a team rather than automating one mailbox.
- [Shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply): acknowledging every request to a team address.
- [How to add a shared mailbox in Outlook](/blog/add-shared-mailbox-outlook): open a team address like support@ in every version of Outlook.

---

*Steps and limits quoted from Microsoft Support and Microsoft Learn pages checked on 2026-09-23. Microsoft updates Outlook's menus often, especially in new Outlook, so labels may shift.*

---

## How to Create a Group Email in Gmail: Labels or Groups

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail
Published: 2026-09-23

Make a group email in Gmail two ways: a Google Contacts label to send to a list, or a Google Group for a shared address. Steps, limits, which to use.

To create a group email in Gmail, make a **label in Google Contacts**, add people to it, then type the label's name in the To field of a new message. That covers the everyday case of emailing the same list again and again. If you need an address other people can write to, such as team@ or volunteers@, create a **Google Group** instead: it gets its own email address, and every member receives a copy of what is sent to it.

This guide covers both methods step by step, taken from Google's own help pages, with the sending limits that catch people out and a table for choosing between them. If what you actually need is a team answering customer email together, a group address is only the start; our [shared inbox tools comparison](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software) covers what comes after it.

## Method 1: Create a group email with a Google Contacts label

A label is Google's name for a contact group. You create it once in Google Contacts and use it from Gmail every time after.

**Create the label**

1. Go to [Google Contacts](https://contacts.google.com).
2. On the left, next to **Labels**, click **Create label**.
3. Type a name, such as "Board" or "Suppliers", then click **Save**.

**Add people to it**

1. In Google Contacts, tick the box next to each contact you want in the group.
2. At the top, click **Manage labels**.
3. Click the label you created, then click **Apply**.

Anyone who is not yet a contact has to be added as a contact first.

**Send to the group from Gmail**

1. Open Gmail and click **Compose**.
2. In the **To** field, start typing the label's name, then select the group.
3. Gmail fills in every address in the label. Write and send as normal.

Source: [Google Contacts Help, View, group & share contacts](https://support.google.com/contacts/answer/30970).

### Keep addresses private with Bcc

When the people in a label do not know each other, add the label to the **Bcc** field instead of To. Each person gets the message without seeing everyone else's address, and a reply-all cannot reach the whole list.

### Edit, rename or delete the label

In Google Contacts, point to the label under **Labels** on the left and follow the options on screen.

### Two limits to know

- **Only the default address is used.** Google's help page says that if a contact has several email addresses, "only their default email address is added to the label group." Check the contact card for anyone who uses a work and a personal address.
- **Gmail's sending limits still apply**, because a label is just a list of individual recipients:

| Account | Recipients per message | Daily limit |
|---|---|---|
| Personal Gmail | 500 | 500 emails a day |
| Google Workspace | 2,000 (no more than 500 external) | 2,000 messages and 10,000 recipients a day |

Sources: [Gmail Help, Limits for sending & getting mail](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/22839) and [Google Workspace, Gmail sending limits](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/gmail/gmail-sending-limits-in-google-workspace). Go over a limit and Gmail blocks sending for up to 24 hours. For large lists, Google's own advice is to create a Google Group and send to its address instead.

## Method 2: Create a Google Group with its own email address

A Google Group gives the list a real address. People email the group, and Google delivers a copy to every member. Nobody has to keep a label up to date in their own contacts, and with conversation history turned on, past messages are archived in Google Groups.

**Create the group**

1. Go to [Google Groups](https://groups.google.com) and sign in.
2. At the top, click **Create group**.
3. Enter a **group name** (up to 73 characters), a **group email** (up to 63 characters before the domain) and, optionally, a description. Some words are reserved and cannot be used as addresses.
4. Choose the settings: who can search for the group, who can join, who can post, and who can view conversations and members.
5. Add members directly or invite them, then click **Create group**.
6. Wait a few minutes before sending the first message to the new address.

Source: [Google Groups Help, Create a group & choose group settings](https://support.google.com/groups/answer/2464926).

With a personal Google Account, the group's address ends in **@googlegroups.com**. On a work or school account it uses your organization's domain, such as team@yourcompany.com. If Groups is missing from a work account, the administrator has to turn on Groups for Business, and some organizations only let admins create groups.

### Send as the group address from Gmail

By default, members reply from their own address. To reply as the group:

1. In Google Groups, open the group's settings and set **Who can post** to **Anyone on the web**, so Gmail's confirmation email can reach the group. This needs the Owner or Manager role.
2. In Gmail, go to **Settings**, **See all settings**, **Accounts and Import** (or **Accounts**), and under **Send mail as**, add the group's address.
3. Confirm the code Gmail sends to the group.

Source: [Google Groups Help, Add a group as an email address in Gmail](https://support.google.com/groups/answer/10309372). Letting anyone on the web post also lets anyone email the group, so review its moderation and spam settings afterwards.

Members who answer for the group tend to send the same few replies. Each person can save those as [Gmail templates](/blog/gmail-templates), but Gmail keeps templates per account, not per group.

## Contact label or Google Group: which to use

| | Contact label | Google Group |
|---|---|---|
| **Has its own email address** | No | Yes (team@, or @googlegroups.com) |
| **Who can use it** | Only you | Anyone allowed to post |
| **Where it lives** | Your Google Contacts | Google Groups |
| **Members see each other** | Only if you use To or Cc | No, they see the group address |
| **Archive of past messages** | No, only your own Sent folder | Yes, if conversation history is on |
| **Best for** | A list you email yourself: a club, a board, a project team | A shared address: team@, volunteers@, a customer list others write to |

Pick a label when you are the only person who sends to the list. Pick a Google Group the moment other people need to email the list, or when the list outgrows Gmail's per-message limit.

## When a group email is not enough

A group address is built for distribution: everyone gets a copy. That breaks down when the mail sent to it has to be *answered*, such as support@ or orders@. Every member sees every message, nobody can tell whether a colleague has already replied, and customers get two answers or none.

Google offers three steps up before any paid tool:

- **Collaborative Inbox.** A Google Groups setting that lets members take, assign and close conversations. It needs a work or school account, and it runs in the Groups interface rather than Gmail. [Setup steps and fixes are in our Collaborative Inbox guide](/blog/google-groups-collaborative-inbox).
- **Shared inbox from the Admin console.** A Google Workspace admin can create a shared address that the team opens in real Gmail. It is free on Business Starter, Standard and Plus.
- **Delegation.** One mailbox that several named people can read and send from.

When the team needs to see who is handling what, the [Gmail shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail) compares the free options with Hiver, Gmelius, Front and others. If you are unsure whether you need a shared inbox or a full help desk, [shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk) draws the line.

InboxPilot, which publishes this guide, works one step later. It connects to the Gmail or Outlook mailbox where that shared mail lands, sorts each message, and drafts replies from your own documents for a person to approve. It does not create groups or send to lists, and it does not assign conversations inside Gmail; that coordination runs through Slack. Schools use it for [an admissions inbox that drafts its own replies](/industries/education-certification).

## Using Outlook instead?

Outlook's equivalent of a Google Group is a distribution list, and its equivalent of a shared inbox is a shared mailbox. Our guide to [adding a shared mailbox in Outlook](/blog/add-shared-mailbox-outlook) explains the difference between the two and when each one fits.

## Related reading

- [Gmail shared inbox: how to set one up](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail): Google's free options step by step, then the paid tools.
- [Best shared inbox software](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): the full category across Gmail and Outlook.
- [Shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply): acknowledging every message sent to a team address.
- [Gmail ticketing system](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system): turning a Gmail address into a queue.

---

*Steps and limits quoted from Google Contacts, Gmail, Google Groups and Google Workspace help pages checked on 2026-09-23. Google changes its menus from time to time, so labels on screen may differ slightly. InboxPilot is the publisher of this guide.*

---

## Best AI Assistant for Outlook in 2026: 8 Options Compared

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/outlook-ai-assistant
Published: 2026-09-23

The best AI assistant for Outlook, compared: Copilot, InboxPilot, Fyxer, Superhuman, SaneBox, Lindy, Spark and Boomerang. Prices, Outlook support, and who each fits.

The best AI assistant for Outlook depends on one question: does it only help you read and write, or does it need to answer customer email with your own facts? Microsoft now puts free AI into Outlook for most business users, so paying for a second tool only makes sense if it does something Copilot does not.

For a team inbox that answers customers, InboxPilot (we make it) [drafts each Outlook reply](/ai-email-assistant) from your own price lists, policies and order data, with a 7-day free trial. All eight options below were checked on each vendor's pricing page in September 2026.

## Is Copilot in Outlook already enough?

For a lot of people, yes. Microsoft includes Copilot Chat in Outlook for business users on eligible Microsoft 365 plans at no extra cost, and without any add-on it can summarize threads and draft replies from your inbox and calendar ([Microsoft Support](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/copilot-outlook/chat-with-copilot-in-outlook), checked 2026-09-23).

The limit shows up when a reply needs facts that are not in your mailbox. Copilot grounds answers in company documents and chats only with the paid Microsoft 365 Copilot add-on, listed at $21 per user per month on annual billing for business plans, $25.20 month to month, and $18 on a first-year promotion running to December 31, 2026 ([Microsoft 365 Copilot pricing](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/pricing/business)). The add-on is not sold alone; it sits on top of a Microsoft 365 base plan.

So the practical test is simple. If your email is mostly internal and personal, start with what you already have. If your inbox answers customers, suppliers, or buyers who ask about prices, orders, and policies, keep reading.

## How we compared them

Each tool was checked against the same five questions:

1. **How it works with Outlook.** Inside Outlook as an add-in, on the mailbox through Microsoft's API so results show up as folders and drafts, or as a separate email app that replaces Outlook.
2. **Does it draft replies,** or only sort, summarize, or polish what you write?
3. **Can drafts use your own documents** and business data, and on which plan?
4. **Cheapest paid price** for a single user, from the vendor's pricing page on 2026-09-23.
5. **One limitation.**

We did not run paid trials of every tool, so this guide does not rate draft quality or speed.

## AI assistants for Outlook compared

| Tool | How it works with Outlook | Drafts replies | Drafts from your documents | Cheapest paid (per user/month) | Free option |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **InboxPilot** | On the mailbox, results as Outlook categories and drafts | Yes | Yes, every plan and the trial | $39/month total, not per seat | Free trial: 7 days |
| **Microsoft 365 Copilot** | Built into Outlook | Yes | Paid add-on only | $21 annual (add-on) | Copilot Chat on eligible plans |
| **Fyxer AI** | On the mailbox, Outlook folders and categories | Yes | Team plan, from integrations | $37 annual (Pro) | Free plan without drafts; 14-day trial |
| **Superhuman Mail** | Separate app | Yes | Unverified | $33 annual | No (Mail not in free tier) |
| **SaneBox** | On the mailbox, Outlook folders | No, sorting only | No | About $5.42 ($65/year) | Trial |
| **Lindy** | Agent platform connected to Outlook | Yes | Yes, via a knowledge base step | $29.99 monthly | No free plan |
| **Spark** | Separate app | AI assistant; auto-drafts marked "soon" | Unverified | $8.25 annual | Free plan |
| **Boomerang for Outlook** | Outlook add-in | No (writing feedback only) | No | $4.99 annual | Free Basic plan |

Prices checked on each vendor's pricing page on 2026-09-23 and linked in each section below.

## The 8 options, one by one

### 1. InboxPilot

**Best for:** teams whose Outlook inbox answers customers, buyers, or suppliers with facts that live in documents and business systems.

InboxPilot connects to an Outlook mailbox through Microsoft's own API when you sign in with Microsoft. Each incoming email gets the category it belongs under and stays in the Inbox, and replies are drafted from the sources you connect: uploaded price lists, policies and catalogs (PDF, Word, CSV, Excel), rows in a Google Sheet, Shopify orders and products, Notion, and Pipedrive.

Drafts wait in Outlook for a person to send by default. On Growth, you can let a category send on its own once it is reliably right, and route the rest to the person who should handle it.

**Strengths**
- Drafts use your own data on every plan, Free included, not only on a top tier.
- Priced per plan, not per seat, so adding teammates does not multiply the bill.
- Works the same way in Gmail, for teams split across both.
- A Slack integration posts matching emails to a channel with the reply drafted, and tracks who took each one ([how it works](/blog/slack-email-integration)).

There's a 7-day free trial. Starter is $39 a month, and Growth is $99 a month with Shopify, Notion and Pipedrive lookups, with unlimited team members on every plan ([pricing](/pricing)). The [AI email assistant page](/ai-email-assistant) shows the product.

**Limitation:** there is no Outlook add-in, so settings live in the InboxPilot web app, and in a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox it drafts replies rather than sending them.

### 2. Microsoft 365 Copilot

**Best for:** anyone on Microsoft 365 who wants summaries and writing help without adding a vendor.

Copilot is the default because it is already there. The free Copilot Chat covers summarizing and drafting from the inbox; the paid add-on extends it to company documents and chats ([pricing](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/pricing/business)).

**Limitation:** it helps the person using it, one prompt at a time. It does not sort a team inbox on arrival or keep a queue of drafts waiting for review, and the document grounding costs extra per user.

### 3. Fyxer AI

**Best for:** individuals and small teams who want triage, drafts in their own voice, and meeting notes in one subscription.

Fyxer works on the mailbox and uses Outlook's folder and category system ([Fyxer help](https://support.fyxer.com/article/how-fyxer-organizes-your-inbox-in-outlook-folders-vs-categories-explained)). Pro, which drafts replies in your tone, is $49 per user per month, or $37 billed annually. Team, at $99 or $64 billed annually, adds several inboxes at once and context pulled from your integrations ([Fyxer pricing](https://www.fyxer.com/pricing), checked October 5, 2026). Every Fyxer alternative, with current prices, is in [Fyxer alternatives compared](/blog/fyxer-alternatives).

**Limitation:** Pro works on one inbox at a time, and Fyxer's help center says it scans the Inbox and Sent Items folders only.

### 4. Superhuman Mail

**Best for:** people who live in email all day and want a faster client, and are happy to leave Outlook's interface.

Superhuman is a separate app that works with Microsoft 365-hosted accounts. Its Mail product includes auto drafts, auto labels, summaries, and AI writing in your voice, and it is only included in the Business plan at $33 per member per month billed annually, or $40 monthly ([Superhuman plans](https://superhuman.com/plans)).

**Limitation:** you replace Outlook rather than add to it, and it is the most expensive per-seat option here.

### 5. SaneBox

**Best for:** anyone whose problem is clutter, not replies.

SaneBox works on the server through Microsoft's API, so its sorting shows up as folders in any Outlook app ([SaneBox help](https://www.sanebox.com/help/424-reconnect-your-microsoft-365-account-using-microsoft-graph)). Plans start at about $65 a year ([SaneBox pricing](https://www.sanebox.com/pricing)).

**Limitation:** it does not write replies at all. Pair it with Copilot if you want both.

### 6. Lindy

**Best for:** technical teams who want to build their own email agent with custom steps.

Lindy is an agent platform that connects to Outlook and can label, draft, and schedule ([Lindy docs](https://docs.lindy.ai/features/inbox-management/email-triage)). Plus is $29.99 per user per month ([Lindy pricing](https://www.lindy.ai/pricing)).

**Limitation:** you design the workflow yourself, and usage is metered in credits: 3,000 per user per month on Plus, with a single task costing anywhere from 2 to 2,500 credits according to the pricing page.

### 7. Spark

**Best for:** individuals who want a modern email client with AI help at a low price.

Spark is a separate app from Readdle that connects to Microsoft accounts through Microsoft's API ([Spark help](https://sparkmailapp.com/help/troubleshooting/cannot-add-an-exchange-or-office-365-account)). Plus is $8.25 per user per month billed annually ([Spark pricing](https://sparkmailapp.com/pricing)).

**Limitation:** on the pricing page checked for this guide, auto-drafts and auto-labels were marked "soon", so today it is an assistant you prompt, not one that drafts on arrival.

### 8. Boomerang for Outlook

**Best for:** send-later, reminders, and scheduling inside Outlook on a small budget.

Boomerang runs as an Outlook add-in. Its AI feature, Respondable, gives feedback on the email you are writing rather than drafting one. Personal is $4.99 a month billed annually, and there is a free Basic plan ([Boomerang subscriptions](https://www.boomerangoutlook.com/subscriptions.html)).

**Limitation:** it is not an AI drafter, so it solves a different problem from the rest of this list.

## Two tools that are not Outlook options

**Shortwave** does not support Microsoft 365 or Exchange accounts. Outlook.com addresses only work by forwarding into Gmail, and you cannot send from the Outlook address ([Shortwave docs](https://www.shortwave.com/docs/how-tos/microsoft-outlook-exchange-other-sign-in-support/)). For Gmail, our [comparison of AI email assistants](/blog/best-ai-email-assistant) covers Shortwave, Gemini and Gmelius.

**Grammarly** improves what you write, but it does not sort mail or draft replies on arrival, and its Microsoft Office add-in is being retired in favor of the desktop app ([Grammarly support](https://support.grammarly.com/hc/en-us/articles/39983013416461-Grammarly-for-Microsoft-Office-will-be-discontinued-soon)).

## Which AI assistant for Outlook fits you

| If you need | Start with |
|---|---|
| A team inbox answered from price lists, policies, or order data | InboxPilot |
| Summaries and help writing your own email | Copilot Chat, already in Outlook |
| Company documents in personal drafts, per user | Microsoft 365 Copilot add-on, or Fyxer Team |
| Less clutter, no drafting | SaneBox |
| A custom agent you build and maintain | Lindy |
| A faster email client and a per-seat budget to match | Superhuman |
| Send-later and reminders | Boomerang for Outlook |

## How to set up an AI assistant in Outlook without risk

Whichever tool you pick, three rules keep the first month uneventful.

1. **Start in draft mode.** Let the assistant write, and keep sending manual until you have read a week of its drafts.
2. **Connect the facts before judging the drafts.** A drafter with no price list or policy document will guess or ask vague questions. Upload the documents your team already answers from.
3. **Check what your admin allows.** Microsoft 365 tenants often require admin consent for third-party apps that read mail, so ask IT before the trial rather than halfway through it. For InboxPilot, send them [how InboxPilot handles your data](/security).

## Related reading

- [AI email assistant for Gmail and Outlook](/ai-email-assistant): what InboxPilot does on an incoming email, step by step.
- [How to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook): the built-in rules, replies and flows to set up before adding AI.
- [Best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook): when the problem is coordinating a team rather than drafting.
- [Customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation): support replies drafted from your orders and policies.
- [RFQ software for inbound quote requests](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): the Outlook workflow where the reply has to carry a price.

---

*Prices and features checked on each vendor's own pricing and help pages on 2026-09-23 and stated per user per month unless noted. Vendors change plans often, so confirm current prices before buying.*

---

## RFQ Response Email Templates: 8 Quote Replies for Suppliers

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/rfq-response-email-templates
Published: 2026-09-23

Eight quote email templates for replying to an RFQ: complete quote, clarifying question, acknowledgment, alternative, no-bid, revision and follow-up.

A good reply to an RFQ does three things: it gives the buyer every number they need to compare you, it arrives while they are still collecting quotes, and it makes the next step obvious. The eight templates below cover the replies suppliers actually have to write, from the complete quote to the polite no.

Each template uses [brackets] for what you fill in. They work in any email client. For an inquiry that isn't a formal RFQ, such as a price question from a web form, use these [templates for replying to an inquiry email](/blog/how-to-reply-to-an-inquiry-email). If you answer enough quote requests that writing them is the bottleneck, our page on [RFQ software for inbound quote requests](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation) covers drafting them from your price lists automatically.

## What every quote reply should include

Before the templates, the checklist. A quote that leaves any of these out invites a round trip, and every round trip gives a competitor another day.

| Item | Why the buyer needs it |
|---|---|
| **What you are quoting, restated** | Lets them spot a misunderstanding before they order |
| **Price per line and the quantity it applies to** | The number they compare across suppliers |
| **Quantity breaks** (if you offer them) | Shows whether a larger order is cheaper per unit |
| **Lead time from order** | Decides whether you meet their date |
| **Freight or delivery terms** | A quote without freight cannot be compared with one that includes it; for international orders, name the Incoterms rule, such as FOB or DDP |
| **Taxes** | Whether prices include them |
| **Payment terms and minimum order** | Affects their cash flow and order size |
| **Validity date** | Protects you if costs move |
| **The next step** | "Reply to confirm" or "send a PO to [address]" |

For the difference between a quote request and a proposal request, see [RFQ vs RFP vs RFI](/blog/rfq-vs-rfp-vs-rfi).

## 1. The complete quote

For a clear request you can price immediately.

> **Subject:** Quote: [quantity] × [product or part number], delivery by [date]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for the request. Here is our quote for [quantity] × [product, part number, spec]:
>
> - Unit price: [price] at [quantity] ([next break: price at quantity])
> - Lead time: [X] weeks from order, which meets your [date] if ordered by [date]
> - Delivery: [freight terms, or delivered price to their location]
> - Payment: [terms]
> - Price valid until: [date]
>
> To go ahead, reply to confirm or send a PO to [address]. Happy to hold this pricing for your [client bid / budget meeting] until [date].
>
> [Your name]

## 2. The clarifying question

For a request with a gap you cannot price around. Ask one question, and quote everything else.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for the RFQ for [quantity] × [product]. One detail before I finalize: do you need [option A] or [option B]? Pricing differs slightly between them.
>
> For reference, [option A] is [price] each and [option B] is [price] each at [quantity], both with a [X]-week lead time. Tell me which and I will send the formal quote the same day.
>
> [Your name]

Giving both prices means the buyer can compare you even before they answer, which is better than a question on its own.

## 3. The same-day acknowledgment

For a request that needs a supplier quote, an engineering check, or a manager's sign-off before you can price it.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for your request for [product or scope]. I have what I need to price it and will send the full quote by [day and time].
>
> One thing that would speed it up: [the missing detail, if any].
>
> If your deadline is earlier than that, tell me and I will prioritize it.
>
> [Your name]

Our guide on [how to acknowledge an email](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) has more wording for receipts like this.

## 4. The alternative offer

For when you cannot supply the exact item but have a close match.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for the request for [requested item]. We don't stock that exact [part / brand], but we can supply [alternative], which [matches the spec / differs in one way: explain].
>
> Quote for [quantity] × [alternative]: [price] each, [X]-week lead time, [freight terms], valid until [date]. Spec sheet attached.
>
> If it has to be [requested item] exactly, I would rather tell you now than waste your time.
>
> [Your name]

## 5. The service quote

For work quoted by scope rather than by unit: installation, cleaning, maintenance, freight lanes.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for the details. Based on [scope as you understood it: size, frequency, location, dates], here is our quote:
>
> - [Service line 1]: [price]
> - [Service line 2]: [price]
> - Total: [price] [per visit / per month / one-off]
>
> Included: [what is covered]. Not included: [the common exclusions, so there are no surprises].
>
> Valid until [date]. If the scope changes, I will re-quote the same day.
>
> [Your name]

## 6. The polite no-bid

For a request you cannot or should not quote.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for thinking of us for [project or product]. We won't be able to quote this one, as [short reason: it is outside our range / we don't have capacity before your date].
>
> [Optional: For [the part you can do / similar future requests], we would be glad to help.]
>
> Please keep us in mind for the next one.
>
> [Your name]

A fast no is worth more than a slow maybe. The buyer can move on, and you stay on their list.

## 7. The revised quote

For when quantity, spec, or your costs change after the first quote.

> **Subject:** Revised quote: [product], [what changed]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Following [your updated quantity / the spec change / our supplier's price change], here is the revised quote:
>
> - [Line]: [new price] (was [old price]) at [quantity]
> - Lead time: [X] weeks
> - Valid until: [date]
>
> Everything else from the [date] quote stands. This replaces the earlier version.
>
> [Your name]

Say which quote it replaces. Two live quotes with different numbers in one thread invite a dispute about which one the order was placed against.

## 8. The follow-up

For a quote that went out and went quiet. Send it shortly before the buyer's decision date, or a few business days after the quote if they gave none, and bring something new.

> **Subject:** Re: Quote: [product]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Following up on the quote for [product] from [date]. [Something useful: stock is confirmed for your date / lead time has shortened to X weeks / we can hold the price until the end of the month].
>
> Is there anything I can clarify or adjust to help you decide?
>
> [Your name]

If there is still no reply near the quote's expiry date, one last short note that the price is about to lapse closes the loop without pestering.

## Subject lines that get opened

Buyers search their inbox for your quote when they sit down to compare. Make it findable:

- `Quote: 40 × PX-200, delivery Dallas by Sep 15`
- `Quote #[number]: [project name]`
- `Revised quote: [product], new quantity 60`
- `Re: [their original subject]`: reply in their thread whenever you can, so the quote sits next to the request.

## If you are the buyer: an RFQ email template

Most of this page is for suppliers, but the fastest quotes come from complete requests. If you are sending one:

> **Subject:** RFQ: [quantity] × [product or service], needed by [date]
>
> Hi [Name],
>
> Please quote [quantity] × [product, part number, spec] delivered to [location] by [date]. Please include unit price, any quantity breaks, lead time, freight, payment terms, and how long the price is valid.
>
> Quotes are due by [date]. Questions to [name, email].
>
> [Your name]

## When templates stop being enough

Templates fix the wording. They do not fix the lookup: finding today's price for this part, at this quantity, with this customer's terms, while three other quote requests wait. That is where most of the time goes, and it is why quote replies go out late even when everyone knows the wording by heart.

InboxPilot, which publishes this guide, drafts replies like template 1 and template 2 automatically. It reads each quote request in Gmail or Outlook, fills the price, lead time, and a clarifying question from your uploaded price lists or a Google Sheet, and holds the draft for your approval. Requests that need a person, such as custom work, can be forwarded instead, and you can [log every RFQ to Google Sheets](/use-cases/gmail-to-google-sheets). It does not produce formal PDF quote documents or connect to ERP systems. The [RFQ automation page](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation) shows an example end to end, and our [freight broker guide](/blog/ai-for-freight-brokers) covers the same pattern for rate requests.

## Related reading

- [RFQ vs RFP vs RFI](/blog/rfq-vs-rfp-vs-rfi): how to recognize each request and what it is really asking.
- [RFQ software for inbound quote requests](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): what supplier-side RFQ software does and how to choose it.
- [How to acknowledge an email](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email): same-day receipts for requests you cannot answer yet.
- [AI for freight brokers](/blog/ai-for-freight-brokers): rate and quote emails answered from your own lanes.

---

*Templates are starting points; adapt terms, taxes and validity to your industry and the law that applies to your sales. InboxPilot is the publisher of this guide.*

---

## RFQ vs RFP vs RFI: Differences, Examples and How to Reply

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/rfq-vs-rfp-vs-rfi
Published: 2026-09-23

RFQ vs RFP vs RFI: what each one asks for, when buyers send them, and how a supplier should answer each, with a comparison table and real examples.

An RFI asks what you can do, an RFQ asks what it costs, and an RFP asks how you would solve the problem. Buyers send an RFI when they are still learning the market, an RFQ when they know exactly what they want and need a price, and an RFP when they need suppliers to design the solution.

Most guides to these three are written for the buyer deciding which document to send. This one is written for the supplier on the receiving end: how to tell which one just landed in your inbox, what each is really asking, and how to answer it well. If quote requests are the ones piling up, our page on [RFQ software for inbound quote requests](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation) covers the tooling side.

## RFQ vs RFP vs RFI at a glance

| | RFI (request for information) | RFQ (request for quotation) | RFP (request for proposal) |
|---|---|---|---|
| **What the buyer knows** | The problem, not the options | Exactly what they need | The outcome, not the method |
| **What they ask for** | Capabilities, approach, rough cost | Price, quantity, lead time, terms | A full proposed solution and price |
| **What you send back** | A short capabilities response | A quote | A structured proposal |
| **How they choose** | They usually don't; it shapes a shortlist | Mostly price and basic qualifications | Several weighted factors, not just price |
| **Typical length of your reply** | A page or two | One page or one email | Many pages, often with a set format |
| **Where it arrives** | Email or portal | Very often plain email | Usually a portal or formal package |
| **Your main risk** | Being generic and forgotten | Being slow or quoting a stale price | Spending days on a bid you could not win |

The buyer-side definitions follow the US General Services Administration: an RFI is used "when an agency is gathering information," an RFQ "when an agency knows what it needs and is looking for pricing information," and an RFP "when an agency is seeking a complete solution," with evaluation "based on multiple factors, not just price" ([GSA, RFIs, RFQs and RFPs](https://www.gsa.gov/small-business/training-and-events/rfis-rfqs-and-rfps)). Commercial buyers use the same words the same way.

## What is an RFI?

A request for information is a buyer's market research. They have a problem or a project and want to know who can help, how, and roughly at what cost. GSA describes RFIs as a way to "understand what's available in the market" and "explore possible solutions."

**How to answer an RFI as a supplier:** keep it short and specific. Say what you do that matches their problem, give one relevant example, state a price range only if you are comfortable being anchored to it, and ask one good question about what they are trying to achieve. An RFI rarely produces an order directly, but it decides who gets the RFQ or RFP that follows.

## What is an RFQ?

A request for quotation asks for a price on something already defined: a part number, a quantity, a delivery date, a service with a clear scope. The buyer has usually sent the same RFQ to several suppliers, and in GSA's words, "selection is often based on price and basic qualifications."

**How to answer an RFQ as a supplier.** A complete quote answers every question the buyer would otherwise have to email back about:

- **Price per line,** with quantity breaks if you offer them.
- **Lead time** from order, and whether it meets their date.
- **Freight and delivery terms,** or the one detail you need to confirm them.
- **Validity period:** how long the price holds.
- **Payment terms** and any minimum order.
- **One clarifying question** where the request is ambiguous, such as a finish, a variant, or a tolerance.

Speed matters as much as completeness. The buyer is waiting on several suppliers, and the first complete answer becomes the benchmark every later quote is compared against. Acknowledging the request the same day, even before the price is ready, keeps you in the running; our guide on [how to acknowledge an email](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email) has wording for exactly that.

**Is an RFQ response binding?** In US federal purchasing, no: "A quotation is not an offer and, consequently, cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract" ([FAR 13.004(a)](https://www.acquisition.gov/far/13.004)). The Government's order is the offer, and the contract forms when you accept it. In commercial deals the rules depend on your terms and the law that applies, so treat every quote as something the buyer might accept, and state its validity and conditions.

## What is an RFP?

A request for proposal asks suppliers to propose a solution. The buyer describes the outcome they need, the constraints, and how responses will be scored, and expects a structured document back covering approach, team, timeline, references, and price.

**How to answer an RFP as a supplier:** decide go or no-go before writing anything. Check whether you meet every mandatory requirement, whether you have a relationship with the buyer, and whether the evaluation criteria favor what you do best. If it is a go, mirror their structure exactly, answer every requirement in the order asked, and make the price section easy to compare. Teams that answer many RFPs use dedicated RFP response software to reuse approved answers; that category is built for long proposals, not for the short quote requests that arrive by email.

## In what order do they arrive?

Usually the RFI comes first. What follows depends on how well the buyer can define the need:

- **Defined need:** RFI (optional) → RFQ → order.
- **Undefined need:** RFI → RFP → shortlist → sometimes an RFQ or negotiation to settle final pricing.
- **Repeat purchases:** RFQ alone, often to the same small group of suppliers every time.

GSA's own training presents RFIs as early-stage, RFQs as mid-stage and RFPs as the final stage of its contracting process, so the order is a convention, not a rule. What matters for a supplier is recognizing which one you are holding.

## How to tell which one just landed in your inbox

Formal RFPs and RFIs usually say so in the subject line and arrive as attachments or portal notices. RFQs are the ones that slip past, because many never use the acronym:

- "Can you price 200 of the SS-40 brackets, delivered to Tulsa?"
- "Need a rate for a 53' dry van, Dallas to Atlanta, Friday pickup."
- "What would 3 months of weekly cleaning cost for a 5,000 sq ft office?"

Each is an RFQ in everything but name: a defined need, a request for price, and a buyer who is almost certainly asking someone else too. Treat any email that asks "how much" for a specific thing as a quote request, and give it the same priority as a formal one.

## Where software helps, by document type

- **RFIs and RFPs:** RFP response tools help teams reuse approved answers across long questionnaires and proposals.
- **Formal RFQs through buyer portals:** the buyer's sourcing platform dictates the format; your job is to respond inside it on time.
- **RFQs that arrive as email:** this is where most small and mid-size suppliers lose time. The request has to be spotted, the prices looked up in a price list or spreadsheet, and the reply written, often by one person who is busy with something else.

For that last case, InboxPilot, which publishes this guide, reads incoming quote requests in Gmail or Outlook, drafts the reply from your own price lists and catalogs, and holds it for your approval. It does not handle RFP portals or long proposals. The [RFQ automation page](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation) shows a full example, and our post on [AI for freight brokers](/blog/ai-for-freight-brokers) covers the same pattern for rate requests.

## Related reading

- [RFQ software for inbound quote requests](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): what supplier-side RFQ software does and how to choose it.
- [AI for freight brokers](/blog/ai-for-freight-brokers): answering rate and quote emails from your own lanes and rates.
- [How to acknowledge an email](/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email): same-day acknowledgments for quote requests you cannot price yet.
- [What an AI email agent does](/blog/ai-email-agent): how quote requests, support questions and sales emails get handled in one inbox.
- [RFQ response email templates](/blog/rfq-response-email-templates): eight quote replies, from the complete quote to the polite no-bid.

---

*Definitions quoted from the US General Services Administration and the Federal Acquisition Regulation, checked 2026-09-23. Commercial practice varies by industry and country, and nothing here is legal advice. InboxPilot is the publisher of this guide.*

---

## Shared Inbox vs Help Desk: Which Does a Small Team Need?

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk
Published: 2026-09-23

Shared inbox or help desk? The signs you have outgrown shared email, what each costs a five-person team, the free help desk plans, and a third option.

Most small teams asking this question do not need a help desk yet. A help desk earns its cost when you have to prove response times, run support across several channels, or give customers a portal. If your support is mostly email and the real problem is that there is too much of it, a shared inbox fixes more for less.

When most of that email is the same questions, InboxPilot (we make it) drafts the replies inside Gmail or Outlook, alongside either option. Prices come from vendor pricing pages, checked October 6, 2026. For the full field of tools, see our [shared inbox tools comparison](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software).

## Shared inbox vs help desk at a glance

| | Shared inbox | Help desk |
|---|---|---|
| **What each email becomes** | A conversation, still in email | A ticket with a number and a status |
| **Where the team works** | Gmail or Outlook, or an email-like app | A separate help desk app |
| **Ownership** | Assignment and "who is replying" alerts | Assignment, queues, and routing rules |
| **Response targets** | Informal | Service-level targets with breach alerts |
| **Channels** | Mostly email | Email, chat, phone, social, forms |
| **Reporting** | Light: volume and response time | Deep: queues, agents, satisfaction scores |
| **Customer self-service** | Rare | Help center and customer portal |
| **Typical pricing** | Per user, lower tiers | Per agent, with add-ons for AI and analytics |
| **Feels to customers like** | A reply from a person | A reply from a support team, often with a ticket reference |

Neither column is better. They solve different problems, and the mistake most small teams make is buying the right column for a problem they do not have.

