With real-time communication apps such as Slack, WhatsApp, and Skype growing in popularity, you may be surprised that email is still the primary communication tool at work – and with 3.9 billion users worldwide that won’t change anytime soon.
Let’s see how they compare:
Table of Contents
The History of Gmail and Outlook
The fight for dominance between Gmail and Outlook has a great deal of history.
Let the timeline be followed by a quick tour.
- Outlook was originally called Hotmail and launched in 1996
- Microsoft buys Hotmail in 1997 and rebrands to MSN Hotmail
- MSN Hotmail is then rebranded to Windows Live Hotmail
- Gmail is launched in 2004 – with massive fanfare because it offered 1GB of free storage
- Eventually, Windows Live Hotmail is rebranded to Outlook to try and compete with Gmail
Despite hard work, Outlook has only a 9 percent market share for e-mail customers as of 2020 when compared with 28 percent for Gmail.
Gmail vs. Outlook: Features
Outlook’s Folder and File System
As in most other e-mail service providers, Outlook has a traditional folder and filesystem. It makes onboarding easier because of its familiarity.
One downside, however, is that the folder and file system of Outlook may be restrictive. Only one folder can assign emails that limit the way you can organise your messages efficiently.
Gmail Labels
The typical style of Google is that, with the innovative labels and classes system, launch Gmail has changed the face of e-mail. It may take a little bit of time to wrap your head, but Gmail labels gains functionality and features by hand. The ability to add granular layers to your boxes is over the folder and file system head and shoulders.
Winner: Gmail
Gmail vs. Outlook: Design
Subjective design may be. When it comes to selecting an email service provider, people will always have their own look and feel.
Today, Outlook looks a bit date, while Gmail is a bit more advanced.
The Gmail interface:
The Outlook interface:
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Given the subjective design and feeling, it’s hard to declare this round a winner.
Gmail vs. Outlook: Productivity
A recent study found that bureaucrats receive about 121 emails a day, and by the end of 2020, this number is expected to increase to 126. So you need to be able to customise your workflow if you keep your inbox clutter-free and reply to your mails.
Add-ons and Extensions
Consider some of the most popular add-ons, extensions and add-ons for both services.
Gmail
Right inbox – Right inbox thrives to make it more productive for people. There are a series of tools, from multiple signature management to customisable templates to overcharge your box.
Knowledge of Crystal – Were you ever interested in finding out more about someone before a major meeting? With only publicly available data Crystal Knows can predict personality of somebody.
Voila Norbert – Norbert is a Chrome extension to help you develop lists and contacts to build resources. For tasks such as sales and outreach, it is invaluable.
Outlook
Outlook Docsend – Docsend is a popular secure file sharing tool. You will be able to see who reads your files and how much they read. This is particularly useful when you submit proposals.
Unfortunately, meetings are unavoidable. The only thing worse than a meeting that runs on too long is the chain of emails that takes place before it, in order to arrange a date and time that suits everyone. FindTime streamlines the process of pinpointing a slot in which all attendees are free.
If you’re an Evernote user, then their Outlook add-in is a great way to save time on projects, and move note-taking directly into your inbox.
