German encrypted email and calendar with open-source clients and a free tier
Privacy 6.5
Safety 7.3
Email Since 2014 Reviewed 22 Oct 2026
Proton Mail review
Swiss end-to-end encrypted email with a free tier; paid plans payable in Bitcoin or cash
- Tor onion address
- Open source
- Accepts cash
- No email needed
- Company named
- 5+ years operating
No ID mentioned KYC 1 Documentation reviewed
Privacy
7.2/ 10
Strong
Safety
7.3/ 10
Strong
Based on terms and documentation. No test transactions published yet. See the arithmetic
Proton Mail review in short
Proton Mail is an email provider operating since 2014. Its terms put it at KYC level 1 of 4: no ID mentioned. NoKYC Score grades it 7.2/10 for privacy (strong) and 7.3/10 for safety (strong). In its favour: no email needed, accepts cash and tor onion address. No incidents are on record.
- Category
- KYC level
- 1 of 4: No ID mentioned
- Grades
- Privacy 7.2/10, Safety 7.3/10
- Sign-up
- Email optional
- Jurisdiction
- Switzerland
- Onion address
- Yes
- Incidents on record
- 0
- Last reviewed
- 22 Oct 2026
Cite this review
NoKYC Score, "Proton Mail review", reviewed 22 Oct 2026, https://nokycscore.com/service/proton-mail
Also available as plain text.
What Proton Mail is
Proton Mail is an end-to-end encrypted email service run by Proton AG in Switzerland, with open-source clients and an official onion site. A free tier is available and no existing email address is needed to register, although new accounts may be asked to pass a human-verification step. The payment help page lists cards, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Bitcoin, cash and bank transfer; Bitcoin becomes available after a free account has been created, and cash can be posted in US dollars, euros or Swiss francs. Message content is encrypted, but the company is subject to Swiss legal process for the limited metadata it holds.
What Proton Mail offers, and what to watch
6 of 14 privacy and safety features, 0 warnings in its terms.
"Not stated" means its own pages do not say.
Identity
- ID never required Not stated
- No account needed Not stated
- No email needed Yes An email address is not required to sign up or use it.
- No phone number Not stated
Payment
- Accepts Monero Not stated
- Accepts Lightning Not stated
- Accepts cash Yes Cash by post or in person: no bank and no blockchain record.
Access
- Tor onion address Yes An official .onion address, reachable only through Tor.
- Works without JavaScript Not stated
Trust
- Open source Yes The code that matters is public and can be inspected.
- No-logs policy Not stated
- Independent audit Not stated
- Company named Yes The operating company and its jurisdiction are published.
- 5+ years operating Yes Has operated continuously for five years or more.
Warnings
- May ask for ID Not in terms
- Email required Not in terms
- Phone number required Not in terms
- Closed source Not in terms
- Nobody accountable Not in terms
Does Proton Mail require KYC?
- 0 Never
- 1 Not mentioned
- 2 Rare
- 3 On risk flag
- 4 Mandatory
KYC level 1: No ID mentioned. No identity requirement appears anywhere in the terms or documentation.
No identity documents are requested; sign-up may involve a human-verification step, and Bitcoin or posted cash can pay for upgrades.
How the grades add up
Both grades start at 50 points and move by fixed, published amounts. Nothing is adjusted by hand. The total is divided by ten.
Privacy
7.2- Starting points 50
- KYC level 1: No ID mentioned +12
- Tor onion service +4
- Accepts cash +4
- Open source +2
- Total, clamped to 0–100 72
Safety
7.3- Starting points 50
- Open source +8
- 5+ years operating +10
- Legal entity disclosed +5
- Total, clamped to 0–100 73
Test ledger
Real transactions run by our editors. A badge without a ledger is an assertion; this is the proof.
No test transactions published yet
The grades above rest on Proton Mail’s terms and documentation. Tests will appear here with the date, route, amount band and result as they are run.
Incidents on record
No incidents are on record for Proton Mail. If you have a documented case, report it.
User reviews
Reviews never change a grade. Reviews with a transaction reference are marked.
No reviews yet.
Write a review
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Proton Mail: common questions
Does Proton Mail require KYC?
Proton Mail is rated KYC level 1 of 4 on this site: no ID mentioned. No identity documents are requested; sign-up may involve a human-verification step, and Bitcoin or posted cash can pay for upgrades.
Is Proton Mail safe to use?
Proton Mail has a Safety grade of 7.3 out of 10 and a Privacy grade of 7.2 out of 10. No incidents are on record. Evidence level: documentation reviewed.
Is Proton Mail legit?
Proton Mail is a working email provider that has operated since 2014. It publishes the company that runs it, in Switzerland. Being real is not the same as being safe: its Safety grade here is 7.3 out of 10, built from custody, liquidity, track record and incidents.
Is Proton Mail a scam?
NoKYC Score does not label services as scams; it records documented incidents with their sources and outcomes. No incidents are on record for Proton Mail.
Do I need an account or email to use Proton Mail?
Email optional.
Does Proton Mail have a Tor onion address?
Yes. Proton Mail publishes an official onion address, shown on this page. Open it in Tor Browser.
Which cryptocurrencies does Proton Mail support?
Proton Mail supports BTC, and fiat payments in USD, EUR, CHF.
Can I use Proton Mail over Tor?
Yes. Proton Mail publishes an official onion address, shown on this page.
Listing history
- Listing added. Facts and KYC level set from the service's own terms and documentation.