## Start with what your email already gives you

Before comparing paid tools, rule out the free options, because they cover more teams than vendors admit.

- **Google Workspace** admins can create a shared email address from the Admin console that appears inside Gmail for everyone who needs it ([Google Workspace admin docs](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/create-a-shared-inbox)). Gmail delegation, which sits underneath, supports about 40 people accessing an account at the same time under typical use ([Google Workspace admin docs](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/gmail/let-users-delegate-access-to-a-gmail-account)).
- **Microsoft 365** shared mailboxes are included, and Microsoft documents their limit plainly: "A shared mailbox supports a maximum of 25 users. If too many users access the mailbox at the same time, they might experience connection failures or duplicated messages" ([Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide)).

Both give access. Neither tells you that a colleague is already answering the same customer, and that is usually the first thing that breaks, long before the documented ceilings. Our [Gmail shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail) and [Outlook shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook) cover the setup for each platform.

## Signs you have outgrown a shared inbox

These are the triggers that justify a help desk. Each one is about structure you need, not about headcount alone.

1. **Someone else holds you to a response time.** A customer contract, a service agreement, or a manager who wants proof. A help desk measures and alerts on targets; a shared inbox leaves that to memory.
2. **Support runs across three or more channels.** Chat, phone, social, and email in one queue is what help desks are built for. Stitching them into a shared inbox gets fragile.
3. **Customers need to help themselves.** A help center, a customer portal, or status pages for open requests live in help desks, not shared inboxes.
4. **Routing has rules.** Billing to one team, technical questions to another, VIP customers to a third. Help desk routing handles this without anyone reading every email first.
5. **You need an audit trail.** Regulated work, disputes, or chargebacks where you must show who did what and when.

## Signs a help desk would be overkill

1. **Support is mostly email** and customers expect a reply from a named person, not a ticket reference.
2. **The same few questions make up most of the queue:** order status, pricing, availability, policies. A help desk will organize them beautifully and still leave every one to be typed.
3. **Two to five people share the work** and the main failure is two of them replying to the same email.
4. **Nobody will own the configuration.** Help desks reward someone maintaining macros, views, and routing. Without that person, they decay into a slower inbox.

## The third option: draft the repeat replies

Shared inboxes and help desks decide who handles an email. InboxPilot drafts the reply, so the person who handles it checks it and sends.

It works on the Gmail or Outlook mailbox you already have, filing each email into your existing labels or folders. Replies are drafted from your own sources: price lists and policies you upload, a Google Sheet, Shopify orders, Notion, or Pipedrive. For a store, that means you can [draft Shopify support replies from your orders](/industries/shopify-support). By default, a person approves each draft before it sends.

Ownership runs through Slack: each email posts to a channel with its draft, a teammate takes it and marks it done, and anything nobody took gets chased ([how the Slack flow works](/blog/slack-email-integration)). There's a 7-day free trial, Starter is $39 a month, and Shopify, Notion and Pipedrive come with Growth at $99.

There are no ticket numbers or service-level targets, so a team that needs those pairs it with a help desk. [Customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation) walks through the support case.

## What each option costs a five-person team

List prices, billed annually unless noted. Advertised entry tiers are often not the plan a team actually needs, so the table shows the realistic plan where it differs.

| Option | Type | Plan for 5 people | Year one |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Workspace shared address / Microsoft 365 shared mailbox | Free shared mailbox | Included | $0 |
| InboxPilot | AI drafting on Gmail/Outlook | Growth, annual, unlimited team members, AI drafts included | $990 |
| Help Scout | Help desk | Free plan (5 users, 1 inbox), or Standard at $25/user/month; Plus at $45 for AI Drafts | $0 to $1,500; $2,700 with AI Drafts |
| Zoho Desk | Help desk | Free edition covers 3 users; Express at $7/user/month annual for 5, AI replies through your own OpenAI key | $0 to $420; $420 plus OpenAI usage with AI |
| Hiver | Shared inbox in Gmail | Growth at $25/user/month annual, two-seat minimum, AI Copilot included | $1,500 |
| Freshdesk | Help desk | Growth at $19/agent/month annual, no free plan listed; Pro with Freddy AI Copilot, $84, for AI drafts | $1,140; $5,040 with AI drafts |
| Front | Shared inbox app | Professional at $65/seat (the tier most teams need); $85 with Copilot AI drafts | $3,900; $5,100 with Copilot |
| Zendesk | Help desk | Suite Team at $55/agent; Copilot needs Professional, $165 with it | $3,300; $9,900 with Copilot |

Sources, all checked October 6, 2026: [Help Scout](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/), [Zoho Desk](https://www.zoho.com/desk/pricing.html), [Zoho Desk Express](https://www.zoho.com/desk/express/), [Hiver](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail), [Freshdesk](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/), [Front](https://front.com/pricing), [Zendesk](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/). InboxPilot from [our pricing page](/pricing).

Two patterns stand out. Free plans are real and cover more small teams than the paid tiers suggest. And per-seat pricing, whether shared inbox or help desk, grows with every person who touches support, which is why the jump from five to fifteen people is where costs diverge.

Most of those seat prices also leave AI drafting out, while InboxPilot's plan price includes it. If you're already on Front and the per-seat price is the problem, [these Front alternatives](/blog/front-alternatives) show what each switch costs a five-person team.

## Free help desk software, if you do need one

- **Help Scout** is free for up to 5 users and 1 inbox. Email arrives by forwarding your address into it ([Help Scout docs](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/830-get-your-email-into-help-scout)).
- **Zoho Desk** has a free edition for 3 users with email ticketing, and paid trials fall back to it when they end ([Zoho Desk pricing](https://www.zoho.com/desk/pricing.html)).
- **Open-source help desks** such as [osTicket](https://osticket.com/), [FreeScout](https://freescout.net/), and [HESK](https://www.hesk.com/) are free to self-host. The cost moves from a subscription to someone's time keeping a server patched.
- **Freshdesk** no longer lists a free plan on its pricing page, only a 14-day trial ([Freshdesk pricing](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/)).

One setup detail catches Microsoft 365 teams: Microsoft blocks automatic forwarding to outside addresses by default, so help desks that receive mail by forwarding need an admin to allow it first ([Help Scout docs](https://docs.helpscout.com/article/1269-forward-from-microsoft-365-outlook)).

If you have decided you need one, our guide to [help desk software for small business](/blog/help-desk-software-for-small-business) compares seven options, including HubSpot's free plan and the paid entry tiers, with what five agents pay in year one.

## How to decide in five minutes

| If this is true | Choose |
|---|---|
| The queue is mostly the same questions, answered from documents | InboxPilot, on its own or alongside either |
| Two or three people, email only, low volume | Your free Google or Microsoft shared mailbox |
| Up to ten people, email first, people keep double-replying | A shared inbox tool (Hiver, Gmelius, Missive, Front) |
| Response times are contractual, or managers need queue reports | A help desk (Help Scout, Zoho Desk, Freshdesk, Zendesk) |
| Up to five agents, fine with a separate app, no budget | Help Scout free plan or Zoho Desk free edition |

If you land between two rows, pick the lighter one. Moving from a shared inbox to a help desk later is a forwarding change and a week of new habits. Moving back after paying for a year of per-agent seats is harder to justify.

For teams on Gmail or Outlook, our [email ticketing system guide](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system) covers the in-between options: labels and filters, in-Gmail extensions, and forwarding into a free help desk.

## Related reading

- [Best shared inbox software and tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): ten tools compared on platform support and real year-one cost.
- [Email ticketing system for Gmail and Outlook](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system): five ways to track customer email, from free labels to help desks.
- [Help desk software for small business](/blog/help-desk-software-for-small-business): seven options priced, and when you do not need one.
- [Customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation): support replies drafted from your orders and policies, approved by a person.
- [Slack email integration](/blog/slack-email-integration): claiming and closing customer emails from a Slack channel.
- [Email triage for business inboxes](/blog/email-triage): categories, owners and urgency rules for a shared address.

---

*Prices checked on vendor pricing pages on October 6, 2026, and shown per user per month unless noted. Vendors change plans often, so confirm before buying.*

---

## Slack Email Integration: 4 Ways to Manage Email from Slack

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/slack-email-integration
Published: 2026-09-23

Forward email to a Slack channel from Gmail or Outlook, post it with Zapier or Power Automate, or reply, claim and close emails from the Slack thread.

You can manage email from Slack four ways: a channel's email address, Zapier or Power Automate, shared inbox alerts, or a connected tool like InboxPilot (we make it). For a channel address, click the channel's name, then **Automations** > **Send emails to this channel** > **Get Email Address**.

Channel email addresses need a paid Slack plan. If your team answers email in a shared inbox app rather than Slack, start with our [shared inbox software roundup](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software).

## Forward email to a Slack channel

Use this when a few people need to see certain emails and will still answer them from the inbox. The Gmail steps are also in [how to forward Gmail messages to Slack](/blog/how-to-forward-gmail-messages-to-slack).

1. In Slack, open the channel and click its name at the top.
2. Go to the **Automations** tab and choose **Send emails to this channel**.
3. Click **Get Email Address** and copy it.

On free Slack, each person gets a forwarding address under **Preferences** > **Messages & media** instead. It lands mail in their Slackbot direct messages, which suits reminders but not a team queue.

### Forward Gmail to Slack

1. In Gmail, open **Settings** > **See all settings** > **Forwarding and POP/IMAP**, click **Add a forwarding address** and paste the channel's address.
2. Gmail sends a confirmation email to that address, so it shows up in the channel. Open the channel and click the link in it.
3. In the search bar, click **Show search options**, enter a sender, subject words or a label, and click **Create filter**.
4. Tick **Forward it to**, pick the channel's address and click **Create filter**.

### Forward Outlook email to Slack

1. In Outlook, open **Settings** > **Mail** > **Rules** and click **Add new rule**.
2. Add a condition, such as a sender or words in the subject.
3. Choose the **Forward to** action, enter the channel's address and click **Save**.

   Note: Microsoft 365 often blocks automatic forwarding to outside domains by default. The rule saves, but nothing arrives until an admin allows external forwarding in the outbound spam policy.

Forwarding is one-way. A reply in the Slack thread reaches your colleagues, not the sender, and who is handling an email is whatever emoji habit the team keeps. Slack's Gmail and Outlook add-ons push one email at a time into a channel, by hand.

Slack steps checked against [Slack's help page on sending emails to Slack](https://slack.com/help/articles/206819278-Send-emails-to-Slack) on 2026-09-24.

## Forwarded email not showing in Slack

If the channel has no email option under **Automations**, an admin may have limited who can create addresses. Ask a workspace owner.

If older emails never arrive, that's expected: a Gmail filter forwards only mail that comes in after you create it.

## Post email to Slack with Zapier, Make or Power Automate

Use this for a formatted post, or when Microsoft 365 blocks forwarding.

1. Pick the email trigger: **New Email Matching Search** for Gmail in Zapier, or **When a new email arrives (V3)** for Outlook in Power Automate.
2. Add a filter step on the sender, subject or body.
3. Add the Slack action (**Send Channel Message** in Zapier, **Post message (V2)** in Power Automate) and map the subject, sender, a snippet and a link to the email.

Zapier and Make bill by usage, so every matching email costs a run. It's still one-way: replying from Slack needs a second automation that creates a draft in the right email thread.

## Get Slack notifications from a shared inbox tool

Use this when the team already answers email in a shared inbox app. Front, Hiver and Help Scout post new conversations and assignments to Slack with a link back, and the reply happens in their app. For a team that lives in Slack, that's a third place to check.

The shortlists for [Gmail](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail) and [Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook) name the tools for each mail provider, and [shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk) covers when a ticketing tool fits better.

## Reply to email from Slack with InboxPilot

Use this when the reply is the work and the team is already in Slack. Each matching Gmail or Outlook email posts to the channel, with InboxPilot's drafted reply in its thread, and you send, claim or close it there. The Gmail setup, screen by screen, is in [how to automatically forward Gmail messages to Slack](/blog/how-to-forward-gmail-messages-to-slack).

1. Open **Integrations**, click the **Slack** card, click **Connect Slack** and approve the app for your workspace.

   Note: New accounts get a 7-day free trial; Starter is [$39 a month](/pricing), as of 2026-10-12.

2. Go to **Automations** > **Create action** and, on the **Slack** card, click **Post email to a channel**.
3. Pick the channel. For a private channel, invite @InboxPilot first.
4. Under **Inboxes**, choose which inboxes this channel takes.
5. Under **Post emails matching**, choose **Everything**, or add labels, keywords, senders or a rule in plain words.
6. Leave **Email actions from threads** on so the thread can edit, send, forward, archive or label the email.

   Note: Slack guest accounts can't send email from the thread, and the bot forwards only to an address someone typed there.

7. Turn on **Track who's on it**, then set **Chase if untouched**, the **Morning brief** and **Tag on the nudge**.

### Send, edit or claim the draft in Slack

The draft is the first message in each post's thread and says what it was based on, such as your documents or website.

<Figure src="/m-static/images/slack-email-draft-thread.webp" width="840" height="1534" maxWidth="420" alt="A Slack thread from InboxPilot. The post reads: Customer asking about refund policy, from Alexandra Swan, with Open email and Draft ready in thread, Unclaimed. The first reply is a draft reply to Alexandra Swan, based on documents, website and Notion, followed by Send, Claim and Mark done buttons and the line Reply here to change it, Edit in Gmail." caption="A refund question posted to Slack, with its draft." />

Under the draft sit **Send**, **Claim** and **Mark done**. Send replies from the inbox in the customer's email thread, after a Slack dialog names the recipient. **Edit in Gmail** opens the email's thread; for Outlook the link reads **Edit in Outlook** and opens your Drafts folder.

To change the draft, reply in the thread as you would to a colleague, such as "Shorter" or "Tell them Tuesday works". It's rewritten in place, in the inbox and in Slack.

React 👀 to claim an email and ✅ to close it, or write "on it" or "done". Untouched emails get a chase in their thread after the delay you set, at most 3 times. If someone answers from Gmail or Outlook, the post says **Replied** and closes.

People claim and close emails in Slack; the app's Slack panel lists what is still waiting and who has it. The bot tracks email threads only, so work that never arrived as email belongs in a task tool.

## Who can see email posted in a channel

Every channel member sees every email posted there, so membership is the access list. Use private channels for finance or HR mail, and check which channels receive email when someone leaves. How InboxPilot stores email is on the [InboxPilot security](/security) page.

---

## How to Update Google Sheets When an Email Arrives: 4 Ways

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/update-google-sheets-when-an-email-arrives
Published: 2026-09-16

Get email data into a spreadsheet the moment it lands: Apps Script, no-code tools, and AI. Including the append-versus-update trap that breaks most setups.

Somewhere in your business there is a spreadsheet that is supposed to be the record: the order log, the claims tracker, the job list, the pipeline. And somewhere in your inbox is the email that should have updated it an hour ago.

The gap between those two things is filled by a person copying details across by hand, usually at the end of the day, usually from memory of which emails mattered. That works until volume rises, and then the sheet stops being the record and starts being a rough guess that everyone quietly stops trusting.

This article covers four ways to close that gap, from copy-paste to an assistant that reads the email for you, and the one design decision that determines whether any of them actually work.

*Disclosure: we make InboxPilot, an AI email assistant that drafts replies inside Gmail and Outlook and can log what it handles to Google Sheets. The Apps Script and no-code approaches below work with no InboxPilot involved, and the script is yours to copy.*

## Append or update? Decide this first

Almost everyone describing this task says "update the spreadsheet." Almost everyone actually means "add a row."

The distinction matters because updating an existing row requires something the email must carry: a value that identifies which row it belongs to. An order number, an invoice number, a ticket reference. The automation reads a key column, finds the matching row, and writes into it.

If that key does not exist, or it is not reliably present in every email, there is nothing to match on. The automation cannot know whether this email is about a record you already have, so it appends. That is not a failure — appending is the safer behaviour by a wide margin, because an append can never destroy a row you depend on, and a bad match can.

So decide up front:

- **Append only.** Every email becomes a new row. The sheet becomes a log. Nothing already in it is ever touched. This is what you want for audit trails, intake logs, and anything you will summarise with a pivot table later.
- **Update by key.** Emails carry an identifier, and the automation edits the matching row. This is what you want for a status tracker where each order has exactly one row. It needs a key column and a plan for what happens when no row matches.

A good rule: start with append. Add updating only once you have watched real emails for a week and confirmed the key is genuinely always there.

## Option 1: copy it across by hand

Worth stating plainly, because for a lot of teams it is still the right answer. Under roughly ten emails a day, a person skimming the inbox and filling in rows is accurate, free, and needs no maintenance.

It stops being the right answer at the point where the copying gets deferred. The moment rows are entered "later," the sheet is no longer a record of what happened; it is a record of what someone remembered. That is the signal to automate, not the raw volume.

For a large backlog already in your inbox, Gmail has no CSV export. You can copy it across by hand, or [download your Gmail emails](/blog/how-to-export-emails-from-gmail) as an MBOX archive and convert it with a third-party tool.

## Option 2: Google Apps Script (free, Gmail only)

Apps Script runs inside your Google account, costs nothing, and involves no third-party service holding your mail. It is the best-value option if you are comfortable with a little JavaScript.

One thing to understand before you start: **Apps Script has no "when an email arrives" trigger.** Gmail exposes no such event to it. What you get is a time-driven trigger that runs your function on a schedule, as often as every minute. In practice you are polling, and "instantly" means "within a few minutes."

The setup:

1. In Gmail, create a filter that applies a label — say `to-sheet` — to the messages you want logged. This keeps the script's work small and makes it obvious what is in scope.
2. Open your spreadsheet, choose **Extensions → Apps Script**, and paste the function below.
3. Replace the spreadsheet ID and tab name. The ID is the long string in the sheet's URL between `/d/` and `/edit`.
4. In the Apps Script editor, open **Triggers**, add a trigger for `logNewEmailsToSheet`, and set it to time-driven, every 5 minutes.
5. Run it once by hand first, so Google prompts you for authorisation.

```javascript
function logNewEmailsToSheet() {
  const LABEL_NAME = 'to-sheet';
  const SHEET_ID = 'YOUR_SPREADSHEET_ID';
  const TAB_NAME = 'Log';

  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.openById(SHEET_ID).getSheetByName(TAB_NAME);
  if (!sheet) throw new Error('No tab named ' + TAB_NAME);

  const label = GmailApp.getUserLabelByName(LABEL_NAME);
  if (!label) throw new Error('No Gmail label named ' + LABEL_NAME);

  // Column A holds the Gmail message id. Reading it back is what stops a
  // re-run, or an overlapping run, from logging the same email twice.
  const lastRow = sheet.getLastRow();
  const seen = new Set(
    lastRow > 1
      ? sheet.getRange(2, 1, lastRow - 1, 1).getValues().flat().filter(String)
      : []
  );

  const rows = [];
  label.getThreads(0, 50).forEach(function (thread) {
    thread.getMessages().forEach(function (message) {
      const id = message.getId();
      if (seen.has(id)) return;
      seen.add(id);
      rows.push([
        id,
        message.getDate(),
        message.getFrom(),
        message.getSubject(),
        message.getPlainBody().slice(0, 500),
      ]);
    });
  });

  if (rows.length) {
    sheet
      .getRange(sheet.getLastRow() + 1, 1, rows.length, rows[0].length)
      .setValues(rows);
  }
}
```

That appends. If you want to update by key instead, the shape is a lookup against a key column:

```javascript
function upsertByKey(sheet, key, values) {
  const lastRow = sheet.getLastRow();
  const keys =
    lastRow > 1
      ? sheet.getRange(2, 1, lastRow - 1, 1).getValues().flat()
      : [];

  const index = keys.indexOf(key);
  if (index === -1) {
    sheet.appendRow([key].concat(values));
  } else {
    // +2 because the data starts on row 2 and indexOf is zero-based.
    sheet.getRange(index + 2, 2, 1, values.length).setValues([values]);
  }
}
```

Extracting that key from the email is the hard part, and it is where this approach starts to strain. A regular expression over the subject line works right up until a customer writes "order 48812" in the body instead, or writes "#48812", or forwards a thread where three order numbers appear.

Limits worth knowing: consumer Gmail accounts get roughly 20,000 Apps Script URL-fetch-free operations and 90 minutes of runtime per day, which is far more than this needs; the real constraint is that a failing trigger emails you and then keeps failing quietly.

## Option 3: a no-code automation tool

Zapier, Make, and Power Automate all ship a Gmail or Outlook trigger and a Google Sheets action, and you can wire them together in about ten minutes with no code. Power Automate is the one to reach for on Microsoft 365, since it has a genuine on-new-email trigger and can write to Excel as well as Sheets.

What you are buying is the connection and the retry logic. What you are still responsible for is the parsing: these tools hand you the subject and body as text, and mapping "the order number" to a column means either a formatter step or a regular expression, with the same brittleness as the script.

The other consideration is pricing shape. These platforms bill per task, so cost scales with email volume rather than with value. A busy shared inbox can make a simple two-step automation surprisingly expensive.

## Option 4: let an assistant read the email

The three options above share a limitation: they match patterns. They do well when email is machine-generated and uniform — shipping notifications, form submissions, alerts — and they do badly when a human wrote it.

An AI assistant that already reads the inbox is working from the meaning of the message instead. The same reading works for quotes: see [RFQ emails logged and answered](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation). It can pull the order number whether it appeared as "order 48812," "#48812," or "the order I placed on the 3rd," because it is reading the sentence rather than testing it against a regex.

This is how [InboxPilot's Google Sheets connection](/use-cases/gmail-to-google-sheets) works. You link a spreadsheet, pick the tab, and map the columns once. From then on:

- **It appends a row for every email it handles.** Rows are only ever added. Nothing already in your spreadsheet is edited or deleted, so a mistake in the automation cannot overwrite a record you rely on.
- **It reads the same tab back as reference data.** This is the half that pattern-matching tools cannot do at all: when a customer asks where their order is, the draft reply quotes the ship date and tracking number out of your sheet, instead of a person going to look them up.
- **It works the same on Outlook.** The connection sits on the email pipeline rather than on one mail provider.

The honest limitation: because it appends rather than updates, it is a logging and lookup tool, not a two-way sync. If you need one row per order, edited in place, a keyed Apps Script or Power Automate flow is the better fit today. And Excel is not supported yet — Google Sheets is the only spreadsheet it connects to.

## Which option fits your team

- **Under ten emails a day, or highly irregular.** Keep copying by hand. Automating a small, varied workload usually costs more attention than it saves.
- **Uniform, machine-generated email.** Apps Script. The format is stable, so pattern matching holds, and it is free.
- **You want it working this afternoon and volume is modest.** A no-code tool. Watch the per-task pricing as volume grows.
- **Humans wrote the emails, and someone also has to reply to them.** An assistant that reads the inbox. The logging is worth less than the fact that the reply gets drafted from the same sheet.
- **You need one row per record, edited in place.** Apps Script with a key column, or Power Automate. Be sure the key is genuinely in every message first.

## Four things that break these setups

**Duplicates.** Any polling automation will eventually process the same email twice, whether from an overlapping run, a retry, or a re-labelled thread. Write something immutable into a column — the Gmail message id is ideal — and check it before writing. The script above does this.

**Free-text parsing.** Regular expressions over human writing fail on the cases you did not think of, and they fail silently, producing a row with a blank column rather than an error. Whatever you build, review the first week's rows by hand before you trust it.

**Locale and dates.** A spreadsheet set to a different locale than the script will reinterpret `03/09` without telling you. Write dates as real date objects rather than strings, and set the sheet's locale deliberately under **File → Settings**.

**Permissions drifting.** Scripts run as the person who authorised them. When that person leaves, or their password changes, the trigger stops and the only signal is a failure email to an inbox nobody reads. Authorise shared automations from an account that outlives individuals.

## Where to go next

If the emails you want logged are customers asking about orders, the [WISMO and order status workflow](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation) covers the reply side of the same problem. If you are weighing up Gmail automation more broadly, [seven Gmail setups that work](/blog/automate-your-gmail) starts with filters and labels and builds up from there.

And if the sheet you are trying to keep current is also the sheet your team quotes from when they reply, that is the case where [logging to Google Sheets](/use-cases/gmail-to-google-sheets) earns its place: the row goes in, and the next reply comes back out of it.

---

## How to Acknowledge an Email: 15 Reply Templates

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/how-to-acknowledge-an-email
Published: 2026-08-17

SuperOffice found 90% of companies never confirm an email arrived. The four-part format, 15 templates, and why read receipts do not count.

Someone sends you a contract, an invoice, a complaint, or a brief. You cannot deal with it today. So you leave it, plan to come back to it, and from the sender's side that looks exactly the same as being ignored. Silence has no tone. The reader fills it in, and under pressure they rarely fill it in kindly.

An acknowledgment fixes that in about fifteen seconds, and most companies still skip it. In its Customer Service Benchmark Report, last updated in March 2023, SuperOffice emailed 1,000 companies with two questions and scored the responses. They found that 90% of companies "do not acknowledge or inform the customer that an email has been received," that 62% never responded at all, and that the average response time was 12 hours and 10 minutes. Worth knowing that SuperOffice sells CRM software and ran the study itself, so read the numbers as vendor research rather than an independent audit. The direction still matches what anyone who has emailed a company recently would guess.

With a new lead the clock matters even more, as the research on [speed to lead](/blog/speed-to-lead) shows. And when you can answer straight away, skip the receipt and send the answer: these [replies to inquiry emails](/blog/how-to-reply-to-an-inquiry-email) cover prices, programs and bookings.

*Disclosure: we make InboxPilot, which drafts [customer service email replies](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation) inside Gmail and Outlook. The format and the templates below work in any email client with no software at all. There is one section near the end where our product is relevant, and it is labeled.*

## What an acknowledgment email actually is

An acknowledgment email is a short reply that confirms a message arrived, names what arrived, and states what happens next. It is not the answer. It is the receipt.

That distinction is the whole skill. An acknowledgment buys time honestly, and it only works if everyone reads it the same way: the sender learns their message landed with a person, learns roughly when the real reply comes, and stops wondering whether to resend. You get the item off your conscience and into a queue with a date on it.

Three things get confused with acknowledgment and none of them do the job:

- **A full reply** answers the question. If you can write one now, write it. An acknowledgment in front of an answer you already have is just an extra email.
- **An auto-reply** fires without a person reading anything, which is why it can never reference what you sent.
- **A read receipt** is a technical notification that a message was opened. It tells the sender nothing about whether a human understood it.

The British and American spellings both appear in the wild. "Acknowledgment" is standard in US usage, "acknowledgement" in UK usage, and no reader has ever thought less of you for either.

## The four-part acknowledgment format

Every acknowledgment worth sending does four things, usually in three sentences.

**1. Confirm, and name the thing.** Not "your email". The actual item. "The signed MSA", "your invoice 4417", "the shortlist for the Tuesday session". Naming it proves a person opened the attachment, and it gives the sender a searchable record they can point back to later.

**2. Add the one detail that proves you read it.** A single specific reference does more for trust than any amount of warmth. "I can see the delivery date moved to the 14th." "You have flagged the pricing on line 3." This is the part templates usually omit and the part that makes yours not look like a template.

**3. Commit to a next step with a date.** A next step without a date is a wish. A date you will actually hit beats an impressive one you will miss, because the sender now has a timestamp and will hold you to it. If you genuinely do not know, say what you are waiting on and when you will know.

**4. Close without inviting a reply you do not want.** "No need to reply" and "I will come back to you" both end the thread. "Let me know your thoughts" reopens it, which is fine when you want thoughts and a small tax on both of you when you do not.

Subject lines rarely need inventing. Reply in the thread so the sender's own subject carries through, since a fresh subject breaks threading in Gmail and Outlook and orphans the acknowledgment from the thing it acknowledges. When you do need a new one:

| Situation | Subject line |
| --- | --- |
| Confirming a document arrived | Received: [document name] |
| Confirming a payment | Payment received, invoice [number] |
| A request that needs time | [Original subject], update by [day] |
| Application or submission | Your application for [role] |
| Something you are passing on | [Original subject], routed to [team] |

## 15 acknowledgment email templates

Square brackets mark the parts you replace. Every one of these assumes you are replying in the existing thread. To reuse one in Gmail, save it as a [Gmail template](/blog/gmail-templates).

### Everyday acknowledgments

**1. The two-line default.** For anything where the sender simply needs to know it landed.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Got this, thank you. I will come back to you with [the thing] by [day].
>
> [Your name]

**2. A request you cannot answer yet.** The most common case, and the one people avoid because they feel they need an answer to reply at all.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for this. I have the request for [specific thing] and I can see you need it before [their deadline].
>
> I need to check [the dependency] before I can give you a real answer, so I will have that to you by [day]. If your timing changes before then, tell me and I will move it up.
>
> [Your name]

**3. Acknowledging your manager.** Short, no hedging, no promises about how you feel about the work.

> Thanks [Name], I have it. Starting on [the task] this afternoon and I will have a first version with you [day].

**4. Something you have to pass on.** Say who has it now, so the sender is not chasing you for someone else's work.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for sending this through. This one sits with [team or person], so I have forwarded it and copied you. [Name of owner] usually replies within [timeframe].
>
> If you have not heard back by [day], come back to me and I will chase it.
>
> [Your name]

### Documents, payments, and contracts

**5. Receipt of documents.** Count what arrived. This is the acknowledgment most likely to be dug up months later.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Confirming receipt of the [three] documents: [document 1], [document 2], and [document 3]. All opened correctly on my end.
>
> I will review them and confirm whether anything else is needed by [day].
>
> [Your name]

**6. A signed contract.** Name the version, because contract threads accumulate versions.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thank you, the signed [agreement name] dated [date] has been received and filed. I will countersign and return a fully executed copy by [day].
>
> [Your name]

**7. A payment.** Include the amount and the reference. It closes the loop for their finance team as well as yours.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Confirming we have received your payment of [amount] against invoice [number]. Your account is now settled in full and no further action is needed.
>
> Thanks for sorting it out so quickly.
>
> [Your name]

If you bill through Stripe, [resend the paid invoice's receipt from Stripe](/blog/send-stripe-invoice-by-email) so their records match.

**8. An invoice you have to route.** Never let an invoice sit in silence, because silence is what turns a payment query into a chase.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Received, thank you. Invoice [number] has gone to accounts payable today. Our standard terms are [terms], so payment should reach you by [date].
>
> If it has not landed by then, reply here and I will follow it up directly.
>
> [Your name]

### Customers and clients

**9. A support request.** Repeat their problem in your own words. It is the fastest way to prove a person read it. If the request is "where is my order?", skip the acknowledgment and [answer 'where is my order' automatically](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation).

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for getting in touch. To make sure I have this right: [restate the problem in one sentence], and it started [when].
>
> I am looking into it now and will have an update for you by [day]. If anything changes at your end in the meantime, reply here and it will come straight to me.
>
> [Your name]

**10. A complaint.** Acknowledge the experience without conceding fault you have not established, and give a named owner.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thank you for telling us. I am sorry this has been your experience with [the specific thing], and I would rather hear it than not.
>
> I am looking into what happened with [team or person] and I will come back to you personally by [day], whether or not I have the full picture by then.
>
> [Your name]

**11. A quote or RFQ.** State what you have and what is missing, in one pass. Every round trip costs you a day, which is why [RFQ handling](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation) is the one place where acknowledging instead of answering is most expensive.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for the enquiry. I have your requirement for [quantity] of [item], delivery to [location] by [date].
>
> To price it accurately I need [the missing detail]. Send that over and I will have the quote with you within [timeframe].
>
> [Your name]

**12. A request you will probably have to decline.** Do not use the acknowledgment to soften a no you have already decided on. Acknowledge the request, and say when the answer comes.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for asking, and for the detail. I want to give you a straight answer rather than a fast one, so I am checking [the constraint] with [team] and will come back to you by [day] either way.
>
> [Your name]

### Applications, meetings, and feedback

**13. A job application.** People check these threads obsessively. A date and a rejection policy are worth more than warmth.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thank you for applying for the [role] position. Your application and CV have been received and are with the hiring team.
>
> We are reviewing applications until [date] and will contact candidates moving to a first conversation the week of [date]. We reply to every applicant either way, so you will hear from us regardless of the outcome.
>
> [Your name]

**14. A meeting invite or a reschedule.** Confirm the time in a form that survives time zones.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Confirmed for [day, date] at [time, time zone]. I have accepted the invite and added [the agenda item] to it.
>
> If you would like to cover anything else, send it over beforehand and I will make room.
>
> [Your name]

**15. Feedback you disagree with.** Acknowledge that it was received and taken seriously. Argue later, in a different email.

> Hi [Name],
>
> Thanks for taking the time to write this up. I have read it properly and I want to sit with the point about [specific point] before I respond, rather than reacting to it today.
>
> I will come back to you by [day] with a considered reply.
>
> [Your name]

## Phrases that work, and the ones to retire

Acknowledgment openers are a small vocabulary that carries a lot of unintended tone. A few are safe in almost any context. A few are quietly costing people goodwill.

| Phrase | What it actually signals | Verdict |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Received, thank you | Neutral, complete, unbothered | Safe anywhere |
| Confirming receipt of [item] | Formal, on the record | Best for documents, payments, contracts |
| Thanks for sending this, I have it | Warm without being effusive | Safe anywhere |
| Got it, thanks | Casual, fast | Colleagues you speak to daily |
| This is in hand | You own it, no date given | Only with a date attached |
| Noted | Neutral to cold, depending entirely on the reader | Internal only, never with customers |
| Duly noted | Reads as sarcastic to a large share of readers | Retire it |
| Well received | In standard English this means the thing was liked, not that it arrived | Retire it |
| Please acknowledge receipt | Reasonable for legal or logistics, distrustful for everything else | Use sparingly |
| Kindly confirm | Dated and slightly imperious in most English-speaking markets | Prefer "Please confirm" |

"Noted" deserves its own note, because it generates more workplace friction than any other two-word reply. It is not rude. It just carries no tone at all, so the reader supplies one, and a reader who is anxious about what they sent supplies the coldest reading available. Between two colleagues who message all day, it is fine. Sent to a customer who has just described a problem, it lands as a shrug. The fix costs four words: say what you noted.

## Why a read receipt is not an acknowledgment

Read receipts get proposed as the low-effort alternative to acknowledging anything. They cannot do the job, and the vendor documentation is unusually clear about why.

Google restricts them outright. Gmail Help states that "read receipts are only available to work or school accounts. They don't work with personal Gmail (@gmail.com) accounts." Even inside a Google Workspace organization, an administrator can restrict them, and Google notes that "to receive a read receipt in your inbox, the recipient of your email may need to approve it first." Where approval is required, the recipient chooses "Send receipts" or "Not now".

