Superhuman Mail vs Shortwave
Superhuman Mail is aI email app for teams that use Gmail or Outlook. Shortwave is aI email client for Gmail and Google Workspace accounts. Here is how they compare on price, free plan, platforms and the jobs each does best, from each vendor's own pages.
| Superhuman Mail | Shortwave | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | AI email app for teams that use Gmail or Outlook | AI email client for Gmail and Google Workspace accounts |
| Pricing | Paid | Free plan |
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Cheapest paid plan | $25/user/mo billed annually (Starter) | $18/user/mo (Pro) |
| Free trial | None stated | 14-day free trial of paid plans |
| Platforms | macOS, Chrome extension | Web, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android |
| Integrations (vendor's figure) | Not stated | Not stated |
| Open source | No | No |
| Made by | Superhuman (formerly Grammarly) | Shortwave Communications, Inc. |
Choose Superhuman Mail if…
- The job is working through a heavy Gmail or Outlook inbox faster.
- The job is drafting routine replies with AI.
Choose Shortwave if…
- You want a free plan: Superhuman Mail does not have one.
- Price matters: its cheapest paid plan is $18/user/mo against $25/user/mo.
- You want a mobile app (iOS and Android).
- The job is finding old emails and attachments by asking questions in plain English.
- The job is sorting a busy Gmail inbox automatically with AI filters.
What Superhuman Mail does
- Superhuman AI for triaging and writing email
- Auto Drafts and custom AI auto labels (Business)
- Ask AI (Business)
- Calendar and scheduling from the inbox
- HubSpot and Salesforce integration (Business)
- Superhuman Mail MCP for connecting AI tools (Business)
Watch out for
- No free plan for Mail; the Superhuman suite's Free and Pro plans do not include Mail
- Built for Gmail and Outlook users; other email providers are not mentioned on the product page
- Auto Drafts, Ask AI and CRM integrations require the Business plan
What Shortwave does
- AI assistant that searches email history and answers questions
- AI filters that sort incoming email (3 to 50 on Business plans)
- AI autocomplete, instant summaries and attachment analysis
- Splits, bundles and delivery schedules for organising the inbox
- Team features: thread sharing, comments, assignees and shared labels
- Read statuses, link tracking, snippets and follow-up reminders
Watch out for
- Sign-in requires Gmail or Google Workspace; Microsoft 365 and Exchange are not supported, and other providers work only through forwarding
- Free plan limits search history to 90 days and adds a 'Sent with Shortwave' signature
- Each plan has a daily AI usage quota; higher tiers give more usage
Questions
Is Superhuman Mail or Shortwave cheaper?
On published entry prices, Shortwave is cheaper: $25/user/mo billed annually (Starter) for Superhuman Mail against $18/user/mo (Pro) for Shortwave. What each plan includes differs, so compare the limits too.
Do Superhuman Mail and Shortwave have free plans?
Shortwave does; Superhuman Mail does not.