The best AI email assistant for an Australian executive, EA or small team is Lindy, on 47 out of 60. Fyxer is one point behind on 46. Both sort the inbox and draft replies in your voice. Fyxer never sends for you, and Lindy asks for approval before anything irreversible. Lindy's one-point lead rests on the control test, because it logs every action it takes. Fyxer wins if you live in Outlook or need a team plan.
Hourglass, which publishes this list, builds a custom AI Inbox, so it is described below but not scored.
What an AI email assistant does
An AI email assistant does email triage for you. It reads incoming email, sorts it by priority and drafts replies for you to check. The better ones work on their own, on arrival or on a schedule, so the drafts are waiting when you open Gmail or Outlook.
The market splits four ways. Missive's 2026 roundup names native AI inbox clients (Superhuman, Shortwave), overlays that sit on your existing inbox (Fyxer), filters (SaneBox) and suite AI (Copilot, Gemini). Agents such as Lindy are a fifth type. Missive puts the trend plainly: "The big shift this year is from passive assistants (help you draft faster) to active agents"
The field has also settled on one rule. The assistant drafts and you send. Fyxer says "Fyxer will never send an email on your behalf." Lindy says "Nothing irreversible happens without your approval."
The best AI email assistants, ranked
Lindy leads on 47 out of 60, Fyxer is second on 46 and Shortwave third on 32. The scores by test come first, then one card per assistant.
How each one scores
Points by test, scored 5 October 2026| Lindy | Fyxer | Shortwave | Gemini in Gmail | SaneBox | Superhuman | Microsoft 365 Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inbox work10 points | ||||||
| 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 6 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 4 of 10 |
| Connections10 points | ||||||
| 7 of 10 | 8 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 3 of 10 | 6 of 10 | 2 of 10 | 3 of 10 |
| Control10 points | ||||||
| 10 of 10 | 5 of 10 | 0 of 10 | 0 of 10 | 0 of 10 | 5 of 10 | 0 of 10 |
| Data10 points | ||||||
| 10 of 10 | 10 of 10 | 4 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 0 of 10 | 0 of 10 | 7 of 10 |
| Price10 points | ||||||
| 7 of 10 | 6 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 3 of 10 | 3 of 10 |
| Team10 points | ||||||
| 3 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 7 of 10 | 0 of 10 | 3 of 10 | 0 of 10 | 3 of 10 |
| Total scoreout of 60 | ||||||
| 47 of 601st | 46 of 602nd | 32 of 603rd | 24 of 604th | 22 of 605th | 20 of 606th | 20 of 607th |
Equal totals are ordered by inbox work. Superhuman and Copilot tie on 20, and Superhuman scores 10 on inbox work to Copilot's 4.
Who leads each test:
- Inbox work. Lindy, Fyxer and Superhuman, all on 10.
- Connections. Fyxer on 8, because its pages name both Gmail and Outlook.
- Control. Lindy on 10. It is the only tool with an approval step and an action log below Enterprise.
- Data. Lindy and Fyxer, both on 10.
- Price. Lindy, Shortwave, Gemini in Gmail and SaneBox, all on 7.
- Team. Fyxer and Shortwave, both on 7.
1. Lindy
- Best for
- Execs who want a log of every action
Lindy is an AI agent that manages the inbox. It "Drafts replies in your voice", runs "Scheduled routines" and lets you "Connect 2 to 5 inboxes, depending on plan". Plus costs "$ 29.99 /mo per user".
- Beats the field on: control (10, the only full score). Its security page says "Every action Lindy takes is logged." and its home page says "Nothing irreversible happens without your approval." It also scores full marks on data, as "SOC 2 Type II Certified" with "residency requirements are all supported".
- Loses on: team (3). The pages read do not name Outlook, show AUD prices or offer shared ownership of email.
- Not counted: "$50 in free credits" is a one-off credit, not a free plan.
- Note: Lindy's pricing page lists audit logs under Enterprise. The control score rests on the per-action log described on its security page.
- Scope: this page scores inbox work only. For Lindy's score as a general agent, see the AI agents ranking.
- Named customer on its own site: Amelia Kao, CEO.
30-minute call
Want an AI inbox on your own servers that follows your triage rules?
Book a 30-minute call and say what your inbox needs.
2. Fyxer
- Best for
- EAs and teams on Outlook or Gmail
Fyxer sits on top of your existing inbox. "Fyxer is both a Gmail AI email assistant and an Outlook AI email assistant", and it offers "Replies drafted in your tone and automatic labelling". Its site says "Fyxer's team spent a decade running the UK's largest executive assistant agency."
- Beats the field on: connections (8, the top score) and team (7, joint top). It also scores 10 on data, citing "SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001, GDPR, and HIPAA compliance". It is firm on sending: "Fyxer will never send an email on your behalf."
- Loses on: price (6). Pro is "$37 / person / mo" billed annually and Team is $64, so no plan is at or under US$30. There is no action log below Enterprise, no AUD pricing and no Australian region. "Data stored in your region (EU, UK, US)" is an Enterprise feature.
- Without the control test, Fyxer (41) leads Lindy (37).
- Named customers on its own site: PerfectTed, Paradigm and eXp Realty.
3. Shortwave
- Best for
- Small teams on Google Workspace
Shortwave is a Gmail-first email client. You can "Quickly switch between Gmail accounts on any device", assign email across the team, and Business costs "$30 per seat / month".
- Beats the field on: team (7, joint top) and price (7, joint top), at "$30 per seat / month" with team-wide assignees. Its security page says "Your data will never be used to train third-party LLMs."
- Loses on: control (0) and data (4). Auto-drafting lives in a sister product, Tasklet, so it was not counted here. Its CASA Tier 2 assessment is not SOC 2 or ISO 27001. The free option is a 14 day trial.