Microsoft is equally direct about Outlook: "In Outlook, the message recipient can decline to send read receipts." Microsoft also separates the two kinds of confirmation, and the difference matters: "A delivery receipt confirms delivery of your email message to the recipient's mailbox, but not that the recipient has seen it or read it. A read receipt confirms that your message was opened."

Opened is the operative word. A message can be opened in a preview pane by someone clearing notifications on a phone. It can be opened by the wrong person on a shared address. Nothing in a read receipt tells the sender that a human understood the request or intends to do anything about it, which is the entire thing an acknowledgment communicates.

There is a second cost that nobody puts in the documentation. Requesting a receipt on every message tells the recipient you are keeping score, and people notice.

## Why an auto-reply is not one either

The other shortcut is a blanket auto-reply, and Gmail's own documented behavior explains why it disappoints people at exactly the wrong moment.

Google's vacation responder runs in whole days: "your automatic reply starts at 12:00 AM on the start date and ends at 11:59 PM on the end date, unless you end it earlier." There is no native way to say "outside working hours". More importantly, it does not fire every time. Google documents that "in most cases, your reply is only sent to people the first time they message you," and that it replies again only if the same person contacts you after four days while the responder is still on. Messages in spam and messages addressed to a mailing list you subscribe to get nothing at all.

Follow the consequence through. A customer emails on Monday and gets a friendly acknowledgment promising a reply soon. They chase on Wednesday because nothing came, and that chase gets silence. The auto-reply made a promise and the mechanism then declined to keep making it, to the exact person most in need of reassurance.

Auto-replies are the right tool for a genuinely unstaffed inbox: holiday closures, planned shutdowns, an address that has moved. They are the wrong tool for a staffed inbox that is simply behind. We covered the mechanics of that in more depth in [shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply).

## Five mistakes that make an acknowledgment worse than silence

**Promising a date you will miss.** An acknowledgment converts a vague delay into a documented one. If you say Thursday and deliver the following Wednesday, you have not bought goodwill, you have handed the sender evidence. Pick the date you can defend on your worst week.

**Acknowledging without naming what you received.** "Thanks, got it" against a message with four attachments leaves the sender unsure which parts got through. It also gives you nothing to point to later.

**Acknowledging and then going quiet.** The acknowledgment is a promise to close a loop. Leaving it open is worse than never having opened it, because you have now demonstrated that a person read the message and chose not to act.

**Reply-all acknowledgments.** Fifteen people did not need to know you personally received the deck. Acknowledge to the sender.

**Acknowledging when you could have answered.** This is the most common one and the most expensive. If the question is "what is your lead time on the 40mm valves", and the lead time is written in a document you own, the acknowledgment is pure overhead. You have sent two emails to accomplish what one would have done, and the customer still does not know the lead time.

That last one is worth dwelling on, because a lot of inboxes are full of acknowledgments standing in for answers that already exist somewhere in the business.

## A reusable prompt for drafting acknowledgments

If you already use an AI assistant, this prompt produces acknowledgments that read like a person wrote them, mostly because it forbids the things that make them read otherwise. Paste it, then paste the email underneath.

```
You are drafting a short acknowledgment reply to the email below.

Rules:
- Two to four sentences. No preamble, no restating the whole message.
- Sentence 1: confirm what arrived, by name. Not "your email", the
  actual document, invoice, request, or application.
- Sentence 2: reference one specific detail from the message that
  proves a person read it.
- Sentence 3: the next step and the date it happens by. If I have not
  given you a date, write [DATE] rather than inventing one.
- Match the sender's formality. Do not add enthusiasm they did not use.
- Never promise an outcome, only a next action.
- If the email can be fully answered with the information provided,
  say so instead of drafting an acknowledgment.

My relationship to the sender: [customer / manager / vendor / applicant]
My realistic turnaround: [e.g. two business days]

Email:
[paste the email here]
```

Two things to check before sending whatever comes back. Any date it produces is invented unless you supplied it, and any claim about your process, your terms, or your pricing is a guess unless it came from you.

## When acknowledgment should stop being a human job

*This section is about our product, so treat it accordingly.*

Acknowledging email is cheap once and expensive four hundred times. The teams that feel this hardest are the ones running a shared address where the same handful of requests arrive on rotation: order status, quote requests, document chases, availability questions. Admissions teams feel it too, which is why we built [enquiry replies for education and certification programs](/industries/education-certification). Every one gets acknowledged, and the acknowledgment is not the work. The answer is.

[InboxPilot](/) sits in the Gmail or Outlook inbox the team already uses, reads incoming mail, and drafts a reply grounded in your own documents and price lists rather than a generic template. A person approves each send. For the messages that genuinely need acknowledging, the draft is already written with the specifics filled in. For the ones that only needed an answer, you skip the acknowledgment entirely and send the answer, which is the outcome the sender wanted in the first place.

Three honest caveats. A draft is only as good as the documents behind it, so if your lead times and terms live in someone's head, that is the thing to fix first. Keep a person on the approve button well past the point where it feels necessary, particularly for anything with a number in it. And if your inbox gets a handful of messages a day, the four-part format above and a bit of discipline will do everything software would, for free.

## Related reading

- [Shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply): the documented limits of canned responses in Gmail and Microsoft 365.
- [How to automate your Gmail inbox](/blog/automate-your-gmail): filters, templates, and the vacation responder, step by step.
- [What an AI email agent does](/blog/ai-email-agent): the category explainer, including what it is not.
- [Generate emails from your own documents](/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents): how a draft gets grounded in your price list instead of guesswork.
- [RFQ and quote request automation](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): how a quote request gets read, priced, and answered after the acknowledgment.
- [Best shared inbox software](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): the tools teams shortlist when acknowledgment volume becomes a staffing problem.
- [InboxPilot pricing](/pricing): plans and draft limits.
- [RFQ vs RFP vs RFI](/blog/rfq-vs-rfp-vs-rfi): how to recognize a quote request and what a complete quote includes.
- [RFQ response email templates](/blog/rfq-response-email-templates): what to send once the quote is ready.

*Gmail read receipt and vacation responder behavior is quoted from Google's Gmail Help articles "Request or return a read receipt" and "Send an automatic reply when you're out of office", both checked August 2026. Outlook read receipt behavior is quoted from Microsoft Support, "Add and request read receipts and delivery notifications in Outlook", checked August 2026. Response and acknowledgment rates are from SuperOffice's Customer Service Benchmark Report, a study of 1,000 companies conducted and published by SuperOffice, a CRM vendor, and last updated March 2023. Vendor documentation changes; check the current pages before relying on a specific limit. Names, invoice numbers, and dates in the templates are illustrative. InboxPilot is the publisher of this article.*

---

## AI for Freight Brokers in 2026: What Actually Works

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/ai-for-freight-brokers
Published: 2026-08-14

C.H. Robinson answers emailed quote requests in about 32 seconds with AI. What freight brokers automate in 2026, the real numbers, and where humans stay.

A freight brokerage is an email machine with trucks attached. C.H. Robinson, the largest broker in North America, told [FreightWaves in 2024](https://www.freightwaves.com/news/c-h-robinson-leveraging-ai-tools-to-answer-email-requests-for-quotes) that it receives more than 11,000 emails a day asking for truckload pricing. Not phone calls, not portal logins: emails. Its answer was to point generative AI at that inbox, and by [April 2025](https://www.chrobinson.com/en-us/about-us/newsroom/press-releases/2025/ai-performs-over-three-million-shipping-tasks/) the company reported its AI agents had performed over 3 million shipping tasks.

That's the honest headline for AI in freight brokerage in 2026. The technology isn't replacing brokers. It's answering their email, matching their loads, screening their carriers, and making their check calls, while the judgment calls stay human. This post walks through what brokers actually automate, with the published numbers, and what a 10-person brokerage can realistically copy from a 10,000-person one.

**Disclosure:** we make [InboxPilot](/), an AI email assistant that drafts replies in Gmail and Outlook from your documents and past threads. Freight quoting over email is exactly the kind of work it automates, so we have an interest here. The numbers below come from named industry sources, not from us, and we link every one.

## How do freight brokers use AI today

Brokers apply AI to four jobs: quoting and tendering over email, load matching, carrier vetting and fraud screening, and track-and-trace communication such as check calls and appointment scheduling. That list comes from what large brokers have published and what broker-facing platforms recommend, not from a vendor imagination.

Adoption is real but early. A [2024 Truckstop and Bloomberg Intelligence survey](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/truckstop-and-bloomberg-intelligence-survey-shows-stronger-demand-may-be-around-the-corner-302210292.html) found about 36% of freight brokers deploying AI tools, and [Truckstop's February 2026 guidance](https://truckstop.com/blog/ai-for-freight-broker-workflows/) reported that more than 40% of brokers planned to adopt AI or machine learning productivity tools in 2026, while roughly 48% had no plans yet. The [NTT DATA 2025 Third-Party Logistics Study](https://www.nttdata.com/en-us/insights/reports/third-party-logistics-study) adds the useful cold water: shippers and 3PLs agree AI matters, yet the study describes little actual adoption, with systems integration (cited by 28% of 3PLs), missing skills (25%), and upfront cost (14%) as the main barriers.

The market context explains the urgency. [Cass Transportation Index data (January 2025 report)](https://www.cassinfo.com/freight-audit-payment/cass-transportation-indexes/january-2025) shows freight shipments fell 5.5% in 2023 and another 4.1% in 2024, and FMCSA licensing data compiled by the IFA's [Commercial Factor magazine (2025)](https://magazine.factoring.org/magazine-articles/carrier-amp-broker-failures-in-20242025-and-why-2026-may-bring-one-last-wave) put active US brokers at about 25,000 in early 2025, down almost 10% year over year. Margins compressed while volumes shrank. Automation stopped being a curiosity and became a survival question.

## Why email is where brokerage AI actually lands

Because that's where the work already is. Shippers ask for prices, tender loads, and chase updates by email, and C.H. Robinson said plainly in its [October 2024 announcement](https://www.chrobinson.com/en-us/about-us/newsroom/press-releases/2024/generative-ai-for-freight-shipment-lifecycle/) that many customers prefer email over logging into any platform. The 11,000 daily pricing emails it reported to FreightWaves in 2024 are the clearest published measure of how much brokerage runs through the inbox.

C.H. Robinson publishes unusually specific results. Per its [April 2025 release](https://www.chrobinson.com/en-us/about-us/newsroom/press-releases/2025/ai-performs-over-three-million-shipping-tasks/), its generative AI reads an emailed quote request and replies with a price in about 32 seconds, at a rate of roughly 2,600 quotes a day. Emailed load tenders become shipment orders in about 90 seconds, roughly 5,500 a day, where the same acceptance step used to take up to 4 hours. The company attributes a 30% productivity gain across 2023 and 2024 to this work; that figure is company-reported, so treat it as their measurement rather than an audited one.

Here's the shape of the exchange being automated, thousands of times a day:

> **From:** shipper ops team
> **Subject:** Rate request, Dallas TX to Memphis TN
>
> Can you quote a dry van, 42,000 lbs, pickup Thursday, delivery Friday by 14:00?

> **From:** brokerage
> **Subject:** RE: Rate request, Dallas TX to Memphis TN
>
> Thursday pickup works. All-in rate is $1,840, delivery Friday by 14:00, dry van, 42,000 lbs. Rate confirmation attached, reply to book and we will assign the carrier within the hour.

Nothing about that reply requires a human to type it. It requires rate logic, lane history, and the discipline to escalate anything unusual. That's precisely the split the successful deployments make.

## What does AI do against freight fraud

AI's job against freight fraud is screening: verifying carrier identity, flagging patterns that look like double brokering, and cross-checking documents at a volume no human team matches. It's the use case brokers didn't choose, and it's growing fast. [TIA's April 2025 State of Fraud report](https://news.tianet.org/tia-releases-state-of-fraud-in-the-industry-april-2025-report/) logged more than 1,600 fraud reports between September 2024 and February 2025, a 65% increase, with 22% of surveyed companies losing over $200,000 to fraud in six months and double brokering complaints up 25%. TIA estimates industry losses at $500 million to $1 billion a year.

Two kinds of fraud numbers circulate, and they measure different things. [Verisk CargoNet](https://www.cargonet.com/news-and-events/cargonet-in-the-media/2025-theft-trends/) recorded about $725 million in cargo theft losses for 2025, counting incidents actually reported to it, with the average theft value rising to roughly $275,000. TIA's $500 million to $1 billion range is an estimate of total industry losses, including what never gets reported. Recorded losses and estimated totals differ by definition, which is worth knowing before you repeat either.

Truckstop lists fraud detection among its top four AI workflows for brokers in its 2026 guidance. What doesn't yet exist is a neutral study quantifying how much fraud AI catches, so any vendor quoting a precise catch rate is quoting themselves.

## What the mega-brokers have shipped

The three brokers that publish the most detail all run AI in production, and all describe the same division of labor.

| Broker | What their AI does | Published numbers | Where humans stay |
|---|---|---|---|
| **C.H. Robinson** | Reads and answers emailed quotes and tenders, sets appointments, runs in-transit checks | ~2,600 quotes/day in ~32s; ~5,500 orders/day in ~90s (company-reported, [April 2025](https://www.chrobinson.com/en-us/about-us/newsroom/press-releases/2025/ai-performs-over-three-million-shipping-tasks/)) | Pricing logic, exceptions, relationships |
| **Uber Freight** | 30+ AI agents across the shipment lifecycle plus a logistics-specific LLM and TMS copilot | $1.6B in freight moved through its AI infrastructure in the prior year (company-reported, [May 2025 announcement](https://www.uberfreight.com/en-US/newsroom/uber-freight-launches-industry-first-ai-logistics-network-at-scale-ushering)) | Strategy, procurement decisions |
| **RXO** | Agentic voice AI for check calls, visual AI truck check-in, pricing decision support | Visual AI cut driver gate wait times about 30% in its Laredo pilot ([CCJ, 2024](https://www.ccjdigital.com/ccj-innovators/article/15662590/rxo-visual-ai-slashes-driver-wait-time-30)) | Critical decisions and client relationships, per its [responsible-AI article (2026)](https://rxo.com/resources/shipper/the-future-of-freight-brokerage-responsible-ai-in-the-era-of-genai/) |

Notice what's missing from every row: nobody claims AI negotiates rates unsupervised or runs carrier relationships. RXO even published explainability tooling so its own operators can interrogate the pricing algorithms, which tells you how deliberately the human check is engineered in.

## What can a small brokerage automate first

Start with the inbox, because that's the asymmetry in your favor. Every published performance number above is a mega-broker number, produced by internal AI teams. But the underlying pattern, reading an emailed request and drafting the reply from your own rate history, no longer requires an internal AI team. Inbox-native AI email tools do it inside Gmail or Outlook, the category InboxPilot sits in (see the disclosure above).

A realistic first sequence for a small or mid-size brokerage:

1. **Pick one inbox and one email type.** [Quote requests](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation) are the usual choice: high volume, repetitive shape, measurable win rate.
2. **Ground the AI in your own material.** Rate history, lane notes, past threads, and your rate confirmation template, so drafts carry your numbers and your voice, not generic text.
3. **Keep approval on every price.** AI drafts, a person clicks send. Published broker deployments keep humans on pricing judgment, and [PYMNTS reported in August 2026](https://www.pymnts.com/news/artificial-intelligence/2026/freight-brokers-want-ai-that-shows-up-already-working/) that brokers want AI that works without a configuration project. Draft-and-approve is that.
4. **Expand to status updates and document chasing** once quote drafts are consistently right, and only then consider auto-send for the truly routine messages.

The honest caveats belong here too. Language models can state things that aren't true, and [Fortune's April 2026 reporting](https://fortune.com/2026/04/08/agent-hallucinations-protocol-money-financial-system-economy/) on agent errors in money-touching workflows is a good reminder of why a wrong rate that sends itself is expensive. Grounding drafts in your own rate data and keeping a person on approval isn't a compromise; it's how the deployments that work are actually built.

## Will AI replace freight brokers

No, and the companies furthest ahead say so most clearly. [Transport Topics' 2026 survey](https://www.ttnews.com/articles/logistics-firms-embrace-ai) of the Top 100 logistics firms found them adopting AI while emphasizing human expertise, and RXO's responsible-AI framework names the decisions it won't hand to a model. The NTT DATA 3PL Study's finding of little actual adoption undercuts the replacement story from the other direction: most of the industry hasn't automated the routine work yet, let alone the judgment.

What AI does change is the price of admin. When one broker answers a quote in 32 seconds and another answers tomorrow, the slower one loses loads for reasons that have nothing to do with their carrier network or their rates. The brokers who win the next few years will be the ones who moved their repetitive email to software early and kept their people on the two things software can't do: pricing judgment and relationships.

## Related reading

- [RFQ software for inbound quote requests](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): the drafting pattern where the reply has to carry a price.
- [What is an AI email agent](/blog/ai-email-agent): the general playbook for automating a repetitive inbox.
- [InboxPilot pricing](/pricing): flat plans by draft volume, with a 7-day free trial to test on your own quote requests.
- [RFQ vs RFP vs RFI](/blog/rfq-vs-rfp-vs-rfi): which request just landed in your inbox, and how to answer each.

---

*InboxPilot is the publisher of this article. Statistics are drawn from the sources linked in the text: C.H. Robinson press releases (October 2024, April 2025), FreightWaves (May 2024), the TIA State of Fraud report (April 2025), Verisk CargoNet 2025 theft data, the NTT DATA 2025 Third-Party Logistics Study, the 2024 Truckstop and Bloomberg Intelligence survey and Truckstop's February 2026 guidance, Cass Transportation Index (January 2025), Commercial Factor (IFA, 2025), Uber Freight (May 2025), Commercial Carrier Journal (2024), RXO (2026), Transport Topics (2026), PYMNTS (August 2026), and Fortune (April 2026). Company-reported figures are labeled as such. None of the companies named are InboxPilot customers, and no endorsement is implied. Retrieved August 14, 2026.*

---

## Shared Mailbox Auto Reply: How to Set It Up and Fix It

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply
Published: 2026-07-30

Set an auto reply on a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox or a Gmail group address, fix replies that never send, and see what an auto-reply cannot do.

Yes, a shared mailbox can send an automatic reply. In Microsoft 365, an admin turns it on in the admin center under **Teams & groups** > **Shared mailboxes** > **Automatic replies**. In Google Workspace, it is either the vacation responder on a shared account or the **Auto replies** setting on a Google Group. The steps for both are below, followed by the reasons a shared mailbox auto-reply stops sending, and then an honest look at what an auto-reply can and cannot do for a busy team inbox.

Every shared inbox reaches the same moment. Volume climbs, replies slip, and somebody suggests turning on an auto-reply so at least people know the message arrived. It is a reasonable instinct, and it buys you a little goodwill. It also quietly convinces the team that the problem is handled, when all that changed is that customers now receive two messages instead of one.

Auto-replies are worth setting up. They are just worth setting up with clear eyes about what they do, because the mechanics have specific limits that vendors document and most teams discover the hard way.

## How to set an auto-reply on a shared mailbox (Microsoft 365 and Gmail)

Both platforms support it, but the switch lives in different places, and on Microsoft 365 it is an admin job. Microsoft's support page for shared mailboxes in Outlook on the web says so directly: "Only your Microsoft 365 admin has permissions to set up the ability to send automatic replies from a shared mailbox."

### Microsoft 365: the admin center

These are Microsoft's steps from "Configure shared mailbox settings":

1. In the Microsoft 365 admin center, go to **Teams & groups** > **Shared mailboxes**.
2. Select the shared mailbox, then select **Edit** under **Automatic replies**.
3. Select the checkbox to **Send automatic replies to senders inside this organization**.
4. Enter the replies you want to send to people inside and outside your organization. Microsoft states plainly: "You can't add images, only text." If your brand guidelines assume a logo and a signature block, the shared mailbox auto-reply is not where that lives.
5. Select **Save**.

### Microsoft 365: Exchange admin center or PowerShell

If you manage mail from the Exchange admin center, Microsoft documents a second route: **Recipients** > **Mailboxes**, select the shared mailbox, open **Others**, then **Manage automatic replies** under **Automatic replies**.

For a reply that switches itself on and off, or to set the same reply on several mailboxes, use Exchange Online PowerShell and the `Set-MailboxAutoReplyConfiguration` cmdlet. This turns the reply on for internal senders and all external senders (the address is a placeholder):

```powershell
Set-MailboxAutoReplyConfiguration -Identity support@yourcompany.com -AutoReplyState Enabled -InternalMessage "Thanks, we have your message." -ExternalMessage "Thanks for your email. Our office is closed until Monday and we will reply then." -ExternalAudience All
```

Use `-AutoReplyState Scheduled` with `-StartTime` and `-EndTime` for a fixed window such as a holiday closure. `-ExternalAudience` takes `All`, `Known` (only senders in the mailbox's contacts) or `None`.

### Two settings to check while you are there

The first is sent items. Microsoft documents that "by default, messages sent from the shared mailbox aren't saved to the Sent Items folder of the shared mailbox. Instead, they are saved to the Sent Items folder of the person who sent the message." That is the single most common cause of a team believing a customer was never answered when they were. You can change it in the admin center under the **Sent items** setting.

The second is licensing. Shared mailboxes "usually don't require a license," per Microsoft, but an Exchange Online Plan 2 license becomes necessary in three cases: the mailbox uses more than 50 GB of storage, it uses in-place archiving, or it is placed on litigation hold. Worth knowing before a mailbox that has run for six years quietly crosses a threshold.

### Gmail and Google Workspace

Gmail has no shared mailbox object, so a shared address in Google Workspace is usually one of two things, and each has its own auto-reply.

**A shared account** (support@ set up as its own Gmail account). The auto-reply is that account's vacation responder, set by whoever signs in to it:

1. Open Gmail, select **Settings**, then **See all settings**.
2. On the **General** tab, find **Vacation responder** and select **Vacation responder on**.
3. Fill in the date range, subject and message. Optionally, tick the box to send the reply to your contacts only.
4. Select **Save Changes**.

**A Google Group** (support@ set up as a group, often used as a collaborative inbox). Group owners and managers can turn replies on under **Group settings** > **Email options** > **Auto replies**, and choose whether to answer members or non-members, inside or outside the organization. Google notes the option only appears when you are signed in to a work or school account.

### Shared mailbox not sending automatic replies? Check these

Microsoft's guide to troubleshooting Out of Office replies covers most "it is switched on but nothing goes out" reports. Work down the list:

- **The sender already got one.** "If automatic replies are enabled, only one reply is sent to each sender even if a recipient receives multiple messages from a sender." The list of people already answered clears when automatic replies are turned off and on again, or when the reply is edited. If you need a reply to every message, Microsoft points to a server-side rule that has the server reply using a specific message, instead of automatic replies.
- **The sender is outside and external replies are off.** Run `Get-MailboxAutoReplyConfiguration support@yourcompany.com | fl ExternalAudience`. `None` means outside senders get nothing; `Known` means only saved contacts do.
- **Forwarding is on.** Per Microsoft, if SMTP forwarding is enabled on the mailbox, "OOF replies won't be generated." Shared mailboxes often have forwarding set on the same admin screen. Check with `Get-Mailbox -Identity support@yourcompany.com | fl DeliverToMailboxAndForward, ForwardingSmtpAddress, ForwardingAddress`.
- **A remote domain blocks automatic replies.** In the Exchange admin center under **Mail flow** > **Remote domains**, automatic replies can be switched off for a domain, and Microsoft notes this "takes precedence over the automatic replies that are set up at the mailbox level." In PowerShell: `Get-RemoteDomain | ft -AutoSize Name, DomainName, AutoReplyEnabled, AllowedOOFType`.
- **The message went to Junk.** If the incoming message is marked as spam and sent to Junk, "an automatic reply isn't generated at all."
- **A mail flow rule rejects the reply.** Automatic replies go out with a blank return path, which can trip rules written to reject mail that bypasses a third-party spam filter. A message trace shows whether a rule blocked the reply.

On Gmail, the equivalents are the four-day rule and the exclusions covered [below](#why-gmail-behaves-differently): no reply to spam, and no reply to mail addressed to a mailing list you subscribe to.

## What a shared mailbox auto-reply actually does

A shared mailbox auto-reply performs exactly one job: it tells the sender their message arrived and roughly when a human will get to it. That is real value. A customer who knows they will hear back by Tuesday does not send three follow-ups on Monday, and the follow-ups are usually what tips a busy inbox from behind into unmanageable.

What it does not do is reduce the work. The question still needs answering, by a person, from the same queue. If your inbox receives forty quote requests a week, an auto-reply turns forty unanswered emails into forty acknowledged unanswered emails.

That distinction matters most for the requests that repeat. A shared inbox at [a supplier](/industries/manufacturing-construction), [a property manager](/industries/real-estate), or a clinic tends to receive the same handful of questions in rotation: what does this cost, where is my order, what do you need from me, when can you come out. Those have knowable answers. Acknowledging them is not the same as answering them.

## Why Gmail behaves differently

Google's equivalent is the vacation responder, and it is built around a different assumption: that a person is away, not that a queue is busy. Three documented behaviors follow from that, and all three matter for a shared address.

It runs in whole days. Google states that "your automatic reply starts at 12:00 AM on the start date and ends at 11:59 PM on the end date, unless you end it earlier." There is no native way to say "outside 9 to 5." An after-hours auto-reply on Gmail is a scheduling workaround, not a setting.

It does not reply every time. Google documents that "in most cases, your reply is only sent to people the first time they message you," and that it replies again if the same person contacts you after four days while the responder is still on. So a customer who emails on Monday and chases on Wednesday gets silence on the chase. From their side, the acknowledgment made a promise the second message did not honor.

It skips some mail entirely. Per Google, "emails sent to your spam folder or addressed to a mailing list you subscribe to don't get your reply."

Teams running a shared address through Google Groups sometimes expect Collaborative Inbox to cover the gap. It does not. The group-level Auto replies setting sends the same acknowledgment, with the same limits. Collaborative Inbox itself is documented as a triage layer: assign a conversation to a member, mark it complete, needing no further action, or a duplicate, and organize with labels. Those are genuinely useful for ownership, which is the other half of the problem that [shared inbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software) exist to solve. But there is no documented canned-response feature in Collaborative Inbox. Ownership and volume are separate problems, and Groups solves the first one.

## The four failure modes

Put the documented behavior together and the same four failures show up across almost every team.

**Silence after the acknowledgment.** The auto-reply promises a reply within one business day. The queue is three days deep, and much of it is [WISMO emails](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation) that only needed a tracking number. You have now converted a slow response into a broken promise, which is worse, because the customer has a timestamp.

**Whole-day scheduling.** The pattern most teams actually want is evenings and weekends. Gmail cannot express that natively, so people either leave the responder on permanently, which annoys regular correspondents, or toggle it manually and forget.

**The four-day gap.** Chasers get nothing. The customers most likely to chase are the ones already waiting longest, so the mechanic works against precisely the people you most need to reassure.

**Invisible sent replies.** With default Microsoft settings, replies live in the individual sender's Sent Items. Two colleagues answer the same email because neither can see the other's reply in the shared mailbox.

## When a canned reply is the right call

There is a real category where a canned reply is correct and sufficient, and it is worth being honest about it rather than selling past it.

If the inbox is genuinely unstaffed, a canned reply is the honest answer. Office closed for the holidays, a planned shutdown, a team offsite, a role that has moved to a different address. In all of those cases the message is not a placeholder for an answer, it *is* the answer: nobody is here, here is when we are back, here is who to contact if it cannot wait.

Same for a genuinely low-volume inbox. If your shared address receives five emails a week, an auto-reply plus a person checking it twice a day is a complete solution. Do not buy software for that.

The category where it stops working is the one in the middle: a staffed inbox, real volume, and questions that repeat. There the auto-reply is a bandage on a throughput problem.

## What actually replaces the canned reply

The alternative is not a better acknowledgment. It is answering the question in the first message.

Here is a request a supplier shared inbox receives constantly:

> **Subject:** Availability and pricing
>
> Hi, do you have the 40mm valve assemblies in stock, and what is the price for 250 units? We need delivery to Leeds before the 14th if possible.

A canned auto-reply says:

> Thanks for contacting us. A member of our team will respond within one business day.

Technically true, adds nothing. The customer already knew they had emailed you. Now compare a reply drafted against your actual price list and stock data:

> Hi Priya,
>
> Yes, the 40mm valve assemblies are in stock. For 250 units the price is £14.20 each, which is our 250-plus band, so £3,550 before VAT.
>
> Delivery to Leeds is 3 working days from order, so ordering by the 9th comfortably makes the 14th.
>
> Want me to raise a proforma invoice?

That reply took a person thirty seconds to check and send, because the drafting, the price band, and the lead-time arithmetic were already done. That is the actual saving. Not the acknowledgment, the answer.

This is the narrow case where an [AI email assistant for shared mailboxes](/ai-email-assistant) earns its place, and the core of [customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation). It reads incoming mail in the Gmail or Outlook inbox the team already uses, drafts a reply grounded in your own documents and price lists, and waits for a person to approve the send. There is no migration and no new interface, which matters because the shared inbox is usually working fine as a place to collaborate. The bottleneck is typing the same answer repeatedly, and that is the part worth automating.

One limit to know before you look at it for a shared mailbox: in a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox, InboxPilot drafts every reply for a person to send and never sends on its own.

Two more honest caveats. A draft is only as good as the documents behind it, so if your pricing lives in someone's head rather than a file, fix that first or the drafts will be confidently wrong. And approval genuinely matters early on: our default is that a person approves every send, and for anything involving a number you should keep it that way well past the point where it feels necessary.

If the answers change every time and no two emails in your inbox rhyme, none of this applies. Keep the auto-reply, staff the queue, and spend the budget somewhere it does more good.

## Related reading

- [RFQ and quote request automation](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): how quote requests get read, priced, and answered from your own catalog.
- [Shared inbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): the tools teams actually shortlist, and where each stops being enough.
- [Best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook): the Microsoft 365 shortlist in more depth.
- [How to automate your Gmail inbox](/blog/automate-your-gmail): the vacation responder and the filter-plus-template method, step by step.
- [What an AI email agent does](/blog/ai-email-agent): the category explainer, including what it is not.
- [How to add a shared mailbox in Outlook](/blog/add-shared-mailbox-outlook): getting the shared address into every team member's Outlook first.

*Microsoft 365 shared mailbox behavior is quoted from Microsoft Learn: "Configure shared mailbox settings," "Create a shared mailbox," "How to set automatic replies on a user's mailbox in Microsoft 365," "Understand and troubleshoot Out of Office (OOF) replies" and the Set-MailboxAutoReplyConfiguration reference, plus Microsoft Support's "Open and use a shared mailbox in Outlook on the web." All were checked in September 2026. Gmail vacation responder behavior is quoted from Google's Gmail Help article "Send automatic replies in Gmail." Google Groups auto replies are from Google Groups Help, and Collaborative Inbox behavior is from the Google Workspace Learning Center. Vendor documentation changes; check the current pages before relying on any specific limit. Pricing examples in the worked reply are illustrative, not quotes from a real customer. InboxPilot is the publisher of this article and competes with tools referenced elsewhere on this blog.*

---

## AI Email Agent for RFQs, Support, and Sales Email

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/ai-email-agent
Published: 2026-07-27

How an AI email agent handles RFQs, support and sales email in Gmail and Outlook: drafts from your own documents, routing for the rest, a person approving each send.

An AI email agent is software that reads incoming mail, classifies what each message wants, drafts a reply grounded in your own documents, and routes anything it should not answer to a human. Unlike a filter or an autoresponder, it acts on what the email asks, not on what it looks like.

It earns its keep in the inbox a business runs on: sales@, info@, the address on the website footer. There a quote request, a customer asking where their order is and a buyer who wants to order today arrive in the same place, and one person has to sort them.

## What an AI email agent actually is

In product terms an AI email agent is [AI email automation for Gmail and Outlook](/): the automation reads, sorts and drafts inside the inbox a team already runs instead of replacing it. In 2025, Microsoft's *Breaking down the infinite workday* report measured the average Microsoft 365 worker receiving 117 emails a day and skimming most of them in under 60 seconds ([Microsoft WorkLab](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/worklab/work-trend-index/breaking-down-infinite-workday), 2025).

That report is worth sitting with. The same telemetry found workers interrupted every two minutes by a meeting, message, or notification, and found that 40% of the people already online at 6am are triaging email before the day starts. The inbox isn't one task among many. It's the surface everything else arrives through.

So why hasn't ordinary automation solved this already? Because filters and templates act on what a message looks like, not what it asks for. An auto reply can confirm that an email arrived, and [the usual automated responses](/blog/automated-email-response-examples) do that job well, but it can't tell the customer where their order is.

Three words do the work in that definition, and they're what separate an agent from the automation you already tried:

- **Classifies.** It decides what a message *is* before deciding what to do with it. Keyword filters can't tell a quote request from a complaint that mentions price.
- **Grounded.** It writes from your rate sheet, your policies, your past replies. Not from what a general model believes about your industry.
- **Routes.** It knows which messages it shouldn't touch, and it hands those over cleanly instead of guessing.

Take any of those away and you have a template macro with a language model bolted on.

## Why one inbox ends up doing three jobs

Small and mid-size teams rarely have separate addresses for separate functions, so one queue absorbs work that larger companies split across three departments. In 2025, Zendesk's CX Trends 2026 research, built on responses from over 11,000 people across 22 countries, found 88% of customers now expect faster replies than a year ago and 74% expect availability around the clock ([Zendesk CX Trends 2026](https://cxtrends.zendesk.com/), 2025).

Here's what the three piles look like, and why they need different handling:

| Pile | What it looks like | What it needs | Cost of a slow reply |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Quote requests (RFQs)** | "Can you price this? Specs attached." | Requirements pulled out, missing info requested, estimator briefed | You're not on the shortlist |
| **Support questions** | "Where's my order?" "How do I cancel?" | An accurate answer from current policy, fast | Churn, and a public review |
| **Inbound sales** | "Do you work with companies our size?" | Speed above all, then qualification | The lead buys from whoever replied first |

They fail differently, too. A slow support reply annoys someone who already paid you. A slow sales reply loses someone who hasn't. A wrong quote is a contract problem. That's why one generic "reply to everything" setting doesn't work, and why the classification step matters more than the writing step. For most teams, the pile costing the most is the one nobody has measured.

## How an AI email agent handles a quote request

Quote requests are the highest-value thing in most shared inboxes and the slowest to move, because a human has to read an attachment before anyone can act. In 2026, Loopio's seventh annual benchmark, built with the Association of Proposal Management Professionals from 1,500+ teams and 250,000+ RFPs, found only 45% of bids are submitted through portals, down from 51% the year before ([Loopio](https://loopio.com/blog/rfp-statistics-win-rates/), 2026). The rest arrive some other way, mostly email.

