Addy.Io Vs Simplelogin | The $1 Plan Most People Miss

Email aliasing keeps your real address out of reach while letting messages flow to the mailbox you already use. Addy.io and SimpleLogin tackle the same job with different trade‑offs. This guide gives you the fast verdict and the details that nudge a buyer one way or the other.

In A Nutshell

Addy.io shines when you want the lowest paid entry, rule‑based control, and a simple way to bring one personal domain without paying much. Its free tier also allows unlimited “standard” aliases under your username, which makes it easy to hand out unique addresses everywhere.

SimpleLogin is the pick when you hate limits. Premium removes caps on domains and mailboxes, keeps bandwidth open, and throws in Proton Pass premium. If you expect to grow beyond one or two domains or you plan to manage multiple inboxes, SimpleLogin feels easier over time.

Side‑By‑Side Specs

Feature	Addy.io	SimpleLogin
Cost	$0 Free; Lite $1/mo; Pro $3/mo (yr) or $4/mo	$0 Free; Premium $3/mo (yr) or $4/mo
Free‑Tier Alias Cap	Unlimited “standard” aliases under your username; 10 shared aliases active	10 total aliases
Custom Domains	Lite: 1; Pro: 20	Unlimited (Premium)
Catch‑All For Domains	Yes (toggle per domain)	Yes
Alias Creation Styles	Standard, UUID, random words/chars; regex auto‑create	Custom, random; directories; subdomains
Recipients / Mailboxes	Free 1; Lite 5; Pro 30 recipients	Free 1 mailbox; Premium unlimited mailboxes
Reply & Send From Alias	Yes; daily send cap varies by plan	Yes; reverse‑alias supported
PGP Encryption Option	Yes; can hide subject line	Yes
Mobile Apps	iOS & Android (open‑source)	iOS & Android
Browser Extensions	Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari	Chrome, Firefox, Safari
Bandwidth Policy	Free 10MB/mo; Lite 100MB/mo; Pro unlimited	Unlimited
Open Source / Self‑Host	Yes / Yes	Yes / Yes
API Availability	Yes (REST API)	Yes (REST API)
Bundle Extras	None bundled	Proton Pass premium included (with Premium)
Extra Usernames / Sub‑IDs	Lite 5; Pro 20	50 directories; 5 subdomains (Premium)
Rules / Automation	Lite 5; Pro 20 rules; regex creation	Directories, subdomains, catch‑all

Both are open‑source, both offer apps and extensions, and both let you reply from an alias. The big split is pricing shape and how far you plan to go with custom domains and mailboxes.

Addy.io — What We Like / What We Don’t Like

✅ What We Like

• Lite plan hits just $1/month billed yearly and still grants one custom domain.
• Unlimited “standard” aliases under your username on the free tier.
• Rule engine (Lite 5; Pro 20) and regex creation for hands‑off alias management.
• GPG/OpenPGP option with subject‑line protection for forwarded mail.
• Extra usernames (Lite 5; Pro 20) to split work, shopping, and personal flows.
• REST API for managing aliases, recipients, domains, and usernames.

⚠️ What We Don’t Like

• Bandwidth caps on Free (10MB/mo) and Lite (100MB/mo) can clip large attachments.
• Custom domains top out at 20 on Pro; fine for most, but not endless.
• Recipients are limited to 30 on Pro; high‑mailbox households may outgrow that.
• Shared‑domain aliases are capped on Lite; heavy shared‑domain users may need Pro.

SimpleLogin — What We Like / What We Don’t Like

✅ What We Like

• Unlimited custom domains on Premium, so you never hit a domain ceiling.
• Unlimited mailboxes on Premium; great when you route to several inboxes.
• Unlimited bandwidth across plans; large attachments aren’t a worry.
• Directories and subdomains make on‑the‑fly aliasing simple.
• Proton Pass premium is included with Premium for one bundled bill.
• Open‑source, self‑hostable, and backed by Proton’s infrastructure.

⚠️ What We Don’t Like

• Free plan caps at 10 aliases, so most buyers eventually upgrade.
• No mid‑tier at $1/month; you jump from Free to Premium.
• Power users who like rules may prefer a rule engine over directories.
• Some buyers won’t use the password manager bundle, which can blunt the value story.

Addy.io Or SimpleLogin: Which Fits You Better

Automation & Flows

Both tools let you create aliases in seconds. The difference is how you automate growth. Addy.io offers a rule engine on paid tiers plus a regex option that can auto‑create aliases when messages arrive. That’s handy when you want any address matching a pattern to spring into life without clicking around.

SimpleLogin leans on directories and subdomains. A directory is a prefix you set once; anyname@directory.simplelogin.com can be generated on demand, which makes it easy to keep shopping or finance in their own lanes. If you like meaningful, human‑readable addresses that map to categories, directories feel natural.

Catch‑all is available on both when you bring a domain. That means anything@your‑domain can work on first use. If you plan to hand out one‑off addresses freely, that single toggle removes friction for both services.

