Business email for a UK team of one to ten people costs from £0.80 to £7 per mailbox a month on the vendors' own UK pages, checked on 15 November 2026. Zoho Mail Lite is the cheapest paid inbox, Microsoft's Exchange Online Plan 1 is the cheapest way to stay on Outlook, and Google Workspace Business Starter costs £5.90 on an annual plan or £7 if you want to cancel at any time. Pick on how your team works first, then on price.
How much is Google Workspace per month in the UK?
Google's own comparison of its payment plans lists Business Starter at £7 per user a month on the Flexible plan and £5.90 on the Annual plan. Business Standard is £14 or £11.80, and Business Plus is £22 or £18.40. The same page says Flexible lets you add or remove users and cancel at any time without a penalty, while on the Annual plan you can only remove users at renewal and must pay the full commitment if you leave early.
Starter includes 30 GB of pooled storage per person, custom business email and video meetings for 100 people, according to Google's UK pricing page. That page also says prices exclude tax and offers new customers 50% off the first three months, for up to 20 users. These offers are time-limited and were checked on 15 November 2026, so confirm on the brand's own site before you buy.
For a founder who may add or lose staff this year, the extra £1.10 per user a month on Flexible buys the right to change your mind. Five Starter users cost £29.50 a month on Annual and £35 on Flexible.
What does business email cost per mailbox?
The table below uses each vendor's UK price per user a month. Microsoft and Zoho state their prices exclude VAT; Google says its prices do not include tax.
| Service | Price per user a month | Mail storage | Billing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zoho Mail Lite (5 GB) | £0.80 | 5 GB | Annual only |
| Zoho Mail Lite (10 GB) | £1 | 10 GB | Annual only |
| Zoho Workplace Standard | £2.40 (£3.20 monthly) | 30 GB | Annual or monthly |
| Exchange Online Plan 1 | £3.10 | 50 GB, plus 50 GB archive | Paid yearly |
| Fastmail Standard | £4.50 (£5.40 monthly) | 60 GB in all | Yearly or monthly |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | £5.40 | 50 GB, plus 50 GB archive | Paid yearly |
| Google Workspace Business Starter | £5.90 (£7 Flexible) | 30 GB pooled | Annual or Flexible |
Zoho's pricing page shows Mail Lite at £0.80 with no monthly plan, and a free plan for up to five users on one domain that leaves out IMAP, POP and ActiveSync. Microsoft's Exchange plans page lists Exchange Online Plan 1 at £3.10 with a 50 GB mailbox and Business Basic at £5.40, both paid yearly. Fastmail's UK pricing puts Standard at £4.50 a month paid yearly (£54 for 12 months) or £5.40 monthly, with 50 GB for mail, calendar and contacts and 10 GB for files.
Business email price per user a month in the UK
Each vendor's published UK price per user a month on annual or yearly billing, checked 15 November 2026
View the data
| Category | £ per user per month |
|---|---|
| Zoho Mail Lite 5 GB | £0.80 |
| Zoho Workplace Standard | £2.40 |
| Exchange Online Plan 1 | £3.10 |
| Fastmail Standard | £4.50 |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | £5.40 |
| Google Workspace Business Starter | £5.90 |
Which business email providers offer two-factor authentication and spam protection?
All four do. Microsoft says every Microsoft 365 for business subscription includes security defaults, which switch on multifactor authentication, along with built-in protection against malware, spam and spoofing. Business Premium adds Defender for Office 365 Plan 1 with Safe Links and Safe Attachments.
Zoho's secure access page lists two-factor sign-in through its OneAuth app, with Touch ID, push notifications, one-time codes or QR codes. Fastmail's feature guide covers two-step verification and spam filtering, and says each third-party mail app needs its own app password. Google lists enterprise-grade security for its core services on its pricing page.
Two-factor sign-in protects the account. To stop criminals sending mail that pretends to be from your domain, the NCSC's email security guidance recommends SPF, DKIM and DMARC records. Set these up on day one, whichever provider you choose.
Which works best with Outlook, Apple Mail and Thunderbird?
Microsoft 365 is the natural fit for a team that lives in Outlook. Microsoft's Business Basic page notes that the plan gives you the web and mobile versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, not the desktop apps.
Google documents set-up for Outlook, Apple Mail and Thunderbird in its sync guide. In Outlook for Windows, calendar and contacts only sync if you install Google Workspace Sync for Microsoft Outlook; without it, you get email only.
Fastmail says it works with Thunderbird, Apple Mail, Outlook and many others, and its own app for iOS and Android puts mail, calendars and contacts in one place. Zoho's paid plans include mobile and desktop apps and shared calendars; if you need a desktop mail client, skip the free plan because it has no IMAP.
UK data protection rules that apply to your email host
Your email provider processes personal data on your behalf, so UK GDPR applies. The ICO's guidance on international transfers says that contracting with a UK-based cloud provider is not a restricted transfer, while contracting with one based outside the UK very likely is. Check which company you sign with and read its data processing terms before moving customer or staff mail.
This matters more than a "GDPR-ready" label on a sales page. Keep a note of the contract, where the provider is based and how you will get your data back if you leave.
How to choose for a team of one to ten
Start from the tools you already use. If you only need professional email on your own domain, Zoho Mail Lite at £0.80 is the lowest bill on this list. If your team and clients use Outlook, Exchange Online Plan 1 at £3.10 keeps you there without paying for a full suite.
If you want email, shared documents and video calls in one place, compare Google Workspace Business Starter at £5.90 with Microsoft 365 Business Basic at £5.40, or Zoho Workplace Standard at £2.40 if you are happy to adopt Zoho's suite. Fastmail Standard at £4.50 suits a team that wants a focused inbox and calendar and already has its own document tools.
Before you commit to a year, run the free trial with real work. Google offers 14 days and Fastmail up to 30. Send to customers, accept a meeting invite, set up a phone and test two-factor recovery.
What changes next for small business email
Prices move, and introductory offers end. Google's current 50% offer runs for three months only, so budget at the full rate. Review the bill at each renewal and check whether a cheaper tier still covers what your team uses.
Sources
- Google Workspace Help, Compare Flexible and Annual/Fixed-Term payment plans, 2026
- Google Workspace, UK pricing, 2026
- Google Workspace Help, Get started syncing Google Workspace data, 2026
- Microsoft, Exchange Online plans and pricing, 2026
- Microsoft, Microsoft 365 Business Basic, 2026
- Microsoft Learn, Microsoft 365 for business security overview, 2026
- Zoho, Zoho Mail pricing, 2026
- Zoho, Zoho Mail secure access, 2026
- Fastmail, UK pricing, 2026
- Fastmail Help, Fastmail features, 2026
- NCSC, Email security and anti-spoofing
- ICO, International transfers quick reference FAQs