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  <svg viewBox="0 0 560 300" style={{maxWidth: '100%', height: 'auto', fontFamily: "'Inter', system-ui, sans-serif"}} role="img" aria-label="Donut chart showing that in Loopio's 2026 benchmark, 45 percent of bid submissions go through online portals and 55 percent arrive some other way, mostly email.">
    <title>Where bid submissions actually arrive</title>
    <desc>Donut chart from Loopio's 2026 RFP Response Trends and Benchmarks Report. Through an online portal: 45 percent, down from 51 percent the previous year. Outside portals, mostly by email: 55 percent.</desc>
    <text x="30" y="32" fontSize="15" fontWeight="700" fill="currentColor">Where bid submissions actually arrive</text>
    <text x="30" y="52" fontSize="11" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.45">Loopio 2026 benchmark, 1,500+ response teams, 250,000+ RFPs</text>
    <g transform="rotate(-90 175 180)">
      <circle cx="175" cy="180" r="72" fill="none" stroke="#6c4cf1" strokeWidth="34" strokeDasharray="203.6 452.4" opacity="0.85" />
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    <text x="175" y="175" textAnchor="middle" fontSize="26" fontWeight="700" fill="currentColor">55%</text>
    <text x="175" y="196" textAnchor="middle" fontSize="10.5" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.6">outside portals</text>
    <rect x="310" y="140" width="13" height="13" rx="3" fill="#22c55e" opacity="0.85" />
    <text x="332" y="151" fontSize="12.5" fontWeight="600" fill="currentColor">Not through a portal</text>
    <text x="332" y="169" fontSize="11" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.55">55%, and mostly email</text>
    <rect x="310" y="192" width="13" height="13" rx="3" fill="#6c4cf1" opacity="0.85" />
    <text x="332" y="203" fontSize="12.5" fontWeight="600" fill="currentColor">Through a portal</text>
    <text x="332" y="221" fontSize="11" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.55">45%, down from 51% last year</text>
  </svg>
</figure>

So the agent's job on a quote request isn't to write the quote. It's to compress the gap between arrival and the estimator having what they need:

1. **Classify** the message as a quote request and label it, so it stops competing with newsletters for attention.
2. **Extract the requirements**: scope, quantity, location, deadline, and specifically what's missing.
3. **Draft the acknowledgement** that confirms fit, states a realistic turnaround, and asks for the drawing nobody attached.
4. **Escalate the pricing** to a person, always.

That last step isn't a limitation, it's the design. Loopio's 2026 data puts the current average win rate at 39%, with a 45% win rate as the 2019 to 2026 average. Nothing about an AI agent improves the number you quote. What it improves is whether you're still in the running when the buyer makes a shortlist.

> **Incoming, 7:12am:** "We need pricing on 400 units of the anodized bracket, delivered to Reno by mid-September. Drawing attached. Who should I send the PO to?"

> **Draft, 7:12am:** "Hi Dana, thanks for sending this over. 400 units at that spec is well within our range, and mid-September looks workable subject to a schedule check. The drawing came through, but I don't see a finish callout or a tolerance on the mounting holes. Send those and I'll have firm pricing to you within two business days. I'm copying Marcus, who'll own the quote, confirm the September slot against our schedule, and take the PO."

Notice what the draft withholds. No price. No promised unit cost, and no commitment the shop floor hasn't confirmed. Every factual claim in it traces either to a document or to a named human who will verify it, and a person reads the whole thing before it goes. If your quotes are formal 200-question proposal documents rather than emails, that's a different category of tool and worth knowing the difference.

## How an AI email agent handles a support question

Support is where grounding stops being a technical detail and starts being the entire product. In 2025, Zendesk's CX Trends 2026 research found 85% of CX leaders believe customers will leave over an issue that isn't resolved on first contact, and 86% of consumers said responsiveness and accurate resolution strongly influence what they buy ([Zendesk](https://cxtrends.zendesk.com/), 2025).

Accurate is the operative word. An AI agent that invents a 30-day return window when yours is 14 hasn't saved you time, it's created a dispute you'll honor anyway. This is why [knowledge base grounding](/features/ai-email-replies) matters more than model quality for support email: the agent should write only from your help center, your macros, and your past replies, cite what it used, and escalate when the answer isn't there.

Adoption has already happened around you. In 2026, Five9's research with Hanover Research, covering 3,000 consumers and 600 CX decision-makers across the US, UK, and Germany, found 92% of organizations had implemented or piloted AI in customer service ([Five9](https://www.five9.com/news/news-releases/new-five9-research-ai-adoption-cx-hits-92-consumer-trust-still-depends-human), 2026). Implemented or piloted is a loose bar, though, and the gap between the two shows up further down this page.

What actually gets automated is not the hard tickets. It usually works by narrowing scope, which makes the support loop shorter than the quote loop:

1. **Classify and check** the question against your help center and past replies.
2. **Draft with the source attached**, so the approver can see which doc the answer came from without opening anything.
3. **Escalate on absence.** No matching source means no draft, and the thread goes to a person clean.

Teams running a [shared support inbox](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software) see the time back on password resets, order status, hours, policy, and eligibility. The refund dispute still goes to a person, and should.

## How an AI email agent handles a sales email

For inbound sales, speed is close to the entire mechanism, and the canonical evidence is old enough that it deserves a date. In March 2011, Harvard Business Review published an audit of 2,241 US companies which found the average first response to a web lead took 42 hours, and 23% of companies never replied at all ([Harvard Business Review](https://hbr.org/2011/03/the-short-life-of-online-sales-leads), 2011). How to measure and cut your own lead response time by email is in our [speed to lead guide](/blog/speed-to-lead).

A companion study in the same article, covering 1.25 million leads across 42 companies, found firms that responded within an hour were nearly seven times more likely to have a meaningful conversation with a decision maker than those that waited even an hour longer, and more than 60 times more likely than those that waited 24 hours.

One clarification, because these numbers get tangled constantly. You'll also see "100x" and "21x" attached to lead response time. Those come from a different piece of research: the 2007 MIT and InsideSales.com Lead Response Management study, which measured phone calls placed at 5 minutes versus 30 minutes ([Lead Response Management](https://www.leadresponsemanagement.org/lrm_study/), 2007). James Oldroyd led both that study and the HBR analysis, which is why the two get merged. They measure different channels at different intervals. If you're citing the hour-one figures, seven and sixty are the right numbers.

<figure className="chart-container" style={{margin: '2.5rem 0', padding: '1.5rem', borderRadius: '12px'}}>
  <svg viewBox="0 0 560 330" style={{maxWidth: '100%', height: 'auto', fontFamily: "'Inter', system-ui, sans-serif"}} role="img" aria-label="Horizontal bar chart of how fast 2,241 companies replied to an inbound web lead in a 2011 Harvard Business Review audit: 37% within an hour, 16% within 1 to 24 hours, 24% after more than 24 hours, and 23% never replied at all.">
    <title>How fast companies actually reply to an inbound lead</title>
    <desc>Results of a Harvard Business Review audit of 2,241 US companies published in 2011. Within one hour: 37 percent. Within 1 to 24 hours: 16 percent. More than 24 hours: 24 percent. Never replied: 23 percent.</desc>
    <text x="30" y="34" fontSize="15" fontWeight="700" fill="currentColor">How fast companies actually reply to an inbound lead</text>
    <text x="30" y="54" fontSize="11" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.45">Harvard Business Review audit of 2,241 US companies, published 2011</text>
    <text x="196" y="104" textAnchor="end" fontSize="12" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.75">Within 1 hour</text>
    <rect x="206" y="88" width="314" height="24" rx="4" fill="#22c55e" opacity="0.85" />
    <text x="528" y="105" fontSize="12" fontWeight="700" fill="currentColor">37%</text>
    <text x="196" y="149" textAnchor="end" fontSize="12" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.75">1 to 24 hours</text>
    <rect x="206" y="133" width="136" height="24" rx="4" fill="#6c4cf1" opacity="0.75" />
    <text x="350" y="150" fontSize="12" fontWeight="700" fill="currentColor">16%</text>
    <text x="196" y="194" textAnchor="end" fontSize="12" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.75">More than 24 hours</text>
    <rect x="206" y="178" width="204" height="24" rx="4" fill="#f97316" opacity="0.8" />
    <text x="418" y="195" fontSize="12" fontWeight="700" fill="currentColor">24%</text>
    <text x="196" y="239" textAnchor="end" fontSize="12" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.75">Never replied</text>
    <rect x="206" y="223" width="196" height="24" rx="4" fill="#ef4444" opacity="0.85" />
    <text x="410" y="240" fontSize="12" fontWeight="700" fill="currentColor">23%</text>
    <line x1="206" y1="76" x2="206" y2="256" stroke="currentColor" opacity="0.25" />
    <text x="30" y="290" fontSize="11.5" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.6">Nearly a quarter of companies never answered at all. Average reply time</text>
    <text x="30" y="308" fontSize="11.5" fill="currentColor" opacity="0.6">among those that did answer: 42 hours.</text>
  </svg>
</figure>

Fifteen years on, buyer patience has tightened rather than relaxed: in Zendesk's 2026 CX Trends research, 88% of customers said they expect faster replies than they did a year ago ([Zendesk](https://cxtrends.zendesk.com/), 2025). So the agent's job on a sales email is deliberately small:

1. **Acknowledge within minutes**, by name, referencing what they actually asked about.
2. **Ask the two questions** that decide whether this is a fit, and no more than two.
3. **Put a human in the thread** by name, before the lead has time to shop elsewhere.

> **Incoming, 4:48pm Friday:** "We're a 40-person insurance brokerage looking at AI for our shared inbox. Do you work with companies our size, and roughly what would this cost us?"

> **Draft, 4:51pm Friday:** "Hi Priya, yes, 40-person teams are squarely who we build for, and brokerages in particular run the kind of repetitive policy and claims-status email this handles well. Two quick things so I can give you a real number rather than a range: how many shared inboxes would you connect, and roughly how many customer emails land in them in a week? Sam on our team handles brokerage accounts and I've copied him here. Pricing starts at $39 per month, and our Business plan for larger teams is $249."

What the draft doesn't do is qualify hard, pitch, or promise a discount. It buys the thing that matters on a Friday afternoon, which is being the reply that arrived before the weekend. For teams working [inbound leads out of a shared inbox](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation), that's most of the available upside.

## Where the agent should stop

Every AI email agent needs a hard boundary, and the best case for one is commercial rather than philosophical. In 2026, Five9's research found 80% of consumers were willing to use AI-powered customer service when they knew a route to a live representative existed. Trust roughly doubled with that route visible, at 55% versus about a quarter without it, and 41% said they were less likely to use a company that uses AI for service at all, rising to 53% when no human option existed ([Five9](https://www.five9.com/news/news-releases/new-five9-research-ai-adoption-cx-hits-92-consumer-trust-still-depends-human), 2026; trust split reported by [CX Dive](https://www.customerexperiencedive.com/news/clear-path-to-live-agent-boosts-trust-ai-customer-service/825835/), 2026).

Practitioners have reached the same conclusion about their own work. In 2026, Microsoft's Work Trend Index, surveying 20,000 knowledge workers across 10 markets, found 86% of AI users treat AI output as a starting point rather than a final answer, and half named quality control of AI output as a top critical human skill ([Microsoft WorkLab](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/worklab/work-trend-index/agents-human-agency-and-the-opportunity-for-every-organization), 2026).

There's also case law now. In February 2024, British Columbia's Civil Resolution Tribunal decided *Moffatt v. Air Canada* (2024 BCCRT 149), holding the airline liable for negligent misrepresentation after its website chatbot gave a customer wrong information about bereavement fares. The tribunal rejected the argument that the chatbot was a separate entity responsible for its own answers, reasoning that it should be obvious a company is responsible for all the information on its website, whether it comes from a static page or a chatbot ([McCarthy Tétrault](https://www.mccarthy.ca/en/insights/blogs/techlex/moffatt-v-air-canada-misrepresentation-ai-chatbot), 2024).

That was a real-time chatbot with no human review, not an email agent, so don't read it as a precedent about email. Read it as a clean statement of who owns the output: you do. Which points at a simple operating rule.

**Draft, don't send.** The agent writes, a person approves. On InboxPilot every draft waits for approval by default, and sending stays a human act. Two more guardrails are worth setting on day one:

- **Negative keywords.** Anything mentioning a refund dispute, legal threat, cancellation, complaint, or data request skips drafting entirely and goes to a person with no draft attached, so nobody can approve it on autopilot.
- **Escalate on absence.** When the answer isn't in your documents, the correct output is a handoff, not a confident guess. That behavior is a configuration choice, and it's the one worth checking before you buy anything.

In March 2025, Gartner predicted that by 2029, agentic AI will autonomously resolve 80% of common customer service issues without human intervention, cutting operational costs by 30% ([Gartner](https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2025-03-05-gartner-predicts-agentic-ai-will-autonomously-resolve-80-percent-of-common-customer-service-issues-without-human-intervention-by-20290), 2025). That's a forecast about 2029, about *common* issues, made by an analyst firm. It's a reasonable direction of travel. It isn't a description of 2026, and anyone selling it to you as one is selling.

## What to look for when you compare tools

Buying is where most of this goes wrong, because every tool demos well. In 2026, Intercom's survey of 2,400+ customer service professionals found 87% of senior leaders planned to invest in AI for customer service that year, while only 10% described their existing deployment as mature ([Intercom](https://www.intercom.com/blog/customer-service-transformation-report-2026/), 2026). Plenty of buying, not much working.

If you're weighing personal assistants such as Fyxer, Jace and Superhuman, our [Fyxer alternatives comparison](/blog/fyxer-alternatives) lists current prices.

Drafting a plausible email is the easy part, and it's the part every demo shows you. These are the questions that separate the tools:

| Question | Why it matters | Good answer |
|---|---|---|
| Where do drafts get their facts? | Ungrounded models invent policies | Your docs, macros, and past replies, with sources cited |
| Does it send on its own by default? | This is a liability decision | Draft-and-approve is the default, autosend is opt-in |
| Where does it live? | Migration is where rollouts die | Inside Gmail and Outlook, not a new platform |
| What happens when it doesn't know? | Silent guessing is the failure mode | Escalates to a human with no draft |
| How is it priced? | Per-seat pricing suppresses adoption | Priced on volume, so the whole team can use it |
| What happens to your email data? | Legal and procurement will ask | SOC 2 Type II, and your data never trains models |

That last row is worth pushing on with any vendor. Ours is documented on our [security page](/security), including scoped OAuth access and the commitment that customer data never trains AI models.

## Setting one up without breaking anything

Rollouts fail on sequence, not software. That 87-to-10 gap above is mostly an ordering problem: guardrails go in before automations, and one inbox goes in before five.

Three steps, in this order:

1. **Connect the inbox that actually receives the work.** sales@, info@, support@, whichever address carries the volume. Gmail or Outlook, a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox included. Start with one.
2. **Feed it your documents.** Price list, policies, service area, standard terms, and twenty past replies you'd be happy to send again. This is [the grounding step](/features/ai-email-replies), and draft quality is capped by what you put here.
3. **Set the guardrails before you set the automations.** Negative keywords first, approval on, autosend off. Then add [triage and routing rules](/features/email-triage) once you've watched real drafts for a week.

Then run it in draft-only mode for two weeks and read every draft before approving. Why two weeks? Because that's long enough to see the messages that only show up on a Monday, and short enough that you'll still remember what you were testing. You'll learn more about which of your three piles is genuinely automatable than any vendor demo can tell you, and you'll find the gaps in your own documentation while you're at it.

On InboxPilot, that runs on any plan. The 7-day free trial is enough to test it on real traffic. Starter is $39 per month, with knowledge base grounding, which is the feature doing the work in step 2. Growth is $99 per month, with auto-replies and unlimited workflows, and every plan includes unlimited team members. Yearly billing gives two months free. Details on the [pricing page](/pricing).

**[See how InboxPilot's AI email assistant drafts replies across quotes, support, and sales →](/ai-email-assistant)**

## Related reading

- [Best shared inbox software for Gmail and Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): where sales@ and support@ actually live.
- [Order status and WISMO automation](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation): the biggest of the three piles, handled end to end.
- [RFQ automation software](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): how quote requests get read, priced, and answered from your own catalog.
- [Customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation): support replies drafted from your orders, policies and past answers, with a person approving.
- [Gmail auto reply: vacation responder, templates and AI](/blog/automate-your-gmail): what Gmail's own auto replies can do, and where AI takes over.
- [Best AI assistant for Outlook](/blog/outlook-ai-assistant): Copilot, InboxPilot, Fyxer and five more compared.
- [AI for freight brokers](/blog/ai-for-freight-brokers): quote emails answered from your own rates.
- [Email triage for business inboxes](/blog/email-triage): the four outcomes every email should get, and when rules or AI do the sorting.

---

*On sources. Microsoft's 117-emails-per-day figure comes from Microsoft 365 product telemetry, so it describes Microsoft 365 users rather than all workers, and excludes EU tenants. The Zendesk, Loopio, Five9, and Intercom figures all come from vendor-run research by companies selling into these conclusions, two of them through independent firms (Five9 via Hanover Research, Loopio in partnership with the APMP). Read them as directionally useful rather than neutral. Only the Harvard Business Review audit and the BCCRT decision are independent of the vendors involved. InboxPilot pricing was verified against the pricing page in September 2026. InboxPilot is the publisher of this article.*

---

## Gmail Shared Inbox: How to Set One Up, Free or Paid

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail
Published: 2026-07-22

Set up a Gmail shared inbox free with an Admin console address, a Groups Collaborative Inbox or delegation, or pick a paid tool. Year one: $0 to $5,100.

You can set up a Gmail shared inbox for free in three ways: a **shared email address** created in the Google Workspace Admin console, a Google Group turned into a **Collaborative Inbox**, or **delegation** of one mailbox to several people. All three give a team one address to read and answer from. None of them shows who is already replying, and that is the point where teams move to a paid shared inbox tool.

Below are Google's own steps for each free setup, then the paid tools, split by whether they run inside the Gmail window you already use or pull your mail into a separate app. If the real problem is too much email rather than who answers it, InboxPilot (we make it) sorts and drafts replies inside Gmail from your own documents.

Everything below assumes you are staying in Gmail. If your team is on Microsoft, or split across both, read [best shared inbox software](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software) for the cross-platform ranking instead, or [best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook) if you have already landed on Microsoft 365.

## First, a word on "Gmail shared mailbox"

Plenty of people search for a Gmail shared mailbox, which is a slight mismatch of terms. "Shared mailbox" is Microsoft's product name, and there is no feature in Google Workspace called that. Google has three separate things that do the job, and they are not interchangeable:

| What you want | What Google calls it | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| A team address like support@ that everyone can read and send from | **Shared inbox** (Admin console, Users, "Set up a shared email address") | Access and sending, inside real Gmail |
| Access to one person's mailbox, usually an assistant to an exec | **Delegation** | Read, send, and manage on someone else's behalf |
| A group address with basic queue-style assignment | **Google Groups Collaborative Inbox** | Assignment and resolution, in the Groups web interface rather than Gmail |

If you came here for the Microsoft feature, the [Outlook guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook) covers the real shared mailbox and its documented 25-user ceiling. Everything below is about the Google side.

## How to set up a Gmail shared inbox for free

Rule out free before you buy anything. Three native options solve the "several of us need to see support@" problem without a purchase, and the newest of them is recent enough that most competing articles have not caught up.

### Option 1: a shared inbox from the Admin console

This is Google's own shared inbox. A Google Workspace admin creates it, and the team opens it in **real Gmail**, including the Gmail mobile app. It is included on Business Starter, Standard, and Plus with no paid add-on. Google doesn't list Education editions, so colleges and universities should ask their admin first; our notes on [shared inbox software for universities](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software#shared-inboxes-for-schools-and-universities) cover the other quirks.

1. Sign in to the [Google Admin console](https://admin.google.com) with an administrator account.
2. On the Home page, in the **Users** section, select **Set up a shared email address**.
3. Enter the address, such as support@yourcompany.com.
4. Click **Add new users** and enter each teammate who should have access. They become the inbox's delegates.
5. Click **Continue** to send them sign-in instructions, then **Next**, **Next** again after reviewing the list, and **Done**.

An existing account can be converted into a shared inbox the same way. Delegates can read, send and delete messages, and delegates are added or removed later from the shared inbox's own Gmail settings, under **Accounts**, **Grant access to your account**. Google says the feature "is being released in phases", so it may not be in your Admin console yet; if it is missing, use Option 3. ([Google Workspace admin docs, Create a shared inbox](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/create-a-shared-inbox))

It gives you access and sending from the shared address, with a "sent by" line showing who replied. It gives you **no collision detection, no automation, and no SLA reporting.** It solves access, not coordination. But if that is your whole problem, it is free and it is enough.

### Option 2: a Google Groups Collaborative Inbox

A Collaborative Inbox is a Google Group with assignment turned on. Mail to the group's address lands in a shared queue where members can take a conversation, assign it to someone, and mark it complete, duplicate, or needing no action. It is the closest thing Google has to a ticket queue, and it works on work and school accounts where the admin has turned on Groups for Business.

1. Create the group at [Google Groups](https://groups.google.com) with the address you want, such as support@yourcompany.com. Our guide to [creating a group email in Gmail](/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail) has the full steps and settings.
2. In the group's settings, turn on **conversation history**. Collaborative Inbox does not work without it.
3. Open the group, click **Group settings** on the left, and under **Enable additional Google Groups features**, select **Collaborative Inbox**.
4. Give members the **Who can moderate metadata** permission so they can take, assign and complete conversations. Marking a conversation as a duplicate or as needing no action needs **Who can moderate content**.

Sources: [Make a group a Collaborative Inbox](https://support.google.com/a/users/answer/10375787) and [Use a group as a Collaborative Inbox](https://support.google.com/a/users/answer/167430). Our [Google Groups Collaborative Inbox guide](/blog/google-groups-collaborative-inbox) covers the reply settings that keep answers from going to the whole group.

The catch is where it lives. The queue runs in the Google Groups web interface, not in Gmail, and never appears in the Gmail app. Members reply from their own address unless an owner or manager [adds the group as a send-as address in Gmail](/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail#send-as-the-group-address-from-gmail). For a team that lives in Gmail, it is the least familiar of the three.

### Option 3: delegation

Delegation gives named people access to one real Gmail account. It is the fallback when the Admin console option is not available, and the only one of the three that also works on a personal @gmail.com account.

1. Sign in to the account you want to share, such as support@.
2. In Gmail, click **Settings**, then **See all settings**.
3. Open the **Accounts and Import** tab (**Accounts** on work accounts).
4. Under **Grant access to your account**, click **Add another account** and enter the teammate's address.
5. The teammate accepts the invitation, which expires after a week. Access can take up to 24 hours to start.

A personal account can have up to 10 delegates and a work or school account up to 1,000, but on work accounts the admin has to allow delegation, and delegates must be inside your organization. Delegates can read, send and delete mail, but they cannot chat, change the password, or use features such as Smart Compose and Gemini in Gmail from the delegated account. ([Gmail Help, Delegate & collaborate on email](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/138350))

### Which free option to pick

| | Admin console shared inbox | Collaborative Inbox | Delegation |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Works in** | Gmail, web and app | Google Groups web interface | Gmail, web and app |
| **Who sets it up** | Workspace admin | Group owner or manager | The account's owner |
| **Assign and close conversations** | No | Yes | No |
| **Replies come from** | The shared address | Your own address, unless send-as is set up | The shared account |
| **Accounts** | Business Starter, Standard, Plus | Work or school, Groups for Business on | Personal (10 delegates) or work (1,000) |

Pick the Admin console shared inbox if you have it. Pick Collaborative Inbox if assignment matters more than staying in Gmail. Use delegation when neither is available.

### Gmail's concurrency ceiling is worth knowing

Google's native shared inbox is built on Gmail delegation, and delegation has documented limits: up to 1,000 delegates on paper, but **only around 40 can access the account simultaneously** under typical use, and Google notes that "above-average use by one or more delegates might reduce this number." Browser extensions that poll Gmail frequently reduce it further. ([Google Workspace admin docs](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/gmail/let-users-delegate-access-to-a-gmail-account))

That detail matters here, because Hiver and Gmelius are both Gmail extensions that poll the account.

A plain shared address is genuinely fine at two or three people and low volume. The real breaking point comes the first time two teammates answer the same thread without realizing the other already did. That is coordination, and free tools do not solve it.

## When free stops working: native vs connected tools

Once you need collision detection, assignment or reporting, you are choosing a paid tool, and almost every regretted purchase in this category comes from missing one line. For assignment that happens automatically, see the [email routing tools for teams](/blog/email-routing-software).

| Type | What it means | Onboarding | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Native in Gmail** | Works inside the Gmail window you already use, as a sidebar or directly in the mailbox | Near zero, no new app | Hiver, Gmelius, Google's native inbox, InboxPilot |
| **Connects to Gmail** | Pulls your Gmail into its own separate interface | Real, it is a new app | Front, Missive, Help Scout |

Neither is automatically better. Native wins on adoption because your team never leaves the tool they already know. Connected apps usually win on analytics depth and, crucially, on Outlook support, so a mixed Gmail and Outlook team should think hard before going native. If you are all-Gmail and want your team to actually adopt the thing, native is the safer bet.

## Gmail shared inbox tools compared

| Tool | Best for | Runs where | Free tier | Entry price | Outlook too? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **InboxPilot** | Best overall (AI email layer) | Inside Gmail | 7-day trial | $39/mo, AI drafts included | Native in both |
| **Hiver** | Gmail teams | Inside Gmail | No (7-day trial) | [$25/user/mo annual, AI drafts included](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail) | Via separate Omni app only |
| **Google native shared inbox** | Free access | Inside Gmail | Free | $0 | No |
| **Gmelius** | Gmail-only teams | Inside Gmail | No | [$25/user/mo annual, AI drafts included](https://gmelius.com/pricing) | **No** |
| **Missive** | Co-writing replies | Separate app | Undocumented | [$14/user/mo, no AI drafts; $24 plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) | Connects |
| **Help Scout** | Support teams | Separate app | Yes, 5 users | [$25/user/mo; $45 for AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) | Connects |
| **Front** | Most complete classic tool | Separate app | No | [$25/seat/mo; $45 with Copilot AI drafts](https://front.com/pricing) | Connects (sync caveats) |

Prices checked on each vendor's pricing page on October 6, 2026.

## The best shared inbox tools for Gmail, ranked

### 1. InboxPilot

This is the pick for Gmail teams whose real problem is *volume*, and for anyone who wants relief without leaving the Gmail they already use. InboxPilot takes the top spot for one reason: **every other tool on this list helps your team split the Gmail workload faster. InboxPilot cuts how much of it reaches a person in the first place.** It is an AI layer that lives in the Gmail inbox your team already shares, sorting every incoming email and drafting each reply from your team's own documents, while deciding who handles what stays with your existing setup.

**Strengths**
- Native in Gmail, and in Outlook too, which no other Gmail-native tool here manages (Gmelius is Gmail-only, Hiver needs a separate product for Outlook).
- AI drafts grounded in your own docs, help center, and connected tools like Shopify, Notion, and Pipedrive.
- Smart triage, auto-labeling, and plain-English email workflows.
- Priced per plan, with no per-seat fees, AI drafting included, and unlimited team members on every plan.
- No migration. It layers onto the Gmail you already have.
- **Slack integration.** Matching emails post to a channel with the reply already drafted, thread replies change that draft, and 👀 / ✅ track who has each one ([how it works](/blog/slack-email-integration)).

**Tradeoff:** who has which customer is tracked in Slack (take it, close it, chase what nobody took) rather than with assignments inside Gmail. If your team is not in Slack and two agents keep replying to the same customer, pair it with Hiver, Missive, or Help Scout.

Every plan starts with a 7-day free trial. Starter is $39 a month, Growth $99 with auto-replies, Business $249 with three inboxes, and Scale $499 with ten inboxes, all with unlimited team members. AI drafting is included on every plan, and yearly billing gives two months free. ([InboxPilot pricing and plans](/pricing))

It makes the most sense if your team answers one Gmail address and wants relief without a migration, or if you run Hiver and want the repetitive volume deflected before it reaches a human. It pairs with any shared inbox below, and for a lot of teams it removes the reason to buy one.

### 2. Hiver

Hiver is the classic Gmail-native shared inbox, for Google Workspace teams who will not leave Gmail and should not have to.

**Strengths**
- Genuinely native to Gmail, running as a sidebar. Onboarding is close to zero because there is no new app to learn.
- Collision detection, assignment, and SLA basics.
- Clean pricing ladder: $25, $55, $85, and Growth already includes AI Copilot, which drafts replies.

**Tradeoffs**
- **Performance is the recurring complaint.** Reviewers frequently report slow loading under volume and having to refresh the browser to bring Hiver back.
- Outlook is not supported in the Gmail product. Microsoft users need Hiver Omni, a separate standalone app rather than an Outlook add-in.
- Analytics are thinner than a full help desk.

No free plan: a 7-day trial of Elite, then Growth at $25 per user per month billed annually ($35 monthly), Pro $55, Elite $85, from a 2-seat minimum ([hiverhq.com/pricing](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail), checked October 6, 2026).

### 3. Google's native shared inbox

This suits Google Workspace teams that want a shared address in real Gmail, for free, and do not yet need coordination features.

**Strengths**
- **Free** on Business Starter, Standard, and Plus, with no add-on.
- Lives in actual Gmail, unlike the old Collaborative Inbox, which lived in the Google Groups interface and never appeared in the Gmail mobile app.
- Sends from the shared address, with a "sent by" attribution you can hide.

**Tradeoffs**
- **No collision detection, no automation, no SLA reporting.** It solves access, not coordination.
- Inherits Gmail's delegation ceilings (roughly 40 concurrent delegates, reduced further by extensions).
- Rolling out in phases, so it may not be in your Admin console yet.

It costs $0, included with Workspace. ([Google Workspace admin docs](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/create-a-shared-inbox))

### 4. Gmelius

Gmelius is for small Google Workspace teams that want a shared inbox plus Kanban boards, at the lowest Gmail-native price.

**Strengths**
- Cheapest true Gmail-native entry at $19 per user per month.
- Kanban and Trello-style boards on top of email, an unusual and genuinely useful combination.
- Shared labels, internal notes, and sequences.

**Tradeoffs**
- **Gmail only. No Outlook, at all.** One Outlook user on your team disqualifies this tool entirely. Confirmed on Gmelius's own pricing page.
- **Speed complaints are persistent.** Users frequently report slow Gmail load times with the extension active, along with Chrome extension bugs.
- The mobile app is a frequently cited weak point.
- No free tier, and only a 7-day trial, which is not long enough to roll a shared inbox out to a team.

Shared inboxes start on Growth at $25 per user per month billed annually ($33 monthly), and Pro is $40. The AI Draft Assistant comes with every plan. The $19 Meli plan is a personal AI assistant without shared inboxes ([gmelius.com/pricing](https://gmelius.com/pricing), checked October 6, 2026).

### 5. Missive

Missive is for teams that want to discuss and co-write replies inside the thread instead of copying them into Slack. It connects to Gmail rather than living inside it, but it earns its place because nothing here matches its collaborative drafting.

**Strengths**
- **Cheapest serious entry point at $14 per user per month.**
- Real-time collaborative drafting is genuinely differentiated. Two people can write one reply together, live.
- Broad channel support: Gmail, Outlook, IMAP, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, SMS via Twilio.
- Provider-agnostic, so it works the same whether you are on Google or Microsoft.

**Tradeoffs**
- Starter caps at 5 users and has no AI drafts. The realistic plan for a growing team is Productive at $24. AI usage is billed on top, through Missive credits or your own OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini key ([Missive docs](https://missiveapp.com/docs/ai/overview)).
- **The learning curve is the most common complaint.** It is a genuinely new paradigm, and teams coming from plain Gmail need a few weeks to settle in.
- It is a separate app, so you lose the "never leave Gmail" advantage.

Starter is $14 per user per month for up to 5 users, Productive $24 for up to 50, Business $36 with no cap. A free plan is referenced but its limits are not published, so confirm before relying on it. ([missiveapp.com/pricing](https://missiveapp.com/pricing), checked October 6, 2026)

### 6. Help Scout

Help Scout suits customer support teams that want a shared inbox plus a knowledge base, without Zendesk's weight.

**Strengths**
- **Free tier with 5 users**, one inbox, and one Docs site.
- The cleanest, easiest interface of any support tool here.
- Built-in knowledge base, so you are not buying a second product.
- AI Answers is priced per resolution ($0.75) rather than per seat, which is buyer-friendly.

**Tradeoffs**
- **Reporting is basic** compared to Zendesk or Freshdesk, and custom report history is gated to higher tiers.
- It connects to Gmail as a separate app, not a sidebar.
- Extra inboxes cost $10 per month each, and Pro requires a 10-user minimum.

Free covers 5 users and one inbox. Standard is $25 per user per month billed yearly, Plus $45, Pro $75. AI Drafts start on Plus, since Standard has only AI Assist for editing what you write. ([helpscout.com/pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)

### 7. Front

Front is the most complete classic shared inbox in this roundup, for mid-market and larger teams that want that and can pay for it. It ranks seventh *for Gmail teams specifically* only because it connects to Gmail as a separate app rather than living inside it, which undercuts the exact advantage a committed-Gmail team is optimizing for.

**Strengths**
- Mature collision detection and assignment, the two things you are actually buying.
- Deep integration catalog including Salesforce and HubSpot.
- Strong analytics, genuinely better than the rest of this list.

**Tradeoffs**
- **The advertised price is not the real price.** Starter at $25 per seat is limited to a single channel type. The plan most teams actually need is Professional at **$65 per seat per month**, and Enterprise is $105.
- Separate app, so no native-Gmail adoption advantage.
- AI is an add-on: Copilot, which drafts replies, is $20 per seat per month, so Starter with drafts is $45 and Professional $85. Autopilot runs from $0.05 per conversation.

Starter is $25 per seat per month billed annually and capped at 10 seats, Professional $65, Enterprise $105. No free tier, 14-day trial. ([front.com/pricing](https://front.com/pricing), checked October 6, 2026)

Teams moving off Front specifically will find Hiver, Missive and Help Scout priced for five seats in [Front alternatives](/blog/front-alternatives).

### 8. Other Gmail-native options worth a look

Two lighter Gmail-native tools come up often and are worth a trial if the above feel too heavy:

- **Drag** turns Gmail into a shared Kanban board and is one of the lightest-weight options. Gmail-only, no free plan (7-day trial). Starter $12, Plus $18, Pro $24 per user per month billed annually ($16, $22, $30 monthly). Automatic drafting starts on Plus, which includes 1,000 AI credits per seat a month. ([dragapp.com/pricing](https://www.dragapp.com/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)
- **Keeping** adds help-desk-style shared inbox and ticketing inside Gmail, aimed at small support teams. Gmail-only, 2-user minimum, no free plan (14-day trial). Essentials $14, Advanced $24, HIPAA $49 per user per month billed annually, with no built-in AI reply drafting. ([keeping.com/pricing](https://www.keeping.com/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)

Both are Gmail-only, so cross them off immediately if anyone on your team is on Outlook.