Segmentation & Personalization

Addy.io lets you create extra usernames on paid plans. That’s a neat way to separate work and personal flows while still keeping the same account. You can keep aliases under different usernames to avoid patterns that might tie addresses together. It also makes filtering easier in the mailbox you forward to.

SimpleLogin accomplishes a similar split through directories and subdomains. Premium adds five subdomains and fifty directories per account, which gives you plenty of naming space. If you want address names that spell out the site or category, SimpleLogin’s model encourages that style.

Deliverability & Compliance

Under the hood, both are forwarders. They route mail to the real mailbox you choose and let you send back as the alias. For buyers who bring a domain, the DNS walkthroughs guide you through the required records so forwarding works as expected. The practical tip: keep your domain’s DNS tidy and watch for typo‑level mistakes during setup.

Integrations & APIs

Each platform exposes a REST API for alias and domain management. That enables scripting chores like bulk creation, nightly clean‑ups, or internal dashboards. If you prefer browser‑level workflows, both offer extensions for the major browsers and mobile apps for quick on‑the‑go toggles.

Developers who want to wire alias creation into signup flows or CI can do it with either option. Think: a script that creates a fresh alias for every new vendor and stores the address in a private note for the team.

Pricing & Seats

The price curve is where these tools split. Addy.io has a $1/month Lite tier billed yearly that already includes one custom domain, five recipients, and a 100MB monthly bandwidth allowance. Pro lands at $3/month billed yearly ($4 monthly) and raises the ceiling on recipients, custom domains, and bandwidth.

SimpleLogin’s Free tier covers 10 aliases and one mailbox with unlimited bandwidth. The Premium tier is $36/year or $4 monthly and removes the big limits: unlimited aliases, unlimited custom domains, unlimited mailboxes, catch‑all, five subdomains, fifty directories, and PGP. Premium also includes Proton Pass premium (vault sharing, built‑in 2FA codes, dark‑web scans).

If you want a low‑cost way to run a personal domain and don’t need more than five recipients, Addy.io Lite stretches dollars well. If your household or small office has several mailboxes or you plan to manage many domains, SimpleLogin Premium removes more ceilings.

Help & Onboarding

Both products offer clear guides for bringing your domain and enabling catch‑all. If you’re new to DNS changes, follow the step‑by‑step domain pages and let the dashboards confirm when records are live.

For domain setup specifics, see the SimpleLogin docs on adding a custom domain and Addy.io’s Help Centre page for domains and catch‑all. These walk you through the required records and common choices like whether to enable catch‑all on day one.

Data Model & Objects

The core objects are similar across both services:

• Alias — the address you hand out to websites. You can deactivate or delete it when it leaks or starts getting spam.
• Domain — your own domain adds flexibility and portability. With catch‑all, anything@your‑domain can become an alias at first contact.
• Recipient/Mailbox — the real inbox that receives forwarded messages. Addy.io tracks these as recipients; SimpleLogin calls them mailboxes.
• Directory/Subdomain/Usernames — different naming tools to keep categories separate and readable.
• Rules/Regex — Addy.io’s knobs to automate creation or handling; SimpleLogin uses directories and catch‑all to reach a similar outcome.

Reporting & Attribution

Both dashboards show practical counters for each alias, like recent activity and forwarding history. That’s enough to spot a noisy sender fast and retire a problem address with one click.

Team Roles & Permissions

Neither product is a full multi‑seat admin suite. The model is personal accounts with the option to forward to more than one mailbox. If you need many people to receive the same alias, SimpleLogin’s unlimited mailboxes (Premium) maps cleanly to that need; Addy.io Pro allows up to 30 recipients per account.

Price, Value & Ownership

Here’s the money and limits snapshot that usually decides it.

Factor	Addy.io	SimpleLogin
Annual Price For Full Features	$36/year (Pro)	$36/year (Premium)
Cheapest Paid Entry	$12/year (Lite)	No mid‑tier; Free → Premium
Max Custom Domains	20 (Pro)	Unlimited (Premium)
Recipients / Mailboxes	Up to 30 recipients (Pro)	Unlimited mailboxes (Premium)
Bandwidth Policy	Unlimited on Pro; caps below that	Unlimited on all plans
Alias Creation Shortcuts	Regex, rules, extra usernames	Directories, subdomains, catch‑all
Bundle Value	None baked in	Proton Pass premium included
Open Source & Self‑Host	Yes / Yes	Yes / Yes

Price parity exists at the top tier. The swing points are the $1 Lite plan on Addy.io and the “no limits” feeling of SimpleLogin Premium, especially for domains and mailboxes.

Where Each One Wins

Decision Guide

Where Most Buyers Should Start

If you expect to outgrow a single domain or you already forward to multiple inboxes, start with SimpleLogin Premium. The unlimited model removes mental overhead, and the Proton Pass bundle replaces a separate password manager bill. You’ll be done with limits on day one.

If your needs are modest and you want extreme value, Addy.io Lite is a clever stop. It gives you one custom domain, five recipients, regex creation, and a lean $12 yearly bill. You can always move up to Pro later. Either way, owning your domain keeps you portable across services and avoids lock‑in.