## What a 5-person Gmail team actually pays in year one

Advertised entry prices mislead, so here is the real number for a five-person team, at list price, billed annually.

| Tool | Plan needed for 5 people | Monthly | Year one |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google native shared inbox | Included with Workspace | $0 | **$0** |
| Hiver | [Growth at $25, AI drafts included](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail) | $125 | **$1,500** |
| Help Scout | [Free (5 users) or Standard $25; Plus $45 for AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) | $0 to $125; $225 | **$0 to $1,500; $2,700** |
| Missive | [Starter $14 (caps at exactly 5), no AI drafts; Productive $24 plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) | $70; $120 plus usage | **$840; $1,440 plus usage** |
| Gmelius | [Growth $25, AI drafts included](https://gmelius.com/pricing) | $125 | **$1,500** |
| InboxPilot | Growth, annual, AI drafts included | $82.50 | **$990** |
| Front | [Starter $25, single channel; $45 with Copilot AI drafts](https://front.com/pricing) | $125; $225 | **$1,500; $2,700** |
| Front (Professional, realistic) | [$65; $85 with Copilot](https://front.com/pricing) | $325; $425 | **$3,900; $5,100** |

Front's real cost is closer to $3,900 than the $1,500 its entry tier implies, and $5,100 once Copilot drafts replies. Seat prices often leave AI drafting out, while InboxPilot's plan price includes it. And several capable options here cost nothing at five people, which is the point: rule out free before you spend.

## How to choose a shared inbox for Gmail

### 1. Rule out free first
If you are two or three people, Google's native shared inbox or Help Scout's free plan may be enough. Paying $1,500 a year to solve a problem you do not have yet is the most common mistake in this category.

### 2. Decide how much you care about staying inside Gmail
If adoption is your risk, go native (Hiver, Gmelius) so nobody has to learn a new app. If analytics depth matters more, a connected app (Front, Help Scout) is worth the context switch.

### 3. Check whether anyone touches Outlook
Gmelius has no Outlook support at all, and Hiver's Gmail product does not either. If even one teammate is on Microsoft, that removes options before you compare a single feature. See the companion guide: [best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook).

### 4. Separate the volume problem from the coordination problem
These are two different problems. Assignment and collision detection solve coordination and do nothing for sheer volume. AI drafting solves volume and does nothing for coordination. Work out which one is actually hurting before you shop.

## How to choose, in one paragraph

Start with the diagnosis, not the tool. If the answer is that nobody is stepping on anyone's toes, there is just too much email, that is a volume problem and [InboxPilot](/pricing) is our pick, on its own or alongside whichever shared inbox you land on. If you are two or three people on Workspace, turn on **Google's native shared inbox** and spend nothing. If you are a Gmail team that wants real coordination with the least friction, **Hiver** is the lowest-effort upgrade, from $25 a seat. If you want Kanban boards on top and nobody uses Outlook, **Gmelius**. If you want to co-write replies live, **Missive**. If you want a support tool with a knowledge base, **Help Scout**. And if you want the most complete classic shared inbox and can accept a separate app, **Front** at its real price.

## Related reading

- [Best shared inbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): the full category, both platforms, including help desks.
- [How to create a group email in Gmail](/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail): contact labels and Google Groups, for when you need a list rather than a shared inbox.
- [Gmail ticketing system](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system): turning a Gmail address into a ticket queue, with and without extra tools.
- [Best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook): the Microsoft-side companion to this guide.
- [How to export emails from Gmail](/blog/how-to-export-emails-from-gmail): backing up or handing over a shared Gmail inbox before you migrate anything.
- [How to automate email support](/blog/ai-email-agent): what to automate once your inbox is organized.
- [RFQ automation](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): how quote requests get read, priced, and answered from your own catalog.

---

*Prices checked against vendor pricing pages on October 6, 2026, and stated per user per month unless noted. Setup steps and platform limits are cited from Google's own help and administrator documentation, checked on 2026-09-23. Vendors change pricing frequently, so confirm current rates before purchasing.*

---

## Best Shared Inbox for Outlook: What Works with M365 in 2026

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook
Published: 2026-07-22

Most shared inbox tools are Gmail-first and treat Outlook as an afterthought. What works with M365, and where its shared mailbox stops at 25 users.

Here is the thing nobody tells you when you search "best shared inbox for Outlook": most of the tools that dominate these lists were built for Gmail first. Some added Outlook years later. One of the most popular, Gmelius, still does not support Outlook at all. Another, Hiver, runs inside Gmail and pushes Outlook users to a separate product entirely. Even the best all-rounder documents that its Outlook read-status sync is conditional.

Below is what works with Outlook and where the caveats are, with every limit cited from Microsoft's own documentation. If the real problem is too much email, InboxPilot (we make it) sorts and drafts replies in Outlook from your own documents, in a user mailbox or a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox.

Everything below assumes Microsoft 365. If your team is on Google, read [Gmail shared inbox and shared mailbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail) instead, and if you are still choosing between the two platforms, [best shared inbox software](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software) ranks them together.
## Read this first: the Outlook support map

The single most useful thing on this page is knowing, before you compare features, which tools actually treat Outlook as a first-class citizen.

| Tool | Outlook support | Reality |
|---|---|---|
| **Microsoft 365 shared mailbox** | Native | Built into Outlook, free, documented ceilings |
| **Missive** | Full | Provider-agnostic, Outlook and Gmail treated equally |
| **Front** | Yes, with caveats | Read-status sync is conditional, Front documents this |
| **Help Scout** | Connects | Separate app, works the same for any provider |
| **Zendesk / Freshdesk** | Connects | Help desks, provider-agnostic by design |
| **Hiver** | Omni only | Main product is Gmail-only; Outlook needs a separate app |
| **Gmelius** | **None** | Gmail only, confirmed on its own pricing page |
| **InboxPilot** | Native | Runs inside Outlook and Gmail both |

If a tool is not on this list, assume it started life as a Gmail extension and verify Outlook support directly with the vendor before you get attached.

## Start with free: the Microsoft 365 shared mailbox

Every listicle skips straight to paid tools. On Microsoft, you should rule out the free native option first, because for a low-volume address it is genuinely enough, and it is already included in your subscription.

### Where the M365 shared mailbox breaks, in Microsoft's own words

This is the best-sourced fact on this page, straight from Microsoft's admin documentation:

> "A shared mailbox supports a maximum of 25 users. If too many users access the mailbox at the same time, they might experience connection failures or duplicated messages."
> ([Microsoft Learn, About shared mailboxes](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide))

Duplicated messages means two agents answering the same customer. That is the platform vendor naming the failure mode in its own docs, which is far more credible than a shared inbox company telling you shared mailboxes are bad.

The other documented limits are worth knowing before you rely on one:

- **50 GB cap** without an Exchange Online Plan 2 license. On hitting it, the mailbox stops sending, then stops receiving.
- **No encryption.** Mail from a shared mailbox cannot be encrypted, because the mailbox has no security context of its own.
- **You cannot prevent users from deleting messages.**
- **No external access.** A contractor on an outside domain cannot be given access.

The M365 shared mailbox is fine for a handful of people on a low-volume info@ or reception@ address, and it is free. The real breaking point arrives well before the 25-user ceiling, the first time two people answer the same message because Outlook gave neither of them any signal the other was already on it. That is coordination, and the free mailbox does not do coordination.

## Outlook shared inbox tools compared

| Tool | Best for | Outlook support | Free tier | Entry price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **InboxPilot** | Best overall (AI email layer) | Native | 7-day trial | $39/mo, AI drafts included |
| **M365 shared mailbox** | Free, low volume | Native | Free | $0 |
| **Front** | Classic shared inbox | Yes (sync caveats) | No | [$25/seat/mo; $45 with Copilot AI drafts](https://front.com/pricing) |
| **Missive** | Provider-agnostic | Full | Undocumented | [$14/user/mo, no AI drafts; $24 plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) |
| **Help Scout** | Support teams | Connects | Yes, 5 users | [$25/user/mo; $45 for AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) |
| **Zendesk** | Outgrown the category | Connects | No | [$19 Support, $55 Suite; $165 with Copilot](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/) |
| **Freshdesk** | Budget ticketing | Connects | No (14-day trial) | [$19/agent/mo annual; $84 with Freddy AI Copilot](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/) |
| **Hiver Omni** | Hiver users on Outlook | Separate web workspace | No (7-day trial) | [$25/user/mo annual, AI drafts included](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-omni) |

Prices checked on each vendor's pricing page on October 6, 2026.

## The best shared inbox tools for Outlook, ranked

### 1. InboxPilot

This is the pick for Outlook teams whose real problem is *volume*, and for anyone who wants relief without leaving Outlook. InboxPilot takes the top spot for one reason: **every other tool here helps a team share the Outlook workload. InboxPilot shrinks the workload itself, before it reaches anyone.** It is the AI working inside the Outlook mailbox your team already shares, triaging each message and writing the reply from your own documents, with the split of work between people left to however your team runs it now.

**Strengths**
- **Native in Outlook** and in Gmail both, which several better-known tools here cannot claim (Gmelius has no Outlook at all, Hiver needs the separate Omni app).
- AI drafts grounded in your own docs, help center, and connected tools like Shopify, Notion, and Pipedrive.
- Smart triage, auto-labeling, and plain-English email workflows.
- Priced per plan, not per seat, with AI drafting included and unlimited team members on every plan.
- No migration. It layers onto the Outlook mailbox you already have.

**Tradeoff:** in a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox it drafts but never sends on its own, and who has which customer is tracked in Slack rather than inside Outlook.

Every plan starts with a 7-day free trial. Starter is $39 a month, Growth $99 with auto-replies, Business $249 with three inboxes, and Scale $499 with ten inboxes, all with unlimited team members. AI drafting is included on every plan, and yearly billing gives two months free. ([InboxPilot pricing and plans](/pricing))

It makes the most sense if your team answers customers from one Outlook address and wants relief without a migration, or if you already run Front and want the repetitive volume deflected before it reaches a human. It pairs with any shared inbox below, and for a lot of Outlook teams it removes the reason to buy one.

### 2. Microsoft 365 shared mailbox

This suits Microsoft shops with a low-volume info@ or reception@ address and a handful of people on it.

**Strengths**
- **Free.** No license required on the mailbox itself.
- Native in Outlook desktop, web, and mobile. Automapping means it simply appears.
- Includes a shared calendar.

**Tradeoffs**
- **25-user maximum, with "connection failures or duplicated messages" beyond it,** per Microsoft's own docs.
- 50 GB hard stop without an Exchange Online Plan 2 license.
- No encryption, no way to prevent deletion, no external users.
- No assignment, no collision detection, no reporting.

It costs $0. ([Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide))

### 3. Front

Front is the most complete classic shared inbox that connects to Outlook, aimed at mid-market and larger teams that want serious integrations and analytics alongside the shared mailbox. If your diagnosis is coordination rather than volume, this is the tool to beat, with one caveat every Microsoft team should read before buying.

**Strengths**
- Mature collision detection and assignment, the two things you are actually buying.
- Deep integration catalog including Salesforce and HubSpot.
- Strong analytics, genuinely better than the rest of this list.

**Tradeoffs**
- **Outlook sync is conditional, and Front documents this itself.** Read status syncs only for personal channels, and for shared conversations only once the assignee reads it. In-place archive mailboxes do not sync at all. Mixed Front and Outlook teams get confused by this. ([Front help docs](https://help.front.com/en/articles/205376))
- **The advertised price is not the real price.** Starter at $25 per seat is single-channel. The plan most teams need is Professional at **$65 per seat per month**, and Enterprise is $105.
- AI is an add-on: Copilot, which drafts replies, is $20 per seat per month, so Starter with drafts is $45 and Professional $85. Autopilot runs from $0.05 per conversation.

Starter is $25 per seat per month billed annually and capped at 10 seats, Professional $65, Enterprise $105. No free tier, 14-day trial. ([front.com/pricing](https://front.com/pricing), checked October 6, 2026)

If you're leaving Front, [Front alternatives](/blog/front-alternatives) prices the Outlook-friendly options, Missive and Help Scout, for a five-person team.

### 4. Missive

Missive is the strongest answer to this list's core problem, because it is provider-agnostic by design, and it has the lowest paid entry price here. It does not care whether you are on Microsoft or Google, so Outlook is not a bolt-on.

**Strengths**
- **The lowest paid entry point here, $14 per user per month.**
- Provider-agnostic, so Outlook gets the same treatment as Gmail.
- Real-time collaborative drafting: two people can write one reply together, live.
- Broad channel support: Outlook, Gmail, IMAP, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, SMS via Twilio.

**Tradeoffs**
- Starter caps at 5 users and has no AI drafts. The realistic plan for a growing team is Productive at $24. AI usage is billed on top, through Missive credits or your own OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini key ([Missive docs](https://missiveapp.com/docs/ai/overview)).
- **The learning curve is the most common complaint.** It is a new paradigm and takes a few weeks to settle in.
- Some users report occasional duplicate-thread and snooze confusion.

Starter is $14 per user per month for up to 5 users, Productive $24 for up to 50, Business $36 with no cap. A free plan is referenced but its limits are not published, so confirm before relying on it. ([missiveapp.com/pricing](https://missiveapp.com/pricing), checked October 6, 2026)

### 5. Help Scout

Help Scout suits customer support teams that want a shared inbox plus a knowledge base, without Zendesk's weight.

**Strengths**
- **A free tier covering 5 users**, one inbox, and one Docs site.
- The cleanest, easiest interface of any support tool here.
- Built-in knowledge base, so you are not buying a second product.
- Provider-agnostic, so Outlook works the same as any other mailbox.

**Tradeoffs**
- **Reporting is basic** compared to Zendesk or Freshdesk, and custom report history is gated to higher tiers.
- Workflow customization feels restrictive once your needs get complex.
- Extra inboxes cost $10 per month each, and Pro requires a 10-user minimum.

Free covers 5 users and one inbox. Standard is $25 per user per month billed yearly, Plus $45, Pro $75. AI Drafts start on Plus, since Standard has only AI Assist for editing what you write. ([helpscout.com/pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)

### 6. Zendesk

Zendesk is on this list so you can rule it in or out honestly. It is not a shared inbox. It is a ticketing suite, and that is a different purchase, for teams that have outgrown the shared inbox category entirely. It connects to Outlook without issue because it is provider-agnostic.

**Strengths**
- The deepest routing, reporting, and automation available anywhere here.
- Enormous app ecosystem.
- Scales to genuine enterprise volume.

**Tradeoffs**
- **The $19 Support Team tier is a trap for this buyer.** Anything resembling the suite starts at **$55 per agent (Suite Team)**, and Professional is $115.
- Complexity and admin burden are its most common criticisms.
- Email stops feeling like email and becomes tickets. That is the point, and also the cost.

Support Team is $19 per agent per month billed annually. Suite Team is $55 and Suite Professional $115, with no free tier. Copilot, which drafts replies, adds $50 an agent and needs Professional or higher, so AI drafts start at $165 an agent. ([zendesk.com/pricing](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)

### 7. Freshdesk

Freshdesk is the budget route to real ticketing for Microsoft teams that can live with rough edges.

**Strengths**
- Aggressive pricing at $19 per agent per month.
- Solid knowledge base and customer portal, provider-agnostic.

**Tradeoffs**
- **There is no free plan any more.** The pricing page now offers only a 14-day trial of the Enterprise plan, checked 2026-09-23. Many roundups still describe the old free plan.
- **Duplicate and child ticket handling** is a recurring complaint.
- Reporting is limited on lower tiers.

No free plan, only a 14-day trial. Growth is $19 per agent per month billed annually, Pro $55, Enterprise $89. Freddy AI Copilot, which drafts replies, is $29 an agent more on Pro or Enterprise only, so drafts start at $84 an agent. ([freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)

### 8. Hiver Omni (the Outlook workaround)

This one is for teams already sold on Hiver who happen to be on Outlook. Hiver's well-known product runs natively inside Gmail as a Chrome extension. For Outlook, Hiver offers a separate standalone app called Omni rather than an in-Outlook add-in. Outlook users work in Hiver's own web workspace, so they do not get a Hiver panel inside Outlook the way Gmail users get one inside Gmail.

**Strengths**
- Brings Hiver's shared-inbox coordination, assignment, collision detection, and SLA basics, to Outlook, which the Gmail extension never covered.
- Multichannel on higher tiers: live chat, WhatsApp, voice, and social alongside email.
- No Outlook premium: the same price ladder as Hiver's Gmail product.

**Tradeoffs**
- **It is a separate web workspace, not the native-in-Outlook experience Microsoft teams usually want.** "Hiver supports Outlook" is true, but not in the inside-your-mailbox way it works on Gmail.
- The reason to choose it is prior commitment to Hiver, not Outlook fit specifically.

Omni uses the same ladder as Hiver's Gmail product, with no separate Omni pricing: Growth $25, with AI Copilot drafts included, Pro $55 and Elite $85 per user per month billed annually ($35, $65, $95 monthly). There is no free plan. Higher tiers unlock more channels. ([hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-omni](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-omni))

## What a 5-person Outlook team actually pays in year one

Advertised entry prices mislead, so here is the real number for a five-person support team, at list price, billed annually.

| Tool | Plan needed for 5 people | Monthly | Year one |
|---|---|---|---|
| M365 shared mailbox | Included with Microsoft 365 | $0 | **$0** |
| Help Scout | [Free (5 users) or Standard $25; Plus $45 for AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) | $0 to $125; $225 | **$0 to $1,500; $2,700** |
| Missive | [Starter $14 (caps at exactly 5), no AI drafts; Productive $24 plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) | $70; $120 plus usage | **$840; $1,440 plus usage** |
| Freshdesk | [Growth $19; Pro with Freddy AI Copilot, $84](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/) | $95; $420 | **$1,140; $5,040** |
| InboxPilot | Growth, annual, AI drafts included | $82.50 | **$990** |
| Front | [Starter $25, single channel; $45 with Copilot AI drafts](https://front.com/pricing) | $125; $225 | **$1,500; $2,700** |
| Front (Professional, realistic) | [$65; $85 with Copilot](https://front.com/pricing) | $325; $425 | **$3,900; $5,100** |
| Zendesk Suite Team | [$55; Copilot needs Professional, $165 with it](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/) | $275; $825 | **$3,300; $9,900** |

Front's real cost is closer to $3,900 than the $1,500 its entry tier implies, and $5,100 once Copilot drafts replies. And the free M365 shared mailbox covers a surprising number of Microsoft teams that never actually needed to buy anything.

## How to choose a shared inbox for Outlook

### 1. Rule out the free M365 shared mailbox first
For a low-volume address on a few people, it is native, free, and often enough. Spending $1,500 a year to solve a problem you do not have yet is the most common mistake in this category.

### 2. Verify Outlook support before comparing any feature
Gmelius has none. Hiver's main product has none, only the separate Omni app. Even Front's Outlook read-status sync is conditional. Confirm the tool treats Outlook as first-class before you fall for its feature list.

### 3. Price the plan you will actually need
Front's $25 Starter is single-channel; the realistic plan is $65. Zendesk's $19 is not the Suite; that starts at $55. Build the number from the plan you will really be on.

Count AI drafting in that number: Front, Help Scout, Missive, Zendesk and Freshdesk all charge more for it, and InboxPilot's plan price already includes it.

### 4. Separate the volume problem from the coordination problem
Two different problems, two different fixes. Coordination is solved by assignment and collision detection. Volume is solved by AI drafting, such as [automated customer service replies in Outlook](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation). Neither touches the other, so diagnose which one is actually hurting before you shop.

## How to choose, in one paragraph

Start with the diagnosis, not the tool. If the answer is that nobody is stepping on anyone's toes, there is just too much email, that is a volume problem and [InboxPilot](/pricing) is our pick, natively inside Outlook, on its own or alongside whichever shared inbox you land on. If you are a few people on a low-volume Microsoft address, use the **M365 shared mailbox** and spend nothing. If you need real coordination and want the most complete classic shared inbox, **Front**, at its real price and with the Outlook sync caveat understood. If you want Outlook treated as a true equal at the lowest price, **Missive**. If you want a support tool with a knowledge base, **Help Scout**. And if you have outgrown shared inboxes entirely, **Zendesk** or **Freshdesk**.

## Related reading

- [Team inbox software compared](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): the full category, both platforms, including help desks.
- [Best AI assistant for Outlook](/blog/outlook-ai-assistant): Copilot, InboxPilot, Fyxer and five more, compared on price and Outlook support.
- [How to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook): rules, automatic replies and Power Automate for a Microsoft 365 team.
- [Gmail shared inbox and shared mailbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail): the Google-side companion to this guide.
- [How to automate email support](/blog/ai-email-agent): what to automate once your inbox is organized.
- [RFQ and quote request automation](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): how quote requests get read, priced, and answered from your own catalog.
- [Shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply): setting automatic replies on a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox, and what they cannot do.
- [How to add a shared mailbox in Outlook](/blog/add-shared-mailbox-outlook): steps for new and classic Outlook, web, Mac and mobile, plus fixes when it does not show.

---

*Prices checked against vendor pricing pages on October 6, 2026, and stated per user per month unless noted. Platform limits are cited from Microsoft's own administrator documentation. Vendors change pricing frequently, so confirm current rates before purchasing.*

---

## Best Shared Inbox Software and Tools in 2026: 10 Ranked

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/best-shared-inbox-software
Published: 2026-07-13

The best shared email inbox tools compared: InboxPilot, Front, Hiver, Missive, Gmelius, Help Scout. Year one for 5 people with AI drafts: $990 to $5,100.

Most comparisons of shared inbox software have a curious feature in common: they do not cite a single source. They assert that shared mailboxes "break down at scale" without telling you where that number comes from, and they blend help desks in with shared inboxes as if they were the same purchase.

This one cites Microsoft's and Google's own documentation for every limit. If your problem is too much email, InboxPilot (we make it) sorts and drafts replies inside Gmail or Outlook. If it is two people answering the same customer, Front, Hiver or Help Scout add assignment, and two or three people should try the free Google or Microsoft 365 shared mailbox first.

This page is the cross-platform comparison. If your platform is already decided, two companion guides go deeper than this one can:

- [Gmail shared inbox and shared mailbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail), if you are staying in Google Workspace.
- [Best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook), if your team is on Microsoft 365.

## Start here: which of the three are you actually buying?

Almost every bad purchase in this category comes from confusing three different products.

| Class | What it gives you | What it does not | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Plain shared mailbox** | Several people can open one mailbox. Free. | No assignment, no collision detection, no reporting | M365 shared mailbox, Google's native shared inbox, Google Groups Collaborative Inbox |
| **Shared inbox tool** | Assignment, collision detection, internal notes, light reporting. Still feels like email. | Deep ticketing, CSAT, portals | Front, Hiver, Gmelius, Missive |
| **Help desk** | Tickets, queues, macros, SLAs, CSAT, deep analytics | The feeling that you are still using email | Zendesk, Freshdesk (Help Scout straddles) |

Work out which class you are in before you compare a single feature. If you are torn between the last two rows, our [shared inbox vs help desk guide](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk) walks through the signs and the costs. A three-person team does not need Zendesk. A 30-agent org cannot run on a Google Group.

## Team inbox software is the same purchase under another name

"Team inbox software" and "shared inbox tools" describe the middle row of that table: one address, several people, and coordination layered on top. Vendors use the two names interchangeably, and so do buyers. If a product page calls itself a team inbox, check which class it really belongs to. Some are shared inbox tools, some are help desks with an email channel, and a few are plain shared mailboxes with a new label.

For a team of two to ten, the questions that separate team inbox tools are short. Does it run inside Gmail or Outlook, or in a separate app everyone has to open? Does it tell you when a colleague is already replying? And what does the plan you need cost at your real headcount? The rest of this guide answers those three for every tool listed.

## The free options first, because you may not need to buy anything

Every listicle in this category skips straight to the paid tools. Two free options are worth ruling out first, and one of them is new enough that the competing articles have not noticed it.

### Google's native shared inbox is new, free, and undocumented in every comparison we found

Google Workspace admins can now create a shared email address directly from the Admin console (Users, then "Set up a shared email address"). Unlike the old Collaborative Inbox, it lives in **real Gmail**, not the Google Groups web interface. It is included on Business Starter, Standard, and Plus with no paid add-on. ([Google Workspace admin docs](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/create-a-shared-inbox))

It gives you access and sending from the shared address. It gives you **no collision detection, no automation, and no SLA reporting.** It solves access, not coordination. But if your problem is "three of us need to see support@," it is free and it is enough.

If everyone only needs a copy of what arrives, you may not need a shared inbox at all: a Google Group gives the team one address, and our guide to [creating a group email in Gmail](/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail) covers it. The [Gmail shared inbox guide](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail) has step-by-step setup for all three free Google options.

### Microsoft tells you exactly where its shared mailbox breaks

This is the best-sourced fact in this entire post, and it comes from Microsoft's own admin documentation:

> "A shared mailbox supports a maximum of 25 users. If too many users access the mailbox at the same time, they might experience connection failures or duplicated messages."
> ([Microsoft Learn, About shared mailboxes](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide))

Duplicated messages. Two agents answering the same customer. That is the platform vendor naming the failure mode in its own docs, which is considerably more persuasive than a shared inbox company telling you that shared mailboxes are bad.

The other documented M365 limits are worth knowing before you rely on one:

- **50 GB cap** without an Exchange Online Plan 2 license. On hitting it, the mailbox stops sending, then stops receiving.
- **No encryption.** Mail from a shared mailbox cannot be encrypted, because the mailbox has no security context of its own.
- **You cannot prevent users from deleting messages.**
- **No external access.** A contractor on an outside domain cannot be given access.

### Gmail has a concurrency ceiling too

Google's native shared inbox is built on Gmail delegation, and delegation has documented limits: up to 1,000 delegates on paper, but **only around 40 can access the account simultaneously** under typical use, and Google notes that "above-average use by one or more delegates might reduce this number." Browser extensions and APIs that poll Gmail frequently reduce it further. ([Google Workspace admin docs](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/gmail/let-users-delegate-access-to-a-gmail-account))

That last detail is worth sitting with, because Hiver and Gmelius are both Gmail extensions.

A plain shared mailbox is genuinely fine at two or three people and low volume. The vendor-documented ceilings are 25 users (Microsoft) and roughly 40 concurrent delegates (Google). But the real breaking point arrives much earlier, the first time two people reply to the same customer and neither knows it happened.

## How we evaluated these tools

Every tool was judged on the same five questions, in this order:

1. **Where it runs.** Inside Gmail or Outlook, or as a separate app the team has to switch to.
2. **Platform coverage.** Native in Gmail, native in Outlook, connected to one or both, or unsupported.
3. **Coordination.** Assignment, collision detection, and internal notes, and whether they live in the mailbox or somewhere else.
4. **Real cost.** The plan a five-person team actually needs, at list price, billed annually, not the advertised entry tier.
5. **What breaks first.** Documented limits from the vendor or the platform, cited where they exist.

Prices come from each vendor's own pricing page, checked on October 6, 2026. Platform limits come from Microsoft's and Google's administrator documentation, linked inline. We did not run paid trials of every tool, so this guide does not score speed or support quality.

## Shared inbox tools compared

| Tool | Best for | Where it lives | Gmail | Outlook | Entry price | Free tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **InboxPilot** | Best overall (AI email layer) | Inside both | Native | Native | $39/mo, AI drafts included | 7-day trial |
| **Front** | Classic shared inbox | Separate app | Connects | Connects (sync caveats) | [$25/seat/mo; $45 with Copilot AI drafts](https://front.com/pricing) | No |
| **Hiver** | Gmail teams | Inside Gmail | Native | Via Omni only | [$25/user/mo annual, AI drafts included](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail) | No (7-day trial) |
| **Missive** | Collaboration | Separate app | Connects | Connects | [$14/user/mo, no AI drafts; $24 plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) | Undocumented |
| **Help Scout** | Support teams | Separate app | Connects | Connects | [$25/user/mo; $45 for AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) | Yes, 5 users |
| **Gmelius** | Gmail-only teams | Inside Gmail | Native | **No** | [$25/user/mo annual, AI drafts included](https://gmelius.com/pricing) | No |
| **Zendesk** | Outgrown the category | Separate app | Connects | Connects | [$19/agent (Support), $55 (Suite); $165 with Copilot](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/) | No |
| **Freshdesk** | Budget ticketing | Separate app | Connects | Connects | [$19/agent/mo annual; $84 with Freddy AI Copilot](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/) | No (14-day trial) |
| **Google native shared inbox** | Free, Workspace | Inside Gmail | Native | No | $0 | Free |
| **M365 shared mailbox** | Free, Microsoft | Inside Outlook | No | Native | $0 | Free |

Prices checked on each vendor's pricing page on October 6, 2026.

## Which tools cut the most admin work on a shared mailbox

Admin overhead on a shared mailbox is the work around the replies: sorting and labeling, deciding who owns each email, spotting two people on the same thread, retyping the same answers, and chasing what nobody picked up. Shared inbox tools organise that work. An AI layer removes some of it before anyone sees it.

| Admin chore | Plain shared mailbox | Shared inbox tool (Front, Hiver, Missive) | InboxPilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sorting and labeling | By hand, or Outlook and Gmail rules | Rules, tags and assignment | Every email sorted and labeled by AI |
| Retyping repeat answers | By hand | Saved templates or macros | Drafts written from your documents, approved by a person |
| Who owns it, and two people on one thread | Nobody knows | Assignment and collision detection | Taken and closed in Slack with 👀 and ✅ |
| Related emails split across threads | Search by hand | Merge by hand | Grouped into one case automatically |
| Logging requests to a spreadsheet | Copy and paste | Integrations | Rows added to Google Sheets |

Ranked by how much of that work disappears rather than gets divided, the order is: an AI drafting layer first, then a shared inbox tool, then a help desk, then a plain shared mailbox. Front and Hiver remove the "who is replying" problem best inside the mailbox, and our [email routing software comparison](/blog/email-routing-software) shows how each tool decides who gets an email. InboxPilot removes the most typing and sorting, because the reply is already drafted when someone opens the email.

InboxPilot can also send auto-replies for the questions you choose and run workflows, such as labeling every invoice or logging every quote request to a sheet. It connects to a Gmail or Outlook mailbox, a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox included, through the account of someone with Full Access to it (there it drafts and never auto-sends). If most of your overhead is coordination between several people rather than volume, pair it with one of the shared inbox tools below or read [shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk) first.

## Internal comments your customers never see

Every shared inbox tool here keeps internal comments on the conversation but out of the reply, so the customer only ever receives what you send. The difference is where the discussion happens: beside the email, in the draft itself, or in your team chat.

| Tool | Where the team discusses an email | Customer sees it |
|---|---|---|
| InboxPilot | A Slack thread under the email, with the AI draft as its first message | No |
| Front | Comments and @mentions in the conversation | No |
| Hiver | Notes and @mentions in the Gmail sidebar | No |
| Missive | Chat inside the thread, plus a shared live draft | No |
| Help Scout | Notes in the conversation | No |
| Plain shared mailbox | Forwarding the email to a colleague, or a separate chat | Risk of reply-all |

InboxPilot posts each matching email to a Slack channel. Your team talks it through in the thread, and a reply such as "offer a partial refund, mention the new tracking number" rewrites the draft before anyone approves it. Nothing in the thread reaches the customer; only the approved reply is sent from Gmail or Outlook. The limit is that the discussion lives in Slack, not in a sidebar inside the mailbox, so teams that don't use Slack should look at Front or Hiver.

On a plain Microsoft 365 or Gmail shared mailbox there is no private comment layer. Teams forward the email internally, which is how a note meant for a colleague ends up in a reply to the customer.

## The 10 best shared inbox tools, ranked

### 1. InboxPilot

This is the pick for teams whose real problem is *volume*, and for anyone who wants relief without leaving Gmail or Outlook. InboxPilot takes the top spot for one reason: **every other tool on this list helps humans divide the work faster. InboxPilot reduces how much work reaches humans at all.** It is the AI layer inside the Gmail or Outlook inbox your team already shares: it sorts each email and drafts the reply from your own documents, and your team keeps whatever it already uses to divide up the work.

**Strengths**
- Native in **both Gmail and Outlook**, which no other Gmail-native tool here manages (Gmelius is Gmail-only, Hiver needs a separate product for Outlook).
- AI drafts grounded in your own docs, help center, and connected tools like Shopify, Notion, and Pipedrive.
- Smart triage, auto-labeling, and plain-English email workflows.
- Priced per plan, with no per-seat fees, AI drafting included, and unlimited team members on every plan.
- No migration. It layers onto the Gmail or Outlook mailbox you already have.
- **Slack integration.** Matching emails post to a channel with the reply already drafted, thread replies change that draft, and 👀 / ✅ track who has each one ([how it works](/blog/slack-email-integration)).

**Tradeoff:** who has which customer is tracked in Slack (take it, close it, chase what nobody took) rather than with assignments inside Gmail or Outlook, and in a Microsoft 365 shared mailbox it drafts but never sends on its own.

Every plan starts with a 7-day free trial. Starter is $39 a month, Growth $99 with auto-replies, Business $249 with three inboxes, and Scale $499 with ten inboxes, all with unlimited team members. AI drafting is included on every plan, and yearly billing gives two months free. ([InboxPilot pricing and plans](/pricing))

It makes the most sense if your team answers one Gmail or Outlook address and wants relief without a migration, or if you run Front or Hiver and want the repetitive volume deflected before it reaches a human. It pairs with any shared inbox below, and for a lot of teams it removes the reason to buy one.

### 2. Front

Front is the most complete classic shared inbox in this category, aimed at mid-market and larger teams that want serious integrations, analytics and omnichannel alongside the shared mailbox. If your diagnosis is coordination rather than volume, this is the tool to beat.

In Front, you assign a conversation to one teammate, who then owns it until it's archived or reassigned. Internal comments and @mentions sit in the same conversation as the email but never go to the customer. Shared drafts let a teammate edit your reply before it's sent. ([Front help center](https://help.front.com/))

**Strengths**
- Mature collision detection and assignment, the two things you are actually buying.
- Deep integration catalog including Salesforce and HubSpot.
- Strong analytics, genuinely better than the rest of this list.
- Omnichannel on Professional and above.

**Tradeoffs**
- **The advertised price is not the real price.** Starter at $25 per seat is limited to a single channel type. The plan most teams actually need is Professional at **$65 per seat per month**, and Enterprise is $105.
- **Outlook sync is conditional, and Front documents this itself.** Read status syncs only for personal channels, and for shared conversations only once the assignee reads it. In-place archive mailboxes do not sync at all. Mixed Front and Outlook teams get confused by this. ([Front help docs](https://help.front.com/en/articles/205376))
- AI is an add-on: Copilot, which drafts replies, is $20 per seat per month, so Starter with drafts is $45 and Professional $85. Autopilot runs from $0.05 per conversation.

Starter is $25 per seat per month billed annually and capped at 10 seats, Professional $65, Enterprise $105. No free tier, 14-day trial. ([front.com/pricing](https://front.com/pricing), checked October 6, 2026)

Already on Front and weighing a move? [Front alternatives](/blog/front-alternatives) maps what replaces its assignment, comments and shared drafts, priced for a five-person team.

### 3. Hiver

Hiver is for Google Workspace teams who will not leave Gmail, and should not have to. It runs inside Gmail as an extension, so there is almost nothing to onboard.

**Strengths**
- Genuinely native to Gmail, running as a sidebar. Onboarding is close to zero because there is no new app to learn.
- Collision detection, assignment, and SLA basics.
- Clean pricing ladder: $25, $55, $85, and Growth already includes AI Copilot, which drafts replies.

**Tradeoffs**
- **Performance is the recurring complaint.** Reviewers on G2 and Capterra consistently report slow loading under volume and needing to refresh the browser to bring Hiver back.
- Outlook is not supported in the Gmail product. Microsoft teams have to use Hiver Omni, which is a separate standalone app, not an Outlook add-in.
- Analytics are thinner than a full help desk.

No free plan: a 7-day trial of Elite, then Growth at $25 per user per month billed annually ($35 monthly), Pro $55, Elite $85, from a 2-seat minimum ([hiverhq.com/pricing](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail), checked October 6, 2026).

### 4. Missive

Missive is for teams that want to discuss and co-write replies inside the thread instead of copying them into Slack.

**Strengths**
- **Cheapest serious entry point at $14 per user per month.**
- Real-time collaborative drafting is genuinely differentiated. Two people can write one reply together, live.
- Broad channel support: Gmail, Outlook, IMAP, WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram, SMS via Twilio.
- Provider-agnostic, so it does not care whether you are on Google or Microsoft.

**Tradeoffs**
- Starter caps at 5 users and has no AI drafts. The realistic plan for a growing team is Productive at $24. AI usage is billed on top, through Missive credits or your own OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini key ([Missive docs](https://missiveapp.com/docs/ai/overview)).
- **The learning curve is the dominant reviewer complaint.** It is a genuinely new paradigm, and teams coming from plain Gmail need a few weeks to settle in.
- Occasional duplicate-thread and snooze confusion reported by reviewers.

Starter is $14 per user per month for up to 5 users, Productive $24 for up to 50, Business $36 with no cap. A free plan is referenced but its limits are not published, so confirm before relying on it. ([missiveapp.com/pricing](https://missiveapp.com/pricing), checked October 6, 2026)

### 5. Help Scout

Help Scout suits customer support teams that want a shared inbox plus a knowledge base, without Zendesk's weight.

**Strengths**
- **Free tier with 5 users**, one inbox, and one Docs site.
- The cleanest, easiest interface of any support tool here.
- Built-in knowledge base, so you are not buying a second product.
- AI Answers is priced per resolution ($0.75) rather than per seat, which is buyer-friendly.

**Tradeoffs**
- **Reporting is basic** compared to Zendesk or Freshdesk, and custom report history is gated to higher tiers. This is the most consistent reviewer theme.
- Workflow customization feels restrictive once your needs get complex.
- Extra inboxes cost $10 per month each, and Pro requires a 10-user minimum.
- No native voice or WhatsApp.

Free covers 5 users and one inbox. Standard is $25 per user per month billed yearly, Plus $45, Pro $75. AI Drafts start on Plus, since Standard has only AI Assist for editing what you write. ([helpscout.com/pricing](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)

### 6. Gmelius

Gmelius is for small Google Workspace teams that want a shared inbox plus Kanban boards, at the lowest Gmail-native price.

**Strengths**
- Cheapest true Gmail-native entry at $19 per user per month.
- Kanban and Trello-style boards on top of email, which is an unusual and genuinely useful combination.
- Shared labels, internal notes, and sequences.

**Tradeoffs**
- **Gmail only. No Outlook, at all.** One Outlook user on your team disqualifies this tool entirely. Confirmed on Gmelius's own pricing page.
- **Speed complaints are persistent.** Reviewers repeatedly report slow Gmail load times with the extension active, and Chrome extension bugs.
- The mobile app is the most-cited weak point.
- No free tier, and only a 7-day trial, which is not long enough to roll a shared inbox out to a team.

Shared inboxes start on Growth at $25 per user per month billed annually ($33 monthly), and Pro is $40. The AI Draft Assistant comes with every plan. The $19 Meli plan is a personal AI assistant without shared inboxes ([gmelius.com/pricing](https://gmelius.com/pricing), checked October 6, 2026).

### 7. Zendesk

Zendesk is on this list so you can rule it in or out honestly. It is not a shared inbox. It is a ticketing suite, and that is a different purchase, for teams that have outgrown this category entirely and need a real help desk.

**Strengths**
- The deepest routing, reporting, and automation available anywhere here.
- Enormous app ecosystem.
- Scales to genuine enterprise volume.

**Tradeoffs**
- **The $19 Support Team tier is a trap for this buyer.** Anything resembling the suite starts at **$55 per agent (Suite Team)**, and Professional is $115.
- Complexity and admin burden are the dominant reviewer criticisms. Setup takes real planning.
- Email stops feeling like email and becomes tickets. That is the entire point, and also the entire cost.

Support Team is $19 per agent per month billed annually. Suite Team is $55 and Suite Professional $115, with no free tier. Copilot, which drafts replies, adds $50 an agent and needs Professional or higher, so AI drafts start at $165 an agent. ([zendesk.com/pricing](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)

### 8. Freshdesk

Freshdesk is the budget route to real ticketing, for teams that can live with rough edges.

**Strengths**
- Aggressive pricing at $19 per agent per month.
- Solid knowledge base and customer portal.

**Tradeoffs**
- **There is no free plan any more.** The pricing page now offers only a 14-day trial of the Enterprise plan, checked 2026-09-23. Many roundups still describe the old free plan.
- **Duplicate and child ticket handling** is a specific, recurring reviewer complaint: child tickets get treated as new tickets, and agents end up creating duplicates.
- Reporting is limited on lower tiers.

No free plan, only a 14-day trial. Growth is $19 per agent per month billed annually, Pro $55, Enterprise $89. Freddy AI Copilot, which drafts replies, is $29 an agent more on Pro or Enterprise only, so drafts start at $84 an agent. ([freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing](https://www.freshworks.com/freshdesk/pricing/), checked October 6, 2026)

### 9. Google's native shared inbox (new in 2026)

This suits Google Workspace teams that want a shared address in real Gmail, for free, and do not yet need coordination features.

**Strengths**
- **Free** on Business Starter, Standard, and Plus, with no add-on.
- Lives in actual Gmail, unlike the old Collaborative Inbox, which lived in the Google Groups interface and never appeared in the Gmail mobile app.
- Sends from the shared address, with a "sent by" attribution you can hide.

**Tradeoffs**
- **No collision detection, no automation, no SLA reporting.** It solves access, not coordination.
- Inherits Gmail's delegation ceilings (roughly 40 concurrent delegates, reduced further by extensions).
- Rolling out in phases, so it may not be in your Admin console yet.

It costs $0, included with Workspace. ([Google Workspace admin docs](https://knowledge.workspace.google.com/admin/users/create-a-shared-inbox))

### 10. Microsoft 365 shared mailbox

This suits Microsoft shops with a low-volume info@ or reception@ address and a handful of people on it.

**Strengths**
- **Free.** No license required on the mailbox itself.
- Native in Outlook desktop, web, and mobile. Automapping means it simply appears.
- Includes a shared calendar.

**Tradeoffs**
- **25-user maximum, with "connection failures or duplicated messages" beyond it,** per Microsoft's own docs.
- 50 GB hard stop without an Exchange Online Plan 2 license.
- No encryption, no way to prevent deletion, no external users.
- No assignment, no collision detection, no reporting.

It costs $0. ([Microsoft Learn](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/admin/email/about-shared-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide))

## What a 5-person team actually pays in year one

Advertised entry prices are misleading, so here is the real number for a five-person support team, at list price, billed annually.

| Tool | Plan needed for 5 people | Monthly | Year one |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google native shared inbox | Included with Workspace | $0 | **$0** |
| M365 shared mailbox | Included | $0 | **$0** |
| Hiver | [Growth at $25, AI drafts included](https://hiverhq.com/pricing/hiver-in-gmail) | $125 | **$1,500** |
| Missive | [Starter $14 (caps at exactly 5), no AI drafts; Productive $24 plus AI usage](https://missiveapp.com/pricing) | $70; $120 plus usage | **$840; $1,440 plus usage** |
| Gmelius | [Growth $25, AI drafts included](https://gmelius.com/pricing) | $125 | **$1,500** |
| Help Scout | [Free (5 users) or Standard $25; Plus $45 for AI Drafts](https://www.helpscout.com/pricing/) | $0 to $125; $225 | **$0 to $1,500; $2,700** |
| InboxPilot | Growth, annual, AI drafts included | $82.50 | **$990** |
| Front | [Starter $25, single channel; $45 with Copilot AI drafts](https://front.com/pricing) | $125; $225 | **$1,500; $2,700** |
| Front (Professional, realistic) | [$65; $85 with Copilot](https://front.com/pricing) | $325; $425 | **$3,900; $5,100** |
| Zendesk Suite Team | [$55; Copilot needs Professional, $165 with it](https://www.zendesk.com/pricing/) | $275; $825 | **$3,300; $9,900** |

Two things stand out. Front's real cost is closer to $3,900 than the $1,500 its entry tier implies, and $5,100 once Copilot drafts replies. And InboxPilot's price does not grow with headcount: every plan covers unlimited team members, and Growth is $990 a year with drafting included.

## What to look for in shared inbox software

### 1. Rule out free first

If you are two or three people, Google's native shared inbox or the M365 shared mailbox may be enough. Spending $1,500 a year to solve a problem you do not have yet is the most common mistake in this category.

### 2. Check Outlook support before anything else

Gmelius does not support Outlook. Hiver's Gmail product does not either. If any meaningful part of your team is on Microsoft, that removes options before you compare a single feature.

### 3. Price the plan you will actually need

Front's $25 Starter is single-channel. Zendesk's $19 is not the Suite. Missive's $14 Starter caps at five users. Build the number from the plan you will really be on, at the headcount you will really have.

Per-seat prices usually leave AI drafting out: Front, Help Scout, Missive, Zendesk and Freshdesk all charge more for it, while InboxPilot's plan price includes it.

### 4. Ask what breaks at 3x volume

Every tool here works at low volume. Ask each vendor what fails first when volume triples: rule caps, load times, reporting depth, or the AI meter.

### 5. Separate the volume problem from the coordination problem

These are different problems with different solutions. Collision detection fixes coordination. It does nothing about volume. AI drafting fixes volume. It does nothing about coordination. Diagnose which one is actually hurting before you shop.

### Shared inboxes for schools and universities

At colleges and universities, admissions, the registrar, financial aid and IT help desks all run on shared addresses, and they have three quirks worth checking before you buy:

- **Check the account type first.** Google documents its Admin console shared inbox for Business Starter, Standard and Plus, not Education editions, so ask your Workspace admin whether it is available to you. A [Google Groups Collaborative Inbox](/blog/google-groups-collaborative-inbox) works on school accounts.
- **Price for the peak, not the average.** Admissions deadlines and the start of term bring far more email than a quiet month. Per-seat tools charge for every temporary staffer you add; volume-priced tools charge for the extra mail instead. Work out which one your busiest month costs.
- **Ask about student data.** Messages to these offices carry student records, so ask each vendor where email is stored, how long it is kept, and whether it is used to train AI models.

Most admissions and registrar mail is the same questions: deadlines, entry requirements, fees and which documents to send. InboxPilot [drafts those replies for education and certification programs](/industries/education-certification) from your prospectus and policy documents, and by default a staff member approves each one before it sends.

## How to choose, in one paragraph

Start with the diagnosis, not the tool. If the answer is that nobody is stepping on anyone's toes, there is just too much email, that is a volume problem and [InboxPilot](/pricing) is our pick, on its own or alongside whichever shared inbox you land on. If you are two or three people on Workspace, try **Google's native shared inbox** and spend nothing. If you are a Gmail team who wants real coordination, **Hiver** is the lowest-friction upgrade, from $25 a seat. If you want the most complete classic shared inbox and can pay for it, it is **Front**, at its real price rather than its advertised one. If you want a support-shaped tool with a knowledge base, **Help Scout**. And if your team is on Microsoft, cross Gmelius off the list.

## Related reading

- [Gmail shared inbox and shared mailbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail) and [best shared inbox for Outlook](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-outlook): the platform-specific versions of this guide.
- [Best email management software: 11 tools for support teams](/blog/ai-email-agent): the wider category, including help desks.
- [How to automate email support](/blog/ai-email-agent): what to automate once your inbox is organized.
- [RFQ and quote request automation](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation): how quote requests get read, priced, and answered from your own catalog.
- [Shared mailbox auto-reply](/blog/shared-mailbox-auto-reply): the documented limits of native auto-replies on a shared address.
- [Front alternatives](/blog/front-alternatives): leaving Front, and what each option costs for five seats.
- [Gmail ticketing system](/blog/gmail-ticketing-system): five ways to track customer email, from free labels to help desks.
- [Best email routing software for teams](/blog/email-routing-software): round robin, load balancing and AI routing, tool by tool.
- [Shared inbox vs help desk](/blog/shared-inbox-vs-help-desk): the signs you have outgrown shared email, and what each costs a small team.
- [How to add a shared mailbox in Outlook](/blog/add-shared-mailbox-outlook): the free Microsoft 365 option, set up in every version of Outlook.
- [How to create a group email in Gmail](/blog/how-to-create-a-group-email-in-gmail): contact labels and Google Groups, when a team only needs a shared address.
- [Google Groups Collaborative Inbox](/blog/google-groups-collaborative-inbox): set up the free Google queue, make replies reach the customer, and fix what breaks.

---

*Prices checked against vendor pricing pages on October 6, 2026, and stated per user per month unless noted. Platform limits are cited from Microsoft and Google's own administrator documentation. Vendors change pricing frequently, so confirm current rates before purchasing.*

---

## AI Email Replies From Your Own Documents: Setup Guide

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents
Published: 2026-05-27

Upload three to five policy documents, connect Gmail or Outlook, and get replies drafted from your own facts. Five-step setup, worked example, limits.

Most AI writing tools sound confident and wrong. Ask a generic assistant to answer a refund request and it invents a policy. Ask it to quote your enterprise pricing and it guesses. The problem is rarely the model. It is that the model has never seen your refund policy, your price list, or the way you actually talk to customers.

Generating emails from your documents fixes that in a specific way. When a message lands in your inbox, the AI reads it, searches the policies, product sheets, and procedures you uploaded, and drafts a reply using your facts in your voice. No copying from a PDF, no tab-switching to a wiki, no hoping a chatbot remembers what you pasted last Tuesday.

This guide covers which documents to gather, the five-step setup, a worked example, how to teach the assistant your tone from email you have already sent, and the limits to plan around. The setup is described in [InboxPilot's AI email assistant](/ai-email-assistant), which is our product, so the fit section at the end says where it is the wrong tool.

## What generating emails from your documents means

In practice, your documents become a searchable knowledge base the AI consults on every incoming email. The technical name is retrieval-augmented generation, usually shortened to RAG. From your side it feels simpler: the assistant knows your refund window because you uploaded Refund-Policy-2026.pdf, not because it read the whole internet.

When InboxPilot drafts an email from your documents, four things happen in sequence:

1. It reads the incoming message and works out what is being asked: refund, pricing, shipping, scheduling.
2. It retrieves the most relevant passages from your Knowledge Base, which holds your uploaded files, FAQ pairs, website pages, and templates.
3. It drafts a reply in your configured tone, with the facts taken from those passages rather than invented.
4. It leaves the result as a draft in Gmail or Outlook for review, or sends it automatically if you have switched that on for this particular automation.

That is different from pasting an email into a chat window. The knowledge stays attached to your inbox, updates when you update the files, and applies consistently across everyone on the team.

## Why documents beat pasting into a chatbot

Teams that live in email already have the answers written down. They sit in PDFs, Word files, onboarding decks, and internal wikis. The win is connecting that library directly to the inbox instead of rewriting it into prompts every morning.

| Approach | What you get | Main risk |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Generic AI chat | Fast drafts | Invented policies, wrong prices, off-brand tone |
| Autocomplete suggestions | Phrasing that matches you | No access to your policies or procedures |
| Static templates | Consistent wording | Breaks the moment the question does not match the template |
| Document-grounded AI | Accurate replies from your own material | Quality depends on what you upload, which is fixable in minutes |

Static templates still have a job: confirming receipt, covering time away, setting expectations after hours. Our [automated email response examples](/blog/automated-email-response-examples) cover those. They stop being enough the moment the reply has to contain the answer.

The shift is not only speed. It is trust. You are not hoping the model remembered your policy. You uploaded it, and when a draft is wrong the fix is to correct the document once rather than the reply every time.

## What to gather before you start

You need three things:

- A Gmail or Microsoft 365 Outlook inbox you want assisted or automated. Shared inboxes such as support@ or billing@ work the same way as a personal one.
- An [InboxPilot account](/auth/signup). The 7-day free trial is enough to judge draft quality on real mail.
- Three to five core documents. Common starting points: refund and returns policies, price sheets (the source for [quotes drafted from your catalog](/use-cases/rfq-email-automation)), product specifications, onboarding guides, service level terms. Schools and training providers start with [course handbooks and admissions FAQs](/industries/education-certification).

The Knowledge Base accepts PDF, Word, spreadsheets, and other common business formats in its Files tab. InboxPilot extracts the text, indexes it, and consults it when drafting. Resist uploading the entire company wiki on day one. A refund policy plus a handful of FAQ pairs is enough to see whether the drafts are good, and you expand from there.

## Set it up in five steps

### Step 1: Connect your inbox

Sign up, connect an inbox, and choose Gmail or Outlook. The consent screen asks for scoped access to read and draft in the inbox you select, and nothing else. You can revoke it from your Google or Microsoft account at any time.

Starter and Growth include one inbox, Business three and Scale ten, and any paid plan can add more at $15 a month each. Each inbox can carry its own documents. That matters when support@ and billing@ should not share the same policy files.

### Step 2: Upload your documents

Open the Knowledge Base and go to the Files tab. Upload or drag in your documents, wait for processing to finish, and confirm each file appears in the list.

One habit pays off immediately: clear filenames. Refund-Policy-2026.pdf and Enterprise-Pricing-Q3.docx make it obvious which source produced which answer when you test, and which file to replace when a policy changes.

### Step 3: Layer the sources files cannot cover

Documents carry narrative policy well. Most teams get the best drafts by combining the Knowledge Base tabs:

| Tab | Best for |
| --- | --- |
| Files | Policies, manuals, long-form PDFs, internal procedures |
| FAQ | Exact answers to high-stakes questions, such as "What is your refund window?" |
| Website | Your public help centre and docs, kept current by crawl |
| Raw text | Short facts: pricing tiers, opening hours, escalation rules |
| Templates | Reusable reply structures the AI picks by intent |

Use Files for depth and FAQ for precision. If a question must be answered identically every time, write it as an FAQ pair rather than trusting retrieval to land on the right paragraph of a 30-page handbook. Templates add the third layer, structure, and our [guide to automating Gmail](/blog/automate-your-gmail) covers how they combine with filters and labels.

### Step 4: Write the automation and decide what a person must see

In Automations, describe the workflow in plain English. For example: "When a customer asks about a refund, check the returns policy, draft a reply with the correct window and steps, and leave it for review." Then add a second rule for what must always reach a human: "If an email mentions a lawsuit, a chargeback, or a complaint about a named employee, label it Escalate and do not draft."

Two settings decide how your documents show up. A short instruction sets who is writing, for instance "You are a support agent for Acme. Be concise and friendly, and never promise features not listed in the product documents." And the send mode: every automation starts in draft mode, where each reply waits in the inbox for a person. Auto-send is a per-automation switch for later, available from the Growth plan up.

### Step 5: Test in Playground, then go live

Before any customer sees an AI reply, open Playground and paste in the sample emails you actually receive every week. Playground is a sandbox: nothing sends and no live thread changes. Check whether each draft cites the right policy in the right tone. When an answer is wrong or thin, add a targeted FAQ pair or upload the missing document, then run it again.

When the drafts look right, switch the automation on. New mail is processed against your files, FAQ, and templates, and drafts appear in Gmail or Outlook. Edit any draft you disagree with before sending. A rollout that works for most teams: week one, one inbox and three to five documents in draft mode; week two, FAQ pairs for the ten most common questions; week three, auto-send for two or three safe, well-documented topics, with everything else still drafting.

## A worked example: a refund question becomes a grounded draft

This is the core of [support replies drafted from your docs](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation), and the same flow handles [refund and return emails for Shopify stores](/industries/shopify-support). Say you have uploaded a returns policy with a 30-day window, a requirement that items be unworn, and a five to ten business day refund timeline. A customer writes:

> Subject: Return?
>
> Hi, I ordered a jacket on the 2nd and it arrived on the 9th but it is too big. Can I still return it and how long does the refund take? Thanks, Priya

InboxPilot matches the intent to returns, retrieves the window, condition, and timeline from the uploaded policy, and leaves this draft:

> Hi Priya,
>
> Yes, you can. Returns are accepted within 30 days of delivery, so you have until the 8th of next month, and the jacket just needs to be unworn with the tags on. To start it, [return steps or portal link]. Once the carrier scans the return, the refund goes back to your original payment method within five to ten business days.
>
> If you would rather swap it for a smaller size, reply with the size and I will set that up instead.
>
> Sam

Every fact in that draft came from the policy file. If the window changes to 45 days next quarter, you replace the file and the next draft says 45. When a question is not covered by any source, the draft should say what it does not know and hand off rather than guess, and adding the missing document closes the gap for every future email on that topic.

## Teach it your tone from the email you already send

Documents supply the facts. Your sent mail supplies the voice. InboxPilot can learn phrasing and tone from replies you have already sent, so drafts read like your team rather than like a policy document being recited. This is the part people used to search for as training Gmail on your own data, and it is a setting rather than a project: connect the inbox, let it read your past replies, and the drafts pick up your greetings, sign-offs, and level of formality.

Two cautions. Tone learning does not make an old reply a source of facts, so a price you quoted in March does not override the price sheet you uploaded in September. And if the sent folder is mostly one-line internal replies, give the assistant a few complete customer emails to learn from first.

## Write documents for retrieval, not for print

Use descriptive headings such as "Refund eligibility" and "Enterprise pricing", keep one topic per section, and do not bury the refund window on page 12 of a general handbook. Retrieval finds well-labelled sections and struggles with sprawl.

Keep the index current. When a policy changes, replace the file the same day. A grounded draft from a stale document is wrong with confidence, which is the exact failure you set this up to avoid.

Pair documents with templates for structure. If you often send the same shape of reply, a demo follow-up, an onboarding checklist, a quote response, save it in the Templates tab with a line on when to use it. The AI blends the template structure with facts from your files.

Start narrow, then expand. The fastest teams validate one inbox and one topic before adding the next, rather than uploading everything and auditing nothing.

## The limits worth planning for

Document-grounded drafting is the most reliable way to get accurate AI email, and it still has edges worth stating plainly.

- Quality tracks your uploads. Thin, outdated, or contradictory documents produce thin, outdated, or contradictory drafts. The fix is fast, but it is on you.
- Files do not update themselves. Uploaded documents are snapshots. Website pages stay fresher through the crawl; internal PDFs need a re-upload when policy moves.
- Some topics should never auto-send. Refunds outside policy, legal threats, and angry escalations belong with a human, which is what the escalation rule in step four is for.
- Sensitive material needs judgment. If a document contains data you would not want quoted in an outbound email, such as full customer lists or unreleased financials, keep it out of the Knowledge Base or restrict those threads to draft-only with mandatory review.

None of these are reasons to skip the setup. They are reasons to start in draft mode and expand automation only where the drafts have earned it.

## Where InboxPilot fits

InboxPilot is an inbox-native AI email agent: it works inside Gmail and Outlook, including shared inboxes, with no migration and no new interface for the team. Documents in the Knowledge Base are one source for its [AI email replies](/features/ai-email-replies), alongside your website, FAQ pairs, templates, and past email, and every draft waits for approval by default with auto-send opt-in per workflow.

Your documents ground replies for your organisation's agent only. Customer data never trains AI models, and InboxPilot is SOC 2 Type II and GDPR compliant; the [security page](/security) has the detail, and our [data privacy guide](/blog/ai-email-tools-data-privacy-guide) covers what to ask before connecting documents to any AI tool. Pricing is per plan, with inbound email unlimited and no per-seat fees. After a 7-day free trial, Starter is $39 a month, and Growth is $99 a month with Shopify, Stripe, Notion and Pipedrive, unlimited workflows, and auto-send. Every plan includes unlimited team members. Full detail is on the [pricing page](/pricing).

To be honest about fit: this workflow is built for repetitive operational email, quotes, order status, returns, document collection, routine support. InboxPilot works on the email a team shares in Gmail and Outlook, and stops short of live chat, ticket queues, and one executive's personal inbox. And if your questions are few and identical, Gmail's own templates answer them without any of this machinery.

## Related reading

- [How to automate your Gmail inbox](/blog/automate-your-gmail): filters, labels, templates, and where AI picks up.
- [AI email tools and data privacy](/blog/ai-email-tools-data-privacy-guide): the questions to ask before any tool reads your documents.
- [InboxPilot pricing](/pricing): what each plan does, no per-seat fees.
- [Best AI assistant for Outlook](/blog/outlook-ai-assistant): which Outlook tools can draft from company documents, and on which plan.
- [Email triage for business inboxes](/blog/email-triage): deciding which emails get a drafted reply in the first place.

Your policies and product documents already contain the answers your inbox needs every day. If retyping them is the piece of your week you want back, [start a free trial](/auth/signup), upload your first three documents, and run five real questions through Playground against your own mail. For a worked example with borrower document requests, see [how to fix your email problem as a mortgage lender](/blog/how-to-fix-your-email-problem-as-a-mortgage-lender).

---

*This guide describes InboxPilot's Knowledge Base, Automations, and Playground as they work in September 2026. Retrieval-augmented generation is described in general terms; no external statistics or customer figures are cited in this post. InboxPilot is the publisher of this article.*

---

## How AI Email Tools Handle Inbox Data: PII, GDPR, SOC 2

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/ai-email-tools-data-privacy-guide
Published: 2026-02-28

What happens to the PII in your inbox when an AI email tool reads it. Five questions on training, storage, SOC 2, retention and control, with our answers.

The OAuth consent screen takes about four seconds to click through. Read it slowly once: you are handing a third party the ability to read, and often send, everything in an inbox that contains client communications, financials, HR matters, and every candid sentence anyone ever wrote to you.

Most teams grant that access in under five minutes, without reading the privacy policy. That's not carelessness; the policies are long and written to be skimmed. But there is a short list of questions that cuts through them, and any vendor worth connecting can answer every one in plain language. That includes us: InboxPilot is an [AI email assistant for Gmail and Outlook](/ai-email-assistant), and the same questions apply to it.

## What you are actually granting an AI email tool

The "Sign in with Google" or "Sign in with Microsoft" button hides a scope decision that vendors make and users inherit.

**Read-only access** lets the tool read mail but not send, modify, or delete. **Full mailbox access** lets it do all of those, across your entire history, not just new mail. Many tools also request calendar and contacts in the same grant.

Neither scope is wrong by itself; an assistant that sends replies needs send permission to exist. The point is to know which grant you made and to match it against what the tool claims to do. A tool that only drafts shouldn't need delete rights.

The scope tells you what the vendor can touch. The five questions below tell you what they do with it, which is the part the consent screen never shows.

## Five questions that separate serious vendors from the rest

| Question | Good answer looks like | Walk away when |
|---|---|---|
| Is my email used to train models? | A flat written no, backed by a DPA | "We may use data to improve our services" |
| Where is data stored and processed? | Named regions, named sub-processors | The sales rep has to go find out |
| Can you show a SOC 2 report? | Type II report available under NDA | No audit, no named framework |
| What happens when I cancel? | Defined deletion timeline, GDPR deletion honored | Silence, or indefinite retention |
| What can I exclude from automation? | Sender, topic, and workflow-level controls | An all-or-nothing switch |

### 1. Is my email used to train your models

This is the question with the widest gap between vendors and the one most evaded. AI had to learn from something; the issue is whether it keeps learning from you. If customer content feeds model training, your client emails and confidential threads may be improving a system that serves other customers.

Look for an explicit sentence, "we do not use your data to train our models," and a Data Processing Agreement that says the same thing in binding language. Treat "improve our services" phrasing as a yes until proven otherwise.

### 2. Where is my data stored and processed

For EU businesses, or anyone with EU customers, processing location is a compliance question, not a preference. GDPR requires lawful transfer mechanisms for personal data leaving the EU, such as Standard Contractual Clauses. Ask for server regions, the sub-processor list, and the transfer mechanism by name. A vendor that can't answer is either non-compliant or does not know its own infrastructure, and both are disqualifying.

### 3. Can you show a SOC 2 report

SOC 2 is an independent audit of security controls. Type I is a snapshot; **Type II verifies the controls operated over a sustained period**, which makes it the report worth asking for. It's not a guarantee, but it is the difference between "trust us" and "a third party checked."

No SOC 2 isn't automatically fatal for a young vendor, but they should name the framework they follow (ISO 27001, NIST) and offer something auditable in its place.

### 4. What happens to my data when I cancel

Retention after cancellation is where good intentions go unexamined. You want a defined deletion timeline in writing and confirmation that GDPR or CCPA deletion requests are honored. Data kept indefinitely after you leave is risk you carry for a product you no longer use.

### 5. What can I stop the AI from touching

The most practical privacy control is scoping. You should be able to exclude specific senders, specific topics, and whole categories of thread from automation, and to keep human approval mandatory on everything else. Legal matters, disputes, and personnel threads should never be a model's problem. A tool that can't be told "never touch this" cannot be trusted with an inbox that contains everything.

## Where the bar sits higher by industry

**Legal.** Attorney-client privilege extends to email. Confirm privileged matters can be excluded from automation entirely and that nothing privileged can end up in training data.

**Healthcare.** If your mail contains Protected Health Information, HIPAA applies and the vendor must sign a Business Associate Agreement. Many AI email tools won't. No BAA, no connection, regardless of features.

**Finance and accounting.** Client financial data brings its own regulatory load. Confirm encryption in transit and at rest, and ask who among the sub-processors can see client data.

**Education.** Student records and applicant documents arrive by email. Check deletion rights and who can see drafts before connecting an admissions inbox; we cover that workflow for [education and certification programs](/industries/education-certification).

**HR and recruiting.** The personal data here belongs to employees and candidates, not just the company, which makes training-data policies and deletion rights weigh heavier than usual.

## A checklist you can run in five minutes

Before connecting any AI tool to your inbox, confirm in writing:

- No-training policy stated explicitly
- DPA available and signed
- Storage locations and sub-processors named
- Deletion timeline on cancellation defined
- SOC 2 (ideally Type II) or a named framework with third-party audit
- GDPR or CCPA position stated, if either applies to you
- Sender and topic exclusion controls exist
- Human approval available as the default, not a workaround
- Industry-specific requirement met (BAA for HIPAA, privilege handling for legal)

If the first three cannot be satisfied, stop there. Features can't compensate for a vendor that will not commit on paper.

## How InboxPilot answers these questions

Since we wrote the exam, here is our own answer sheet, limited to what we can actually back:

Customer data never trains AI models. We hold SOC 2 Type II and are GDPR compliant.

On control: a human approves every send by default. Auto-send is opt-in per workflow, drafting is grounded in your own docs and past email, and the agent escalates when unsure rather than guessing. Plain-English rules govern what gets triaged, labeled, routed or left alone.

For anything this list does not cover, retention timelines, sub-processors, DPAs for your jurisdiction, ask us the same way you would ask anyone else; the [security page](/security) is the starting point, or [talk to us about a security review](/contact). A vendor that resents due diligence is answering a question you didn't ask.

## Related reading

- [Best shared inbox software](/blog/best-shared-inbox-software): where shared inboxes change the risk picture.
- [What an AI email agent actually is](/blog/ai-email-agent): the category this guide keeps referring to.

Fifteen minutes of vendor questions is cheap insurance against connecting your inbox to a training pipeline. If you want to see how a vendor answers when the questions are pointed at it, [InboxPilot](/security) will sit for the exam.

---

## Gmail Auto Reply: Vacation Responder, Templates, AI (2026)

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/automate-your-gmail
Published: 2025-10-19

Set up a Gmail auto reply three ways: out of office (the vacation responder), a filter that sends a template, or AI drafts written from your own data.

"Gmail auto reply" means three different things depending on who is asking. Someone going on holiday wants an out of office reply, which Gmail calls the vacation responder. A business that gets the same question every day wants a reply to fire on certain emails. A team behind a support@ or sales@ address wants the reply to actually answer the question, and that is the one thing Gmail cannot do on its own.

This guide covers all three, in that order, and is plain about where each one stops. On Outlook instead? See [how to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook). The first two are free and take a few minutes. The third is where AI email automation comes in, and where InboxPilot, which is us, fits.

## Three ways to set up a Gmail auto reply

### 1. Out of office: the vacation responder, for time away

Gmail has no setting called "out of office". The feature is the vacation responder, and it lives in the general settings, not in the compose window.

**On a computer:**

1. In Gmail, click Settings (the gear at the top right), then See all settings.
2. Stay on the General tab and scroll down to Vacation responder.
3. Select Vacation responder on.
4. Set the first day and, if you know it, the last day.
5. Write the subject and the message.
6. Optionally tick the box that limits replies to people in your contacts.
7. Click Save Changes at the bottom of the page.

**In the Gmail app:** on Android, tap Menu, then Settings, choose your account, tap Vacation responder, switch it on, fill in the dates, subject and message, and tap Done. On iPhone or iPad, tap Menu, then Settings, and under Compose and Reply tap Vacation responder. Fill in the same fields and tap Save.

Gmail starts sending at 12:00 AM on the first day and stops at 11:59 PM on the last one. To end it early, go back to the same screen and switch it off. If you need words for the message itself, [these automated email response examples](/blog/automated-email-response-examples) include out of office, holiday and after-hours replies you can paste in.

Two details matter. Gmail sends the response to a given person once, and again only if they write to you after four days with the responder still on or after you edit the message, so nobody is buried in replies. And you can limit it to people in your contacts or, on a Google Workspace account, to people in your own organisation, which keeps strangers and automated senders from receiving it. It does not reply to messages Gmail filed as spam or to mail sent to a mailing list you are on. Those rules explain most "my out of office is not working" reports.

Google Calendar has its own Out of office entry, which declines meeting invitations for the dates you block. It does not answer email, so set the vacation responder as well.

What the vacation responder cannot do is run on anything shorter than a whole day, so an after-hours auto reply is not possible this way, and it cannot vary the message by who is asking or what they ask about.

### 2. A filter that sends a template, for a standing reply

This is the setup most people searching for a Gmail auto reply actually want: a fixed reply to certain emails, every day, whether or not you are at your desk.

First enable templates: Settings, See all settings, Advanced, Templates, Enable, then save. (Creating, editing and sharing templates is covered step by step in [Gmail templates](/blog/gmail-templates).) Compose the reply you want to send, open the three-dot menu in the compose window, choose Templates, then Save draft as template. Next, create a filter: click the search options icon in the search bar, set the criteria (a recipient such as support@yourcompany.com, words in the subject, a sender domain), click Create filter, tick Send template and pick the one you saved.

From then on every email matching the filter receives that text. Common uses are an acknowledgement on a support address ("we have your message and reply within one business day"), a standing answer to a recurring request, or a reply that points people to a form.

The limits are the limits of any filter. It matches words, not meaning, so a filter on "refund" fires on "no refund needed, just checking in". It sends the same text to everyone who matches. It cannot look anything up. And it lives inside one Google account, so a team of three ends up with three diverging sets of filters.

### 3. AI that reads the email and drafts the reply

The third kind of auto reply is a different thing altogether. Instead of matching a keyword and sending fixed text, an AI tool reads the incoming email, works out what it is asking, and writes a reply to that message from your own information: your policies, your website, past replies, and systems such as your order data.

InboxPilot, which is us, does this inside Gmail. Connect the inbox with one click, point it at your documents and tools, and each incoming email is sorted by request type and drafted. By default the draft waits in Gmail for a person to approve and send. Once a category is consistently right, order status questions for instance, you can let that category send on its own and keep review for refunds, complaints and anything legal. That is an auto reply that answers the actual question, with a person still deciding what leaves the inbox. The [customer service email page](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation) walks through a full before and after.

## Gmail auto responder vs vacation responder

They are the same feature. Gmail has no setting called "auto responder": the vacation responder is its built-in autoresponder, and it answers everyone who writes during a date range.

When people want a Gmail auto responder for certain emails every day, they mean method 2 above, a filter that sends a saved template. Neither one reads the message, so for a reply that answers the question, use method 3.

## Most businesses answer email slower than they think

The case for automating is not comfort, it is speed. SuperOffice studied company response times and found that [62% of businesses never respond to customer emails at all](https://www.superoffice.com/blog/response-times/), with an average response time of over 12 hours, while nearly half of customers expect a reply within four hours.

That gap is rarely about effort. Teams answer the mail they see when they see it. The problem is that repetitive messages bury the important ones, and every reply that requires a lookup, a search through old threads, or a policy check adds minutes that compound across the day. Automation attacks both ends: sorting decides what you see first, and drafting removes the retype.

## Seven automations, from filters to AI drafts

Auto replies are one job. If you want to automate the whole inbox, this is the ladder, in the order worth climbing it. The first two rungs are the free Gmail features above; the rest need a tool that can read.

### 1. Filter and label incoming mail

Build filters for your highest-volume senders and topics: receipts and notifications skip the inbox and get an archive label, known customers get a "customer" label, anything with "invoice" in the subject gets flagged. Ten minutes of filter setup permanently removes the mail you never needed to see.

### 2. Save templates for your most repeated replies

Write down the five replies you send most often and save each as a Gmail template, the same templates a filter can send automatically. Even without AI, inserting a saved reply and editing two lines beats composing from scratch. This is also useful groundwork: those five replies are exactly what you will later teach an AI agent to draft.

### 3. Let AI triage and prioritize

This is where a tool like InboxPilot enters. Instead of keyword rules, the agent reads each incoming message and classifies it by what it actually is: urgent, customer inquiry, vendor question, noise. You describe the categories in plain English, and the [smart triage](/features/email-triage) applies labels and priorities so the messages that need a human land on top.

### 4. Auto-draft replies, with guardrails

Configure how the agent responds per inbox: the tone you want, trigger topics it should handle (pricing, hours, order status), and negative keywords that must always route to a person (complaints, legal, anything angry). When a covered question arrives, a drafted reply is waiting in Gmail for you to review and send. Nothing goes out without you until you decide otherwise.

### 5. Route and forward with workflow rules

Some mail should not be answered, it should be moved. [Email workflows](/#workflows) written in plain English can forward invoices to accounting, route sales questions to the right teammate, and file the rest.

### 6. Ground the drafts in your own knowledge

An AI reply is only useful if it is correct. Upload your FAQs, policies, and product docs to the [knowledge base](/features/ai-email-replies), or point it at your website. Drafts then cite your actual refund window and your actual pricing rather than a plausible guess. We cover this step in depth in [how to generate emails using your documents](/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents).

### 7. Review, then automate the safe slice

Run in draft mode for a week or two and watch what the agent produces. Where drafts are consistently right, turn on auto-send for that workflow and nothing else. Where they are thin, add a doc or an FAQ pair. The end state is not full autopilot. It is a fast draft on everything and automatic handling of the narrow slice you have verified.

## The limits of native Gmail automation

Worth being plain about what the free layer cannot do, because this is where most people stall:

- **Filters match text, not meaning.** A filter on the word "refund" catches "please refund me" and also "no refund needed, just checking in." It cannot tell an angry escalation from a routine question.
- **Templates cannot answer.** A saved reply covers the question it was written for. The moment a customer asks a variant, someone has to read, think, and edit.
- **Nothing drafts for you.** Native Gmail can sort, file, and forward, but every reply still starts with a human composing or pasting.
- **No shared logic across a team.** Filters and templates live per Google account, so three teammates end up with three diverging systems.

If your repetitive mail is low-volume and truly identical, these limits may never bite. They bite when volume grows or when the questions require answers from your own data.

## Where InboxPilot fits

InboxPilot is the understanding layer on top of Gmail: [AI email automation for Gmail and Outlook](/) that reads incoming mail, drafts replies grounded in your docs, website, and past email, and escalates when it is unsure. Every draft waits for human approval by default, and auto-send is opt-in per request type. Pricing is per plan, with inbound email unlimited and no per-seat fees, and a 7-day free trial: Starter is $39/month, Growth is $99/month with auto-replies, Business is $249/month across 3 inboxes, and Scale is $499/month across 10 inboxes, all with unlimited team members.

To be plain about fit: InboxPilot is built for repetitive operational email, things like quotes, order status, and routine customer service in a business inbox. It is not a chat widget, not a ticket queue, and not a personal productivity coach for an executive inbox. If your Gmail problem is ten personal emails a day, the vacation responder and a template filter will serve you fine.

The [AI email assistant for Gmail](/ai-email-assistant) page shows the drafting in detail. To have each new email posted to a team channel, see [how to forward Gmail messages to Slack](/blog/how-to-forward-gmail-messages-to-slack).

## Related reading

- [Gmail templates](/blog/gmail-templates): turn templates on, save canned responses, share them with a team, and send one from a filter.
- [Automated email response examples](/blog/automated-email-response-examples): out of office, after-hours, support and order replies to paste into the vacation responder or a template.
- [Customer service email automation](/use-cases/customer-service-email-automation): the full before and after for a support inbox, with a person approving each send.
- [Order status and WISMO email automation](/use-cases/order-status-email-automation): the highest-volume auto reply a commerce inbox needs.
- [How to export emails from Gmail](/blog/how-to-export-emails-from-gmail): the manual route, from single messages to a full Takeout archive.
- [How to generate emails using your documents](/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents)
- [Gmail shared inbox and shared mailbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail): what changes once the address belongs to a team rather than to you.
- [Update Google Sheets when an email arrives](/blog/update-google-sheets-when-an-email-arrives): log orders, leads or requests to a sheet without copy-paste.
- [Gmail to Google Sheets](/use-cases/gmail-to-google-sheets): the same workflow set up in InboxPilot.
- [How to automate emails in Outlook](/blog/how-to-automate-emails-in-outlook): rules, automatic replies, Quick Steps, scheduled send and Power Automate, for teams on Microsoft 365.

---

## How to Export Emails from Gmail: 2 Free Ways (2026)

Source: https://www.inboxpilot.co/blog/how-to-export-emails-from-gmail
Published: 2025-05-05

Two free ways to export or download Gmail: Forward as attachment for a few emails as EML, or Google Takeout for all of them as MBOX. Steps and limits.

Gmail has two free ways to export email. For a few specific messages, select them, click **More** (⋮) and choose **Forward as attachment** to get EML files. For all of your mail, open [Google Takeout](https://takeout.google.com), check **Mail**, and download the MBOX archive it builds.

People usually need this when they switch providers, run out of Google storage, owe a client a record of a finished project, or want a backup that does not depend on one login. This guide walks through both methods, how to save a single email as a file or a PDF, and the limits worth knowing before you start a multi-gigabyte download.

## Export one email or a few from Gmail (EML)

When you need specific messages rather than everything, Gmail's Forward as attachment feature is the fastest path. It handles up to 50 emails at a time.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Select the emails">
    Log in to Gmail and check the boxes next to the emails you want to export. To grab everything under a label, click "Select all X conversations in [Label]" at the top of the list.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Open the More menu">
    Click the "More" button (three vertical dots) in the top menu bar above the message list.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Choose Forward as attachment">
    Pick "Forward as attachment" from the dropdown. Gmail opens a new email with each selected message attached as an individual `.eml` file.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Send it to yourself">
    Address the email to yourself (or a trusted recipient) and send. Treat it carefully: those attachments contain the full content of the original emails, including anything sensitive.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Download the files">
    Open the received email and download the `.eml` attachments. They open in email clients like Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, or Gmail itself.
  </Step>
</Steps>

EML is a lightweight, widely compatible format, and each file is one self-contained email. If the attached emails add up to more than 25 MB, Gmail attaches them through Google Drive instead ([Gmail Help](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/9261412)). If your selection is bigger than 50 emails, skip this method and go straight to Takeout.

## Download all your Gmail emails with Google Takeout

To export all emails from Gmail at once, use Google Takeout. It packages your whole mailbox, or only the labels you pick, into one archive you download.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open Google Takeout">
    Go to the [Google Takeout page](https://takeout.google.com) and sign in with the account you want to export.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Select Mail">
    Click "Deselect all" so Drive, Photos and the rest are left out, then check "Mail". Leave "All Mail data included" as it is to export all emails, or click it to pick specific labels. Click "Next step."
  </Step>
  <Step title="Set delivery and format">
    Pick a delivery method (a download link by email, or "Add to Drive" to send the archive straight to Google Drive), a file format (`.zip` or `.tgz`), and a maximum file size. Archives larger than that size are split into multiple files.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Create the export">
    Click "Create export". Google says this takes anywhere from a few minutes to a few days, depending on how much data the account holds.
  </Step>
</Steps>

### Download the archive to your computer

When the export is ready, Google sends you an email. In that email, select **Download archive**. If the archive was split, download every part.

Unzip the file and open the `Takeout` folder. Your mail sits in `Takeout/Mail` as one or more `.mbox` files, which you can import into a desktop client such as Thunderbird to browse.

Do not leave it for later. Google says the archive expires in about 7 days and can be downloaded 5 times ([Google Account Help](https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/3024190)). After that, you run the export again.

Takeout delivers your mail in the **MBOX** format: one archive file holding the whole mailbox, compatible with many email clients but not directly readable on its own. Control is coarser than the EML method. You can filter by label, but you cannot hand-pick individual emails.

The "Add to Drive" delivery option is worth highlighting: if the point of the export is a cloud backup rather than a local copy, it keeps gigabytes off your computer entirely.

## Save or copy a single email

Sometimes you only need one message on your computer, or in another account. Gmail can save it as a file or a PDF, or copy it across by forwarding.

- **As an EML file.** Open the email, click **More** (⋮) at the top right of the message, then **Download message**. You get an `.eml` file, which needs a desktop mail client such as Outlook or Thunderbird to open ([Gmail Help](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/9261412)).
- **As a PDF.** Open the conversation and click **Print all** at the top right, or **More** then **Print** for a single message ([Gmail Help](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/8255)). In your browser's print dialog, choose "Save as PDF" as the destination.
- **To another email account.** Click **Forward** to send it on, or use [Forward as attachment](#export-one-email-or-a-few-from-gmail-eml) so the other account receives the original as an EML file. For a whole mailbox, use the Takeout archive above.
- **Into a spreadsheet.** Gmail has no CSV export. For mail you have already received, you would have to convert an MBOX file with a third-party tool. For mail arriving from now on, you can [log each email to Google Sheets](/use-cases/gmail-to-google-sheets) as it comes in. The four ways to do that, from Apps Script to no-code tools, are compared in [how to update Google Sheets when an email arrives](/blog/update-google-sheets-when-an-email-arrives).

## Which method to use when

| Method | Best for | Format | Main limit |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Download message or Print all | One email or one conversation | EML or PDF | One at a time |
| Forward as attachment | Up to 50 specific emails | EML, one file per email | Hard 50-email cap |
| Google Takeout | All emails, or whole labels | MBOX archive | No per-email selection |
| Takeout with Add to Drive | Cloud backup without local downloads | MBOX in Google Drive | Same as Takeout, uses Drive storage |

The short version: one email, download or print it. A handful of known emails, use Forward as attachment. Everything else, use Takeout.

## The limits of Gmail exports

All of these methods are free and reliable, and the bulk ones have edges worth knowing before you commit an afternoon:

- **The 50-email cap is hard.** Forward as attachment will not take more, and there is no native middle ground between 50 emails and a whole-label Takeout job.
- **Takeout cannot cherry-pick.** Labels are the finest filter, so exporting "just the Johnson project threads" means labeling them first.
- **MBOX is not a reading format.** The archive needs an email client to open, so a Takeout export is a storage artifact, not something you browse like a folder of PDFs.
- **An export is a snapshot.** It is accurate the moment it finishes and stale the day after, so backups need repeating on a schedule.
- **EML attachments carry everything.** Forwarding emails as attachments moves their full content, so be deliberate about where that forward goes.

For genuine backup, migration, or compliance needs, these are acceptable trade-offs and Takeout is the right tool. The one case it serves poorly is the most common one.

## If you export email to find answers, skip the export

A lot of Gmail exports are not really backups. They are attempts to get at the knowledge buried in old threads: what we quoted this customer last year, how we handled that refund, what the agreed spec was. Exporting a mailbox to MBOX so you can search it elsewhere is a lot of ceremony for what is, at heart, a lookup problem.

That lookup is the problem InboxPilot works on directly. It is an inbox-native AI email agent that grounds its drafts in your own email history, docs, and website, inside the Gmail account where the conversations already live. When a question arrives that your old threads already answer, the agent drafts the reply from that history, with a human approving each send by default. The knowledge stays where the conversations happen, and it stays current, which a snapshot never does.

To be honest about fit: InboxPilot is built for repetitive operational email in business inboxes, not for archiving. If you need a legal record, an offline backup, or a migration file, Takeout is free and correct, and nothing replaces it.

## Related reading

- [Gmail auto reply and automation](/blog/automate-your-gmail): vacation responders, templates and AI replies set up step by step.
- [How to update Google Sheets when an email arrives](/blog/update-google-sheets-when-an-email-arrives)
- [How to generate emails using your documents](/blog/how-to-generate-emails-using-your-documents)
- [Gmail shared inbox and shared mailbox tools](/blog/best-shared-inbox-for-gmail): if the reason you are exporting is that several people need the same mailbox.

Run the Takeout export if you need the archive, and if what you actually need is the answers inside those threads, [try InboxPilot free for 7 days](/) and let the history keep working where it is.

# Legal

---

## InboxPilot Privacy Policy

Last updated: June 17, 2025

At InboxPilot, we respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal data. This privacy policy explains how we look after your personal data when you visit our website, use our services, or otherwise communicate with us — and it tells you about your privacy rights and how the law protects you.

## 1. Important information and who we are

### 1.1 Purpose of this privacy policy

This privacy policy aims to give you information on how InboxPilot collects and processes your personal data through your use of our website, our InboxPilot services, or otherwise when you communicate or interact with us in the course of business.

### 1.2 Controller

If you are a registered customer of InboxPilot, we act as the **data controller** of personal data about you and your use of InboxPilot, but as the **data processor** of personal data in the information you submit to InboxPilot to use InboxPilot's products and services (such as information about your emails, email accounts, connected integrations, and knowledge-base content). If we are the data processor of your personal data (i.e., not the data controller), please contact the controller party in the first instance to address your rights with respect to such data.

If you have any questions about this privacy policy, including any requests to exercise your legal rights referred to below, please contact us using the details set out below.

### 1.3 Contact details

We are: **InboxPilot** of 2810 N Church St PMB 16104, Wilmington, Delaware 19802-4447, USA.

If you need to get hold of us for any reason in connection with your personal data, please email us at [privacy@inboxpilot.co](mailto:privacy@inboxpilot.co) or [support@inboxpilot.co](mailto:support@inboxpilot.co).

If you are located in the United Kingdom or European Economic Area, you have the right to make a complaint at any time to your local supervisory authority. We would, however, appreciate the chance to deal with your concerns about privacy and data protection before you approach a regulator, so please contact us in the first instance.

### 1.4 Changes to the privacy policy and your duty to inform us of changes

This version was last updated on **June 17, 2025**. If you use our website or the InboxPilot services after any changes to this privacy policy have been posted, that means you agree to all of the changes. It is important that the personal data we hold about you is accurate and current. Please keep us informed if your personal data changes during your relationship with us.

## 2. The data we collect about you

We may create aggregated, de-identified, or anonymized data from the personal data we collect, including by removing information that makes the data personally identifiable to a particular user. We may use such aggregated, de-identified, or anonymized data and disclose it with third parties for our lawful business purposes, including to analyze, build, and improve the InboxPilot services and promote our business, provided that we will not disclose such data in a manner that could identify you.

We may collect, use, store, and transfer different kinds of personal data about you which we have grouped together as follows:

- **Contact Data** includes name, role at business, email address, and phone number.
- **Account Data** includes login credentials, profile picture or avatar, organization details, and subscription preferences.
- **Financial Data** includes billing information and payment card details (processed by our payment provider).
- **Correspondence Data** includes email correspondence with our team, support tickets, and notes of conversations where these express an opinion.
- **Usage Data** includes information about how you use our website or services, including feature usage and configuration settings.
- **Technical Data** includes internet protocol (IP) address, login data, browser type and version, time zone setting and location, browser plug-in types and versions, operating system and platform, and other technology on the devices you use to access this website or our services.
- **Email and Integration Data** includes message IDs, thread IDs, AI-generated draft and sent responses, and metadata necessary to provide our email automation services. We do not store full email content beyond what is required to deliver the service.

We explicitly do **not**:

- Store email attachments
- Sell your data to third parties
- Share data with information resellers
- Use your data for advertising or credit assessment
- Use data obtained through Google Workspace APIs to develop, improve, or train generalized AI or machine learning models

## 3. How is your personal data collected?

We use different methods to collect data from and about you including through:

1. **Direct interactions.** We collect the majority of your data through our InboxPilot products and services on our website, by email, over the phone, in person at meetings, or otherwise.
2. **Automated technologies or interactions.** As you interact with our website, we may automatically collect Technical Data about your browsing actions and patterns. We collect this personal data by using cookies and other similar technologies. You can set your browser to refuse all or some browser cookies, or to alert you when websites set or access cookies.
3. **Third parties or publicly available sources.** We may receive Technical Data about you from analytics providers with servers based outside of Europe.

## 4. How we use your personal data

We will only use your personal data when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we will use your personal data in the following circumstances:

- In anticipation of or in accordance with the terms of use or service agreement that we have with you;
- Where it is necessary for our legitimate interests (or those of a third party) in the operation of our business and we have made an objective assessment that your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests (for example to manage our relationship with you, to improve the service that we offer, or to answer an enquiry you make to us); or
- Where we need to comply with a legal or regulatory obligation.

Please contact us if you need details about the specific legal ground we are relying on to process your personal data.

## 5. Gmail, Outlook, and connected account access

InboxPilot uses OAuth to connect to your Gmail, Outlook, and other supported accounts with the permissions necessary to read, draft, and send emails on your behalf. We are committed to ensuring the privacy and security of your data. Here is how we handle connected account data:

- **Email access.** We access your emails solely to provide AI drafting, triage, labeling, workflows, and automation features you configure.
- **Data minimization.** We store only what is necessary to operate the service, such as message IDs, thread IDs, and outgoing AI-generated responses for logging and quality assurance.
- **Data security.** All data interactions are encrypted and handled securely. We adhere to industry-standard security practices to protect your information.
- **User control.** You can revoke InboxPilot's access to your connected accounts at any time through your Google or Microsoft account settings, or by disconnecting the integration within InboxPilot.

### 5.1 Shopify store data

If you connect a Shopify store, InboxPilot reads, with read-only access, the store's orders (including fulfillment and tracking details), products, store policies, and customers. For your store's customers this includes their name, email address, phone number, and shipping and billing addresses.

- **Why.** When one of your customers emails you, we look up their orders by the address they wrote from, so the draft reply can answer with the order's real status, tracking, and your policies. We use this data only to draft and route replies to your customers' emails and to show you the store data behind a reply.
- **Sharing.** It is sent to our AI providers only as context for a reply, under the terms in section 6. We never sell it or use it to train models.
- **Retention.** Order and customer details you choose to sync into InboxPilot are kept until you remove them, disconnect the store, or uninstall the app. When Shopify tells us a customer asked to be deleted, we delete that customer's synced details. When you uninstall the app, we stop accessing the store immediately and delete the store's data 48 hours later.

## 6. Data shared with third-party AI models

### 6.1 Data shared with AI models

To provide email drafting, categorization, triage, and automation features, our service employs machine learning models using third-party AI providers, including OpenAI, LLC. We require our AI service providers to use your information only for the purpose of providing our service. We do not allow those providers to train their AI models using your data.

The following data types may be shared with these AI models:

- **Email content and data:** Subject lines, email body text, sender and recipient information (limited to what is required for the requested feature).
- **Knowledge-base and integration data:** Content from documents, websites, and connected tools you choose to ground replies in.
- **Calendar and CRM context:** Where you connect supported integrations, relevant event or contact context needed to draft accurate replies.

This data is processed for the sole purpose of delivering the services you request and is not used for any other functions within the AI models.

### 6.2 User consent for data sharing with AI models

Before sharing your data with our AI models, we seek your consent through our onboarding flow and account connection process. Significant changes to how we use AI processing will be communicated through updates to this policy and, where appropriate, in-product notices.

### 6.3 Third-party AI data retention

We configure third-party AI services to not retain or use your personal data, email content, or customer information for training their models. We use API configurations that disable data retention and training features where available, and we have contractual protections in place with AI providers that prohibit use of your data for model training or improvement.

## 7. Disclosures of your personal data

We will need to share your personal data with the parties set out below for the purposes set out in section 4 above:

- **Our service providers** acting as processors who may be based in the US or elsewhere outside the EEA and who provide us with cloud hosting, IT support, data storage, payment processing, email and integration services, customer support tooling, and language model services. Our current sub-processors include Amazon Web Services, Inc., Google LLC, OpenAI, LLC, and Stripe, Inc.
- **Analytics service providers** which may have servers based in the US for the purpose of analyzing user behavior on our website.
- **Third parties to whom we may choose to sell, transfer, or merge parts of our business or our assets.** Alternatively, we may seek to acquire other businesses or merge with them. If a change happens to our business, then the new owners may use your personal data in the same way as set out in this privacy policy.

We require all third parties to respect the security of your personal data and to treat it in accordance with the law. We do not allow our third-party service providers to use your personal data for their own purposes and only permit them to process your personal data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions.

For more detail on how we process data on your behalf, see our [Data Processing Agreement](/legal/dpa).

## 8. International transfers

A number of our service providers processing your personal data on our behalf are based in the US or elsewhere outside the EEA, so their processing of your personal data will involve a transfer of data outside the EEA.

Whenever we transfer your personal data out of the EEA, we ensure a similar degree of protection is afforded to it by ensuring that either:

- We have a specific contract with that processor in a form approved by the European Commission which ensures that the service provider gives your personal data the same protection it has in Europe; or
- If the provider is based in the US, it participates in an approved transfer mechanism such as the EU-US Data Privacy Framework or Standard Contractual Clauses.

Information we collect about you will also be processed in the United States. By using InboxPilot's services, you acknowledge that your personal information may be processed in the United States. Please contact us if you want further information on the specific mechanism used by us when transferring your personal data out of the EEA.

## 9. Data security

We have put in place appropriate security measures to prevent your personal data from being accidentally lost, used, or accessed in an unauthorized way, altered, or disclosed. In addition, we limit access to your personal data to those employees, agents, contractors, and other third parties who have a business need to know. They will only process your personal data on our instructions and they are subject to a duty of confidentiality.

Our security measures include:

- Encryption of data in transit and at rest
- Secure cloud infrastructure with industry-standard protections
- Regular security assessments and updates
- Access controls, authentication mechanisms, and audit logging

We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected personal data breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a breach where we are legally required to do so.

## 10. How long will you use my personal data for?

- We will only retain your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.
- To determine the appropriate retention period for personal data, we consider the amount, nature, and sensitivity of the personal data, the potential risk of harm from unauthorized use or disclosure of your personal data, the purposes for which we process your personal data and whether we can achieve those purposes through other means, and the applicable legal requirements.
- Outgoing AI-generated emails, message IDs, and thread IDs may be retained for service functionality and quality assurance while your account is active.
- In some circumstances, you can ask us to delete your data (see below for further information).
- In some circumstances we may anonymize your personal data (so that it can no longer be associated with you) for research or statistical purposes in which case we may use this information indefinitely without further notice to you.

You may request deletion of your data by contacting our Privacy Team at [support@inboxpilot.co](mailto:support@inboxpilot.co), using deletion tools in your account settings, or revoking access through your connected account provider.

## 11. Your legal rights

You have the right in certain circumstances to:

- Request access to your personal data (a "data subject access request").
- Request correction of the personal data that we hold about you.
- Request erasure of your personal data.
- Object to processing of your personal data where we are relying on a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation which makes you want to object to processing on this ground as you feel it impacts on your fundamental rights and freedoms.
- Request restriction of processing of your personal data.
- Request the transfer of your personal data to you or to a third party.

More information on these rights and when they apply is available from the [UK Information Commissioner's Office](https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/uk-gdpr-guidance-and-resources/individual-rights/).

You will not have to pay a fee to access your personal data (or to exercise any of the other rights). We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity and ensure your right to access your personal data (or to exercise any of your other rights). This is a security measure to ensure that personal data is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it. We may also contact you to ask you for further information in relation to your request to speed up our response.

We try to respond to all legitimate requests within one month. Occasionally it may take us longer than a month if your request is particularly complex or you have made a number of requests. In this case, we will notify you and keep you updated.

## 12. Children's data

We do not knowingly attempt to solicit or receive information from children.

## 13. Questions, concerns, or complaints

If you have questions, concerns, or complaints regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

**InboxPilot**  
2810 N Church St PMB 16104  
Wilmington, Delaware 19802-4447  
[privacy@inboxpilot.co](mailto:privacy@inboxpilot.co)

Thank you for choosing InboxPilot. We are committed to ensuring your privacy and providing a secure platform.

---

## Terms of Service

Last updated: June 17, 2025

THESE TERMS OF SERVICE (the "Agreement") GOVERN YOUR RECEIPT, ACCESS TO, AND USE OF THE SERVICES PROVIDED BY INBOXPILOT ("InboxPilot"). BY (A) PURCHASING ACCESS TO THE SERVICE THROUGH AN ONLINE ORDERING PROCESS THAT REFERENCES THIS AGREEMENT, (B) SIGNING UP FOR A FREE TRIAL OR PAID ACCESS PLAN FOR THE SERVICE VIA A PLATFORM THAT REFERENCES THIS AGREEMENT, OR (C) CLICKING A BOX INDICATING ACCEPTANCE, YOU AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT. THE INDIVIDUAL ACCEPTING THIS AGREEMENT DOES SO ON BEHALF OF A COMPANY OR OTHER LEGAL ENTITY ("Customer"); SUCH INDIVIDUAL REPRESENTS AND WARRANTS THAT THEY HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO BIND SUCH ENTITY AND ITS AFFILIATES TO THIS AGREEMENT. IF THE INDIVIDUAL ACCEPTING THIS AGREEMENT DOES NOT HAVE SUCH AUTHORITY, OR IF THE ENTITY DOES NOT AGREE WITH THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS, SUCH INDIVIDUAL MUST NOT ACCEPT THIS AGREEMENT AND MAY NOT USE THE SERVICES. CAPITALIZED TERMS HAVE THE MEANINGS SET FORTH HEREIN. THE PARTIES AGREE AS FOLLOWS:

## 1. The Service

### 1.1 Service Description

InboxPilot owns and provides a cloud-based artificial intelligence service offering automated email triage, drafting, labeling, workflows, and customer support inside Gmail and Outlook (the "Service"). Anything the Customer (including Users) configures, customizes, uploads, or otherwise utilizes through the Service is considered a "User Submission." Customer is solely responsible for all User Submissions it contributes to the Service. Additional terms regarding User Submissions, including ownership, are in Section 9.2 below. The Service may include templates, scripts, documentation, and other materials that assist Customer in using the Service ("InboxPilot Content"). Customers will not receive or have access to the underlying code or software of the Service (collectively, the "Software") nor receive a copy of the Software itself.

### 1.2 Customer's Subscription

Subject to the terms of this Agreement, Customer may purchase a subscription to, and has the right to access and use, the Service as specified in one or more ordering screens agreed upon by the parties through InboxPilot's website or service portal that reference this Agreement and describe the business terms related to Customer's subscription ("Order(s)"). All subscriptions are for the period described in the applicable Order ("Subscription Period"). Use of and access to the Service is permitted only for individuals authorized by the Customer and solely for Customer's own internal business purposes, not for the benefit of any third party ("Users").

### 1.3 InboxPilot's Ownership

InboxPilot owns the Service, Software, InboxPilot Content, Documentation, and anything else provided by InboxPilot to the Customer (collectively, the "InboxPilot Materials"). InboxPilot retains all rights, title, and interest (including all intellectual property rights) in and to the InboxPilot Materials, all related and underlying technology, and any updates, enhancements, modifications, or fixes thereto, as well as all derivative works of or modifications to any of the foregoing. No implied licenses are granted under this Agreement, and any rights not expressly granted to the Customer are reserved by InboxPilot.

### 1.4 Permissions

The Service includes customizable settings allowing Users to grant permissions to other Users to perform various tasks within the Service ("Permissions"). It is solely the Customer's responsibility to set and manage all Permissions, including determining which Users can set such Permissions. Accordingly, InboxPilot has no responsibility for managing Permissions and no liability for Permissions set by the Customer and its Users. The Customer may provide access to the Service to its Affiliates, in which case all rights granted and obligations incurred under this Agreement shall extend to such Affiliates. The Customer represents and warrants it is fully responsible for any breaches of this Agreement by its Affiliates and has the authority to negotiate this Agreement on behalf of its Affiliates. The Customer is also responsible for all payment obligations under this Agreement, regardless of whether the use of the Service is by the Customer or its Affiliates. Any claim by an Affiliate against InboxPilot must be brought by the Customer, not the Affiliate. An "Affiliate" of a party means any entity directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with that party, where "control" means the ownership of more than fifty percent (50%) of the voting shares or other equity interests.

## 2. Restrictions

### 2.1 Customer's Responsibilities

The Customer is responsible for all activity on its account and those of its Users, except where such activity results from unauthorized access due to vulnerabilities in the Service itself. The Customer will ensure its Users are aware of and comply with the obligations and restrictions in this Agreement, bearing responsibility for any breaches by a User.

### 2.2 Use Restrictions

The Customer agrees not to, and not to permit Users or third parties to, directly or indirectly: (a) modify, translate, copy, or create derivative works based on the Service; (b) reverse engineer, decompile, or attempt to discover the source code or underlying ideas of the Service, except as permitted by law; (c) sublicense, sell, rent, lease, distribute, or otherwise commercially exploit the Service; (d) remove proprietary notices from the Service; (e) use the Service in violation of laws or regulations; (f) attempt unauthorized access to or disrupt the Service; (g) use the Service to support products competitive to InboxPilot; (h) test the Service's vulnerability without authorization. If the Customer's use of the Service significantly harms InboxPilot or the Service's security or integrity, InboxPilot may suspend access to the Service, taking reasonable steps to notify the Customer and resolve the issue promptly.

### 2.3 API Access Restrictions

InboxPilot may provide access to APIs as part of the Service. InboxPilot reserves the right to set and enforce usage limits on the APIs, and the Customer agrees to comply with such limits. InboxPilot may also suspend or terminate API access at any time.

## 3. Third-Party Services

The Service may interface with third-party products, services, or applications that are not owned or controlled by InboxPilot ("Third-Party Services"), including email providers (such as Google Gmail and Microsoft Outlook), CRMs, help desks, and other integrations. Customers have the discretion to utilize these Third-Party Services in conjunction with our Service. Should the integration of the Service with any Third-Party Service require it, customers will be responsible for providing their login information to InboxPilot solely for the purpose of enabling InboxPilot to deliver its Service. Customers affirm that they have the authority to provide such information without violating any terms and conditions governing their use of the Third-Party Services. InboxPilot does not endorse any Third-Party Services. Customers acknowledge that this Agreement does not cover the use of Third-Party Services, and they may need to enter into separate agreements with the providers of these services. InboxPilot expressly disclaims all representations and warranties concerning Third-Party Services. Customers must direct any warranty claims or other disputes directly to the providers of the Third-Party Services. The use of Third-Party Services is at the customer's own risk. InboxPilot shall not be liable for any issues arising from the use or inability to use Third-Party Services.

## 4. Financial Terms

### 4.1 Fees

Customers are required to pay for access to and use of the Service as detailed in the applicable order ("Fees"). All Fees will be charged in the currency stated in the order or, if no currency is specified, in U.S. dollars. Payment obligations are non-cancellable and, except as explicitly stated in this Agreement, Fees are non-refundable. InboxPilot reserves the right to modify its Fees or introduce new fees at its discretion. Customers have the option not to renew their subscription if they disagree with any revised fees.

### 4.2 Payment

InboxPilot, either directly or through its third-party payment processor ("Payment Processor"), will bill the customer for the Fees using the credit card or ACH payment information provided by the customer. InboxPilot reserves the right to charge the customer's credit card or ACH payment method for any services provided under the order, including recurring Fees. It is the customer's responsibility to ensure that InboxPilot has current and accurate credit card or ACH payment information. Failure to provide accurate information may lead to a suspension of access to the Services. InboxPilot also reserves the right to offset any Fees owed by the customer. If the customer pays through a Payment Processor, such transactions will be subject to the Payment Processor's terms, conditions, and privacy policies, in addition to this Agreement. InboxPilot is not responsible for errors or omissions by the Payment Processor. InboxPilot reserves the right to correct any errors made by the Payment Processor, even if payment has already been requested or received. If the customer authorizes, through accepting an order, recurring charges will be automatically applied to the customer's payment method without further authorization until the customer terminates this Agreement or updates their payment method.

### 4.3 Taxes

Fees do not include any taxes, levies, duties, or similar governmental assessments, including value-added, sales, use, or withholding taxes, imposed by any jurisdiction (collectively, "Taxes"). Customers are responsible for paying all Taxes associated with their purchases. If InboxPilot is obligated to pay or collect Taxes for which the customer is responsible, InboxPilot will invoice the customer for such Taxes unless the customer provides InboxPilot with a valid tax exemption certificate authorized by the appropriate taxing authority beforehand. For clarity, InboxPilot is solely responsible for taxes based on its income, property, and employees.

### 4.4 Failure to Pay

If a customer fails to pay any Fees when due, InboxPilot may suspend access to the Service until overdue amounts are paid. InboxPilot is authorized to attempt charging the customer's payment method multiple times if an initial charge is unsuccessful. If a customer believes they have been incorrectly billed, they must contact InboxPilot within sixty (60) days from the first billing statement showing the error to request an adjustment or credit. Upon receiving a dispute notice, InboxPilot will review and provide the customer with a written decision, including evidence supporting this decision. If it is determined that the billed amounts are due, the customer must pay these amounts within ten (10) days of receiving InboxPilot's written decision.

## 5. Term and Termination

### 5.1 Agreement Term and Renewals

Subscriptions to access and use InboxPilot's service ("Service") commence on the start date specified on the applicable Order ("Subscription Start Date") and continue for the duration of the Subscription Period. Customers may opt not to renew their Subscription Period by notifying InboxPilot at [support@inboxpilot.co](mailto:support@inboxpilot.co) (provided that InboxPilot confirms such cancellation in writing) or by modifying their subscription through the Customer's account settings within the Service. This Agreement takes effect on the first day of the Subscription Period and remains effective for the duration of the Subscription Period stated on the Order, including any renewals of the Subscription Period and any period that the Customer is using the Service, even if such use is not under a paid Order ("Term"). If this Agreement is terminated by either party, it will automatically terminate all Orders. If a Customer's free trial ends without a paid subscription, or a Customer cancels or chooses not to renew their paid subscription to the Service, the Customer's account will remain accessible, with automation paused until a paid subscription is started ("Unpaid Account"). Should this Agreement be terminated by either InboxPilot or the Customer, or should the Customer delete its workspace within the Service, access to the Unpaid Account will be revoked.

### 5.2 Termination

Either party may terminate this Agreement with written notice to the other party if the other party materially breaches this Agreement and such breach is not cured within thirty (30) days after receipt of such notice. InboxPilot may terminate a Customer's access to an Unpaid Account at any time upon notice.

### 5.3 Effect of Termination

If the Customer terminates this Agreement due to an uncured breach by InboxPilot, InboxPilot will refund any unused, prepaid Fees for the remainder of the then-current Subscription Period. If InboxPilot terminates this Agreement due to an uncured breach by the Customer, the Customer will pay any unpaid Fees covering the remainder of the then-current Subscription Period after the date of termination. No termination will relieve the Customer of the obligation to pay any Fees payable to InboxPilot for the period prior to the effective date of termination. Upon termination, all rights and licenses granted by InboxPilot will cease immediately, and the Customer will lose access to the Service. Within thirty (30) days of termination for cause, upon the Customer's request, or if the Customer deletes its workspace within the Service, InboxPilot will delete the Customer's User Information, including passwords, files, and submissions, unless an earlier deletion is requested in writing. For Customers with an Unpaid Account, InboxPilot may retain User Submissions and User Information to facilitate continued use. InboxPilot may delete all User Submissions and User Information if an account remains inactive for more than one (1) year.

### 5.4 Survival

Sections titled "InboxPilot's Ownership", "Third-Party Services", "Financial Terms", "Term and Termination", "Warranty Disclaimer", "Limitation of Liability", "Confidentiality", "Data" and "General Terms" will survive any termination or expiration of this Agreement.

## 6. Warranties and Disclaimers

### 6.1 Warranties

Customers represent and warrant that all User Submissions submitted by Users comply with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations.

### 6.2 Warranty Disclaimer

EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY STATED HEREIN, THE SERVICES AND ALL RELATED COMPONENTS AND INFORMATION ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, AND INBOXPILOT EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. CUSTOMERS ACKNOWLEDGE THAT INBOXPILOT DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICES WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE. GIVEN THE PROBABILISTIC NATURE OF MACHINE LEARNING, USE OF THE SERVICE MAY IN SOME SITUATIONS PRODUCE OUTPUT THAT IS INACCURATE OR INCOMPLETE. CUSTOMERS REMAIN RESPONSIBLE FOR REVIEWING AI-GENERATED OUTPUT BEFORE SENDING OR RELYING ON IT. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE DISCLAIMER OF CERTAIN WARRANTIES, SO THE FOREGOING DISCLAIMERS MAY NOT APPLY TO THE EXTENT PROHIBITED BY LAW.

## 7. Limitation of Liability

NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION TO THE CONTRARY, INBOXPILOT WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR DAMAGES BASED ON THE USE OR ACCESS, INTERRUPTION, DELAY, OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICE, LOST REVENUES OR PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS OR GOODWILL, DATA CORRUPTION, OR SYSTEM FAILURES, REGARDLESS OF THE LEGAL THEORY. FURTHER, INBOXPILOT'S TOTAL LIABILITY WILL NOT EXCEED THE TOTAL FEES PAID OR PAYABLE BY THE CUSTOMER FOR THE SERVICE DURING THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS PRIOR TO THE CLAIM. THESE LIMITATIONS APPLY REGARDLESS OF WHETHER INBOXPILOT HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

## 8. Confidentiality

### 8.1 Definition

Each party (the "Receiving Party") recognizes that the other party (the "Disclosing Party") may share business, technical, or financial information pertaining to the Disclosing Party's operations that, due to the nature of the information and the context of disclosure, is reasonably considered confidential ("Confidential Information"). For InboxPilot, Confidential Information includes non-public details about features, functionality, and performance of the Service. For Customers, Confidential Information comprises User Information and User Submissions. This Agreement, along with all related Orders, is considered Confidential Information of both parties. However, Confidential Information does not include information that: (a) becomes publicly available without breaching any duty to the Disclosing Party; (b) was known to the Receiving Party before disclosure by the Disclosing Party without breaching any duty; (c) is received from a third party without breaching any duty; or (d) was independently developed by the Receiving Party without using the Disclosing Party's Confidential Information.

### 8.2 Protection and Use of Confidential Information

The Receiving Party must: (a) protect the Disclosing Party's Confidential Information with at least the same degree of care it uses for its own similar information, but no less than a reasonable level of care; (b) restrict access to Confidential Information to personnel, affiliates, subcontractors, agents, consultants, legal advisors, financial advisors, and contractors ("Representatives") who need this information in relation to this Agreement and who are bound by confidentiality obligations similar to those in this Agreement; (c) not disclose any Confidential Information to third parties without prior written consent from the Disclosing Party, except as expressly stated herein; and (d) use the Confidential Information solely to fulfill obligations under this Agreement. This does not prevent sharing of Agreement terms or the other party's name with potential investors or buyers under standard confidentiality terms.

### 8.3 Compelled Access or Disclosure

If required by law, the Receiving Party may access or disclose the Disclosing Party's Confidential Information, provided that it notifies the Disclosing Party in advance (when legally permissible) and offers reasonable help, at the Disclosing Party's expense, if the Disclosing Party wants to contest the disclosure.

### 8.4 Feedback

Customers may occasionally offer feedback on the Service ("Feedback"). InboxPilot may choose to incorporate this Feedback into its services. Customers grant InboxPilot a royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, fully transferable, and sublicensable license to use, disclose, modify, create derivative works from, distribute, display, and exploit any Feedback as InboxPilot sees fit, without any obligation or restriction, except for not identifying the Customer as the source of Feedback.

## 9. Data

### 9.1 User Information

Customers and their Users must provide information like names, email addresses, usernames, IP addresses, browsers, and operating systems ("User Information") to access the Service. Customers authorize InboxPilot and its subcontractors to store, process, and retrieve User Information as part of the Service usage. Customers guarantee they have the necessary rights to provide User Information to InboxPilot for processing as described in this Agreement. Customers are liable for their User Information and any unauthorized use of their credentials.

### 9.2 User Submissions

Customers grant InboxPilot a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, transferable license to use, process, and display User Submissions solely to provide the Service. Beyond the rights granted here, Customers retain all rights to User Submissions, with no implied licenses under this Agreement.

### 9.3 Service Data

InboxPilot collects data on Service performance and operation ("Service Data") as Customers use the Service. Provided Service Data is aggregated and anonymized, without disclosing any personal information, InboxPilot can use this data freely. InboxPilot owns all rights to Service Data, but will not identify Customers or Users as its source.

### 9.4 Data Protection

InboxPilot maintains reasonable security practices to protect Customer Data, including User Submissions and User Information. Nonetheless, Customers are responsible for securing their systems and data. InboxPilot processes all Customer Data in accordance with its [Privacy Policy](/legal/privacy) and [Data Processing Agreement](/legal/dpa).

### 9.5 AI and Third-Party Language Models

InboxPilot uses third-party AI providers, including large language model providers, to power email drafting, triage, and automation features. InboxPilot may share User Submissions and related data with such providers solely to deliver the Service. InboxPilot configures these providers not to retain or use Customer data for training their models, and Customer data is not used to train InboxPilot's own generalized models. For more detail, see our [Privacy Policy](/legal/privacy).

## 10. General Terms

### 10.1 Publicity

With prior written consent from the Customer, InboxPilot is allowed to identify the Customer and use and display the Customer's name, logo, trademarks, or service marks on InboxPilot's website and in InboxPilot's marketing materials. This will help in demonstrating the clientele and user base of InboxPilot without compromising any confidential information or privacy rights of the Customer.

### 10.2 Force Majeure

InboxPilot shall not be liable for any failure or delay in performing its obligations hereunder caused by events beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to failures of third-party hosting or utility providers, strikes (excluding those involving InboxPilot's employees), riots, fires, natural disasters, wars, terrorism, or government actions.

### 10.3 Changes

InboxPilot acknowledges that its service is an evolving, subscription-based product. To enhance customer experience, InboxPilot reserves the right to make modifications to the Service. However, InboxPilot commits to not materially reducing the core functionality provided to Customers. Furthermore, InboxPilot may modify the terms of this Agreement unilaterally, provided that Customers are notified at least thirty (30) days before such changes take effect, with changes posted prominently on the [InboxPilot terms page](/legal/terms).

### 10.4 Relationship of the Parties

This Agreement does not create a partnership, franchise, joint venture, agency, fiduciary, or employment relationship between InboxPilot and the Customer. Both parties are independent contractors, maintaining their respective operations and autonomy while cooperating under the terms laid out in this Agreement.

### 10.5 No Third-Party Beneficiaries

This Agreement is strictly between InboxPilot and the Customer. It is not intended to benefit any third party, nor shall any third party have the right to enforce any of its terms, directly or indirectly.

### 10.6 Email Communications

Notices under this Agreement will be communicated via email, although InboxPilot may choose to provide notices through the Service instead. Notices to InboxPilot must be directed to [support@inboxpilot.co](mailto:support@inboxpilot.co), while notices to Customers will be sent to the email addresses provided by them through the Service. Notices are considered delivered the next business day after emailing or the same day if provided through the Service.

### 10.7 Amendment and Waivers

No modifications to this Agreement will be effective unless in writing and signed or acknowledged by authorized representatives of both parties. Neither party's delay or failure to exercise any right under this Agreement will be deemed a waiver of that right. Waivers must also be in writing and signed by the party granting the waiver.

### 10.8 Severability

Should any provision of this Agreement be found unlawful or unenforceable by a court, it will be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it lawful or enforceable, while the remaining provisions continue in full effect.

### 10.9 Assignment

Neither party may assign or delegate their rights or obligations under this Agreement without the other party's prior written consent, except that InboxPilot may do so without consent in cases of mergers, acquisitions, corporate reorganizations, or sales of substantially all assets. Any unauthorized assignment will be void. This Agreement binds and benefits the parties, their successors, and permitted assigns.

### 10.10 Governing Law and Venue

This Agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, USA, excluding its conflict of laws principles. Disputes arising under this Agreement will be resolved in the state or federal courts in New Castle County, Delaware, to which both parties consent to jurisdiction and venue. There is a waiver of any right to a jury trial for disputes arising under this Agreement. The prevailing party in any enforcement action is entitled to recover its reasonable costs and attorney fees.

### 10.11 Entire Agreement

This Agreement, including any referenced documents and Orders, constitutes the full agreement between InboxPilot and the Customer, superseding all prior discussions, agreements, and understandings of any nature.

---

## Data Processing Addendum

Last updated: June 17, 2025

This Data Processing Addendum ("DPA") supplements the [Terms of Service](/legal/terms) (the "Agreement") entered into by and between Customer (as defined in the Agreement) and InboxPilot of 2810 N Church St PMB 16104, Wilmington, Delaware 19802-4447, United States ("InboxPilot"). By executing the Agreement, Customer enters into this DPA on behalf of itself and, to the extent required under applicable Data Protection Laws, in the name and on behalf of its Affiliates, if any. This DPA incorporates the terms of the Agreement, and any terms not defined in this DPA shall have the meaning set forth in the Agreement. The parties therefore agree as follows:

## 1. Definitions

1. **Affiliate** means (i) an entity of which a party directly or indirectly owns fifty percent (50%) or more of the stock or other equity interest, (ii) an entity that owns at least fifty percent (50%) or more of the stock or other equity interest of a party, or (iii) an entity which is under common control with a party by having at least fifty percent (50%) or more of the stock or other equity interest of such entity and a party owned by the same person, but such entity shall only be deemed to be an Affiliate so long as such ownership exists.
2. **Authorized Sub-Processor** means a third party who has a need to know or otherwise access Customer's Personal Data to enable InboxPilot to perform its obligations under this DPA or the Agreement, and who is either (1) listed in Exhibit B or (2) subsequently authorized under Section 4.2 of this DPA.
3. **InboxPilot Account Data** means personal data that relates to InboxPilot's relationship with Customer, including the names or contact information of individuals authorized by Customer to access Customer's account and billing information of individuals that Customer has associated with its account. InboxPilot Account Data also includes any data InboxPilot may need to collect for the purpose of managing its relationship with Customer, identity verification, or as otherwise required by applicable laws and regulations.
4. **InboxPilot Usage Data** means Service usage data collected and processed by InboxPilot in connection with the provision of the Services, including without limitation data used to identify the source and destination of a communication, activity logs, and data used to optimize and maintain performance of the Services, and to investigate and prevent system abuse.
5. **Data Exporter** means Customer.
6. **Data Importer** means InboxPilot.
7. **Data Protection Laws** means any applicable laws and regulations in any relevant jurisdiction relating to the use or processing of Personal Data including: (i) the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended by the CPRA ("CCPA"), (ii) the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) ("EU GDPR") and the EU GDPR as it forms part of the law of England and Wales by virtue of section 3 of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (the "UK GDPR") (together, collectively, the "GDPR"), (iii) the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection, (iv) the UK Data Protection Act 2018; and (v) the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003; in each case, as updated, amended or replaced from time to time. The terms "Data Subject", "Personal Data", "Personal Data Breach", "processing", "processor," "controller," and "supervisory authority" shall have the meanings set forth in the GDPR.
8. **EU SCCs** means the standard contractual clauses approved by the European Commission in Commission Decision 2021/914 dated 4 June 2021, for transfers of personal data to countries not otherwise recognized as offering an adequate level of protection for personal data by the European Commission (as amended and updated from time to time), as modified by Section 6.2 of this DPA.
9. **ex-EEA Transfer** means the transfer of Personal Data, which is processed in accordance with the GDPR, from the Data Exporter to the Data Importer (or its premises) outside the European Economic Area (the "EEA"), and such transfer is not governed by an adequacy decision made by the European Commission in accordance with the relevant provisions of the GDPR.
10. **ex-UK Transfer** means the transfer of Personal Data covered by Chapter V of the UK GDPR, which is processed in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, from the Data Exporter to the Data Importer (or its premises) outside the United Kingdom (the "UK"), and such transfer is not governed by an adequacy decision made by the Secretary of State in accordance with the relevant provisions of the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
11. **Services** shall have the meaning set forth in the Agreement.
12. **Standard Contractual Clauses** means the EU SCCs and the UK SCCs.
13. **UK SCCs** means the EU SCCs, as amended by the UK Addendum.

## 2. Relationship of the Parties; Processing of Data

1. The parties acknowledge and agree that with regard to the processing of Personal Data, Customer may act either as a controller or processor and, except as expressly set forth in this DPA or the Agreement, InboxPilot is a processor. Customer shall, in its use of the Services, at all times process Personal Data, and provide instructions for the processing of Personal Data, in compliance with Data Protection Laws. Customer shall ensure that the processing of Personal Data in accordance with Customer's instructions will not cause InboxPilot to be in breach of the Data Protection Laws. Customer is solely responsible for the accuracy, quality, and legality of (i) the Personal Data provided to InboxPilot by or on behalf of Customer, (ii) the means by which Customer acquired any such Personal Data, and (iii) the instructions it provides to InboxPilot regarding the processing of such Personal Data. Customer shall not provide or make available to InboxPilot any Personal Data in violation of the Agreement or otherwise inappropriate for the nature of the Services, and shall indemnify InboxPilot from all claims and losses in connection therewith.
2. InboxPilot shall not process Personal Data (i) for purposes other than those set forth in the Agreement and/or Exhibit A, (ii) in a manner inconsistent with the terms and conditions set forth in this DPA or any other documented instructions provided by Customer, including with regard to transfers of personal data to a third country or an international organization, unless required to do so by Supervisory Authority to which InboxPilot is subject; in such a case, InboxPilot shall inform the Customer of that legal requirement before processing, unless that law prohibits such information on important grounds of public interest, or (iii) in violation of Data Protection Laws. Customer hereby instructs InboxPilot to process Personal Data in accordance with the foregoing and as part of any processing initiated by Customer in its use of the Services.
3. The subject matter, nature, purpose, and duration of this processing, as well as the types of Personal Data collected and categories of Data Subjects, are described in Exhibit A to this DPA.
4. Following completion of the Services, at Customer's choice, InboxPilot shall return or delete Customer's Personal Data, unless further storage of such Personal Data is required or authorized by applicable law. If return or destruction is impracticable or prohibited by law, rule or regulation, InboxPilot shall take measures to block such Personal Data from any further processing (except to the extent necessary for its continued hosting or processing required by law, rule or regulation) and shall continue to appropriately protect the Personal Data remaining in its possession, custody, or control.
5. **CCPA.** Except with respect to InboxPilot Account Data and InboxPilot Usage Data, the parties acknowledge and agree that InboxPilot is a service provider for the purposes of the CCPA (to the extent it applies) and is receiving personal information from Customer in order to provide the Services pursuant to the Agreement, which constitutes a business purpose. InboxPilot shall not sell any such personal information. InboxPilot shall not retain, use or disclose any personal information provided by Customer pursuant to the Agreement except as necessary for the specific purpose of performing the Services for Customer pursuant to the Agreement, or otherwise as set forth in the Agreement or as permitted by the CCPA.

## 3. Confidentiality

1. InboxPilot shall ensure that any person it authorizes to process Personal Data has agreed to protect Personal Data in accordance with InboxPilot's confidentiality obligations in the Agreement. Customer agrees that InboxPilot may disclose Personal Data to its advisers, auditors or other third parties as reasonably required in connection with the performance of its obligations under this DPA, the Agreement, or the provision of Services to Customer.

## 4. Authorized Sub-Processors

1. Customer acknowledges and agrees that InboxPilot may (1) engage its Affiliates as well as the Authorized Sub-Processors on the List (defined below) to access and process Personal Data in connection with the Services and (2) from time to time engage additional third parties for the purpose of providing the Services, including without limitation the processing of Personal Data. By way of this DPA, Customer provides general written authorization to InboxPilot to engage sub-processors as necessary to perform the Services.
2. A list of InboxPilot's current Authorized Sub-Processors (the "List") is set forth in Exhibit B. InboxPilot will provide at least ten (10) days' notice before enabling any third party other than existing Authorized Sub-Processors to access or participate in the processing of Personal Data, by updating the List and notifying Customer at the email address associated with Customer's account. Customer may object to such an engagement by informing InboxPilot in writing within ten (10) days of receipt of such notice, provided such objection is in writing and based on reasonable grounds relating to data protection. Customer acknowledges that certain sub-processors are essential to providing the Services and that objecting to the use of a sub-processor may prevent InboxPilot from offering the Services to Customer.
3. If Customer reasonably objects to an engagement in accordance with Section 4.2, and InboxPilot cannot provide a commercially reasonable alternative within a reasonable period of time, Customer may discontinue the use of the affected Service by providing written notice to InboxPilot. Discontinuation shall not relieve Customer of any fees owed to InboxPilot under the Agreement.
4. If Customer does not object to the engagement of a third party in accordance with Section 4.2 within ten (10) days of notice by InboxPilot, that third party will be deemed an Authorized Sub-Processor for the purposes of this DPA.
5. InboxPilot will enter into a written agreement with the Authorized Sub-Processor imposing on the Authorized Sub-Processor data protection obligations comparable to those imposed on InboxPilot under this DPA with respect to the protection of Personal Data. In case an Authorized Sub-Processor fails to fulfill its data protection obligations under such written agreement with InboxPilot, InboxPilot will remain liable to Customer for the performance of the Authorized Sub-Processor's obligations under such agreement.

## 5. Security of Personal Data

1. Taking into account the state of the art, the costs of implementation and the nature, scope, context and purposes of processing as well as the risk of varying likelihood and severity for the rights and freedoms of natural persons, InboxPilot shall maintain appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk of processing Personal Data. Exhibit C sets forth additional information about InboxPilot's technical and organizational security measures.

## 6. Transfers of Personal Data

1. The parties agree that InboxPilot may transfer Personal Data processed under this DPA outside the EEA, the UK, or Switzerland as necessary to provide the Services. Customer acknowledges that InboxPilot's primary processing operations take place in the United States, and that the transfer of Customer's Personal Data to the United States is necessary for the provision of the Services to Customer. If InboxPilot transfers Personal Data protected under this DPA to a jurisdiction for which the European Commission has not issued an adequacy decision, InboxPilot will ensure that appropriate safeguards have been implemented for the transfer of Personal Data in accordance with Data Protection Laws.
2. **Ex-EEA Transfers.** The parties agree that ex-EEA Transfers are made pursuant to the EU SCCs, which are deemed entered into (and incorporated into this DPA by this reference) and completed as follows:
   - Module One (Controller to Controller) of the EU SCCs apply when InboxPilot is processing Personal Data as a controller pursuant to Section 9 of this DPA.
   - Module Two (Controller to Processor) of the EU SCCs apply when Customer is a controller and InboxPilot is processing Personal Data for Customer as a processor pursuant to Section 2 of this DPA.
   - Module Three (Processor to Sub-Processor) of the EU SCCs apply when Customer is a processor and InboxPilot is processing Personal Data on behalf of Customer as a sub-processor.
3. For each module, where applicable the following applies:
   - The optional docking clause in Clause 7 does not apply.
   - In Clause 9, Option 2 (general written authorization) applies, and the minimum time period for prior notice of sub-processor changes shall be as set forth in Section 4.2 of this DPA;
   - In Clause 11, the optional language does not apply;
   - In Clause 17 (Option 1), the EU SCCs will be governed by Delaware law.
   - In Clause 18(b), disputes will be resolved before the courts of New Castle County, Delaware;
   - Exhibit B to this DPA contains the information required in Annex I and Annex III of the EU SCCs;
   - Exhibit C to this DPA contains the information required in Annex II of the EU SCCs; and
   - By entering into this DPA, the parties are deemed to have signed the EU SCCs incorporated herein, including their Annexes.
4. **Ex-UK Transfers.** The parties agree that ex-UK Transfers are made pursuant to the UK SCCs, which are deemed entered into and incorporated into this DPA by reference, and amended and completed in accordance with the UK International Data Transfer Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses issued by the UK Information Commissioner's Office.
5. **Supplementary Measures.** In respect of any ex-EEA Transfer or ex-UK Transfer, InboxPilot shall notify Customer without undue delay if InboxPilot receives a request from a government authority requiring disclosure of Customer's Personal Data, unless such notification is prohibited by law. InboxPilot shall not voluntarily disclose Personal Data to any law enforcement or government agency except as required by law.

## 7. Rights of Data Subjects

1. InboxPilot shall, to the extent permitted by law, notify Customer upon receipt of a request by a Data Subject to exercise the Data Subject's right of access, rectification, erasure, data portability, restriction or cessation of processing, withdrawal of consent to processing, and/or objection to being subject to processing that constitutes automated decision-making (such requests individually and collectively "Data Subject Request(s)"). If InboxPilot receives a Data Subject Request in relation to Customer's data, InboxPilot will advise the Data Subject to submit their request to Customer and Customer will be responsible for responding to such request, including, where necessary, by using the functionality of the Services.
2. InboxPilot shall, at the request of the Customer, and taking into account the nature of the processing applicable to any Data Subject Request, apply appropriate technical and organizational measures to assist Customer in complying with Customer's obligation to respond to such Data Subject Request and/or in demonstrating such compliance, where possible, provided that (i) Customer is itself unable to respond without InboxPilot's assistance and (ii) InboxPilot is able to do so in accordance with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations. Customer shall be responsible to the extent legally permitted for any costs and expenses arising from any such assistance by InboxPilot.

## 8. Actions and Access Requests; Audits

1. InboxPilot shall, taking into account the nature of the processing and the information available to InboxPilot, provide Customer with reasonable cooperation and assistance where necessary for Customer to comply with its obligations under the GDPR to conduct a data protection impact assessment and/or to demonstrate such compliance, provided that Customer does not otherwise have access to the relevant information. Customer shall be responsible to the extent legally permitted for any costs and expenses arising from any such assistance by InboxPilot.
2. InboxPilot shall maintain records sufficient to demonstrate its compliance with its obligations under this DPA, and retain such records for a period of three (3) years after the termination of the Agreement.
3. Upon Customer's written request at reasonable intervals, and subject to reasonable confidentiality controls, InboxPilot shall, either (i) make available for Customer's review copies of certifications or reports demonstrating InboxPilot's compliance with prevailing data security standards applicable to the processing of Customer's Personal Data, or (ii) allow Customer's independent third party representative to conduct an audit or inspection of InboxPilot's data security infrastructure and procedures that is sufficient to demonstrate InboxPilot's compliance with its obligations under Data Protection Laws, provided that (a) Customer provides reasonable prior written notice of any such request for an audit and such inspection shall not be unreasonably disruptive to InboxPilot's business; (b) such audit shall only be performed during business hours and occur no more than once per calendar year; and (c) such audit shall be restricted to data relevant to Customer. Customer shall be responsible for the costs of any such audits or inspections, including without limitation a reimbursement to InboxPilot for any time expended for on-site audits. InboxPilot may satisfy audit requests via SOC 2 Type II or equivalent certification.
4. InboxPilot shall immediately notify Customer if an instruction, in InboxPilot's opinion, infringes the Data Protection Laws or Supervisory Authority.
5. In the event of a Personal Data Breach, InboxPilot shall, without undue delay, inform Customer of the Personal Data Breach and take such steps as InboxPilot in its sole discretion deems necessary and reasonable to remediate such violation (to the extent that remediation is within InboxPilot's reasonable control).
6. In the event of a Personal Data Breach, InboxPilot shall, taking into account the nature of the processing and the information available to InboxPilot, provide Customer with reasonable cooperation and assistance necessary for Customer to comply with its obligations under the GDPR with respect to notifying (i) the relevant Supervisory Authority and (ii) Data Subjects affected by such Personal Data Breach without undue delay.
7. The obligations described in Sections 8.5 and 8.6 shall not apply in the event that a Personal Data Breach results from the actions or omissions of Customer.

## 9. InboxPilot's Role as a Controller

The parties acknowledge and agree that with respect to InboxPilot Account Data and InboxPilot Usage Data, InboxPilot is an independent controller, not a joint controller with Customer. InboxPilot will process InboxPilot Account Data and InboxPilot Usage Data as a controller (i) to manage the relationship with Customer; (ii) to carry out InboxPilot's core business operations, such as accounting, audits, tax preparation and filing and compliance purposes; (iii) to monitor, investigate, prevent and detect fraud, security incidents and other misuse of the Services, and to prevent harm to Customer; (iv) for identity verification purposes; (v) to comply with legal or regulatory obligations applicable to the processing and retention of Personal Data to which InboxPilot is subject; and (vi) as otherwise permitted under Data Protection Laws and in accordance with this DPA and the Agreement. InboxPilot may also process InboxPilot Usage Data as a controller to provide, optimize, and maintain the Services, to the extent permitted by Data Protection Laws. Any processing by InboxPilot as a controller shall be in accordance with InboxPilot's [Privacy Policy](/legal/privacy).

## 10. Conflict

In the event of any conflict or inconsistency among the following documents, the order of precedence will be: (1) the applicable terms in the Standard Contractual Clauses; (2) the terms of this DPA; (3) the Agreement; and (4) InboxPilot's Privacy Policy. Any claims brought in connection with this DPA will be subject to the terms and conditions, including, but not limited to, the exclusions and limitations set forth in the Agreement.

## 11. Execution and Adoption

1. This DPA is incorporated by reference into the Agreement and becomes effective upon Customer's acceptance of the InboxPilot Terms of Service.
2. By using the Service, Customer acknowledges and agrees to be bound by the terms of this DPA. No separate signature is required for this DPA to be effective.
3. If Customer requires a signed DPA for compliance purposes, Customer may contact [support@inboxpilot.co](mailto:support@inboxpilot.co) to request a countersigned copy. Upon receipt of a signed DPA, the signed version will supersede this automatically incorporated DPA.

---

## Exhibit A — Details of Processing

**Nature and Purpose of Processing:** InboxPilot will process Customer's Personal Data as necessary to provide the Services under the Agreement, for the purposes specified in the Agreement and this DPA, and in accordance with Customer's instructions as set forth in this DPA. The nature of processing includes, without limitation:

- Receiving data, including collection, accessing, retrieval, recording, and data entry
- Processing email content and metadata to provide AI drafting, triage, labeling, and automation
- Protecting data, including restricting, encrypting, and security testing
- Holding data, including storage, organization, and structuring
- Erasing data, including destruction and deletion
- Sharing data, including disclosure to subprocessors as permitted in this DPA

**Duration of Processing:** InboxPilot will process Customer's Personal Data as long as required (i) to provide the Services to Customer under the Agreement; (ii) for InboxPilot's legitimate business needs; or (iii) by applicable law or regulation.

**Categories of Data Subjects:** Customer's employees, consultants, contractors, agents, and Customer's end users, customers, or contacts whose data is processed through the Services.

**Categories of Personal Data:** InboxPilot processes Personal Data contained in InboxPilot Account Data, InboxPilot Usage Data, and any Personal Data provided by Customer (including email content, subject lines, sender and recipient information, message and thread IDs, knowledge-base documents, integration data, names, email addresses, job titles, IP addresses, and billing information) or collected by InboxPilot in order to provide the Services.

**Sensitive Data or Special Categories of Data:** Customers are prohibited from providing sensitive personal data or special categories of data to InboxPilot through the Services unless expressly agreed in writing and permitted by applicable law.

---

## Exhibit B — Sub-Processors and Transfer Details

### Authorized Sub-Processors

The current list, with any changes, is kept at [inboxpilot.co/legal/subprocessors](/legal/subprocessors).

| Sub-Processor | Purpose | Location |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Supabase, Inc. (on Amazon Web Services) | Database | USA |
| Render Services, Inc. | Backend hosting | USA |
| Vercel Inc. | Web application hosting | USA |
| Anthropic, PBC | AI language model services | USA |
| OpenAI, L.L.C. | AI language model and search indexing | USA |
| Google LLC | Gmail access for connected Google inboxes | USA |
| Microsoft Corporation | Outlook access for connected Microsoft inboxes | USA |
| Slack Technologies, LLC | Posting email to Slack for workspaces that connect Slack | USA |
| Stripe, Inc. | Payment processing | USA |
| Resend, Inc. | System email | USA |
| PostHog, Inc. | Product analytics | USA |
| Cloudflare, Inc. | DNS and network security | USA |

**Updated:** September 23, 2026

### Description of the Transfer

| Field | Details |
| --- | --- |
| **Data Subjects** | As described in Exhibit A of the DPA |
| **Categories of Personal Data** | As described in Exhibit A of the DPA |
| **Nature of the Processing** | As described in Exhibit A of the DPA |
| **Purposes of Processing** | As described in Exhibit A of the DPA |
| **Duration of Processing** | As described in Exhibit A of the DPA |
| **Frequency of the transfer** | As necessary to perform all obligations and rights with respect to Personal Data as provided in the Agreement or DPA |
| **Recipients of Personal Data** | Authorized Sub-Processors listed above |

### Data Exporter

**Name:** Customer, as stated and defined in the applicable Order under the Agreement

**Address:** Customer's registered business address and any address provided to InboxPilot when Customer uses the Services

**Contact:** The contact of the person that accepts and binds Customer to the Agreement

**Role:** Controller

### Data Importer

**Name:** InboxPilot

**Address:** 2810 N Church St PMB 16104, Wilmington, Delaware 19802-4447, United States

**Contact:** [privacy@inboxpilot.co](mailto:privacy@inboxpilot.co)

**Activities relevant to the data transferred:** As described in Section 2 of the DPA

**Role:** Processor (and Controller for InboxPilot Account Data and InboxPilot Usage Data as described in Section 9)

---

## Exhibit C — Technical and Organizational Security Measures

| **Measure** | **Details** |
| --- | --- |
| Encryption of personal data | Personal data is encrypted in transit using TLS 1.2+ and at rest using industry-standard AES-256 encryption. |
| Confidentiality, integrity, and availability | InboxPilot maintains access controls, authentication requirements, and monitoring to protect processing systems and services. |
| Backup and recovery | Production data is backed up on a regular schedule. Backups are encrypted and tested periodically. |
| User identification and authorization | Production access requires multi-factor authentication where applicable. Access is granted on a least-privilege basis. |
| Physical security | InboxPilot uses cloud infrastructure providers that maintain industry-standard physical and environmental controls. |
| Logging and monitoring | Security-relevant events are logged and reviewed. Incident response procedures are maintained. |
| Data minimization | InboxPilot processes only the data necessary to provide the Services configured by Customer. |
| Data retention and deletion | Customer data is deleted or returned upon termination in accordance with this DPA, subject to legal retention requirements. |
| Personnel security | Personnel with access to Personal Data are subject to confidentiality obligations and security training. |
| Sub-processor security | InboxPilot requires Authorized Sub-Processors to implement appropriate technical and organizational measures through written agreements. |

---

## Related Documents

- [Privacy Policy](/legal/privacy)
- [Terms of Service](/legal/terms)