- Named customer on its own site: Brett Bates, Demand Executive.
4. Gemini in Gmail
- Best for
- Workspace users who want the cheapest drafting
Gemini in Gmail comes with Google Workspace. Google's AU site says you can "draft professional emails with Gemini in Gmail". Business Starter is "$9.90" a user a month on the AU site.
- Beats the field on: price (7, joint top), with the cheapest plan on the list that drafts replies. On data (7), Google says "Your content is not human reviewed or otherwise used for Generative AI model training outside your domain without permission."
- Loses on: control (0) and team (0). The pages read show no approval step or action log. AUD was not awarded because the AU page shows "$" with no currency marker.
- Named customers: none on the pages read.
5. SaneBox
- Best for
- Anyone who wants noise filtered, not drafts
SaneBox "Automatically filters out unimportant emails". It "works with every major email service such as Gmail, Microsoft 365, Apple iCloud". Snack costs "$4.54/ mo (paid biyearly)" for one account.
- Beats the field on: price (7, joint top), with the cheapest paid plan on the list, priced per email account, not per user. It also works with more providers than any other tool here.
- Loses on: data (0) and control (0). It does not draft replies. Missive's roundup says "SaneBox is the one tool on this list that doesn't draft anything". Its CASA assessment is not SOC 2 or ISO 27001.
- Named customer on its own site: Ryan Serhant, Founder and CEO at SERHANT.
6. Superhuman
- Best for
- Heavy email users who want auto drafts
Superhuman is an AI inbox client. Its home page promises "Wake up to a folder full of drafts written in your voice and with your context." It connects to HubSpot, Salesforce and Pipedrive. Business is "$33 per member / month, billed annually".
- Beats the field on: inbox work (10, joint top).
- Loses on: connections (2), data (0) and team (0). Training is opt-out below Enterprise. The free plan excludes Mail.
- Floor score: some Superhuman pages failed to load, so Gmail, Outlook and SOC 2 are not quoted. It is scored on what was read.
- Named customer on its own site: Jen Igartua, CEO, Go Nimbly.
7. Microsoft 365 Copilot
- Best for
- Outlook businesses already on Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 Copilot says "Copilot is built into Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams". Copilot Business is "AU$47.90 user/month, paid yearly".
- Beats the field on: AUD pricing. Microsoft is the only vendor on the list that publishes AU$. On data (7), Microsoft says prompts and responses "aren't used to train foundation models", and it offers an "EU Data Boundary".
- Loses on: inbox work (4), price (3) and control (0). The pages read do not show triage or an approval step, and AU$47.90 is above the AU$45 line.
- Floor score: Australian data residency and SOC 2 or ISO 27001 are not on the pages read.
- Named customers: none on the pages read.
Which assistants draft replies and wait for you to send
7 assistants, side by side
Checked 5 October 2026Sorts and prioritises email?Its own pages say it sorts, labels or prioritises incoming emailLindy: Yes.Fyxer: Yes.Shortwave: Yes.Gemini in Gmail: Yes.SaneBox: Yes.Superhuman: Yes.Microsoft 365 Copilot: Not stated.
| Assistant | Answer |
|---|---|
| Lindy | Yes. Says it sorts or prioritises incoming email. |
| Fyxer | Yes. Says it sorts or prioritises incoming email. |
| Shortwave | Yes. Says it sorts or prioritises incoming email. |
| Gemini in Gmail | Yes. Says it sorts or prioritises incoming email. |
| SaneBox | Yes. Says it sorts or prioritises incoming email. |
| Superhuman | Yes. Says it sorts or prioritises incoming email. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
Drafts replies?Its own pages say it drafts repliesLindy: Yes.Fyxer: Yes.Shortwave: Yes.Gemini in Gmail: Yes.SaneBox: No.Superhuman: Yes.Microsoft 365 Copilot: Yes.
| Assistant | Answer |
|---|---|
| Lindy | Yes. Says it drafts replies. |
| Fyxer | Yes. Says it drafts replies. |
| Shortwave | Yes. Says it drafts replies. Auto-drafting sits in Tasklet and was not counted. |
| Gemini in Gmail | Yes. Says it drafts replies. |
| SaneBox | No. Filters email. Does not draft replies. |
| Superhuman | Yes. Says it drafts replies. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Yes. Says it drafts replies. |
Works with Gmail?Its own pages name GmailLindy: Yes.Fyxer: Yes.Shortwave: Yes.Gemini in Gmail: Yes.SaneBox: Yes.Superhuman: Not stated.Microsoft 365 Copilot: Not stated.
| Assistant | Answer |
|---|---|
| Lindy | Yes. Names Gmail. |
| Fyxer | Yes. Names Gmail. |
| Shortwave | Yes. Names Gmail. |
| Gemini in Gmail | Yes. Names Gmail. |
| SaneBox | Yes. Names Gmail. |
| Superhuman | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
Works with Outlook?Its own pages name Outlook or Microsoft 365Lindy: Not stated.Fyxer: Yes.Shortwave: Not stated.Gemini in Gmail: Not stated.SaneBox: Yes.Superhuman: Not stated.Microsoft 365 Copilot: Yes.
| Assistant | Answer |
|---|---|
| Lindy | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Fyxer | Yes. Names Outlook or Microsoft 365. |
| Shortwave | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Gemini in Gmail | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| SaneBox | Yes. Names Outlook or Microsoft 365. |
| Superhuman | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Yes. Names Outlook or Microsoft 365. |
Never sends without you?Its own pages say a reply waits for you to send or approve itLindy: Yes.Fyxer: Yes.Shortwave: Not stated.Gemini in Gmail: Not stated.SaneBox: Not stated.Superhuman: Yes.Microsoft 365 Copilot: Not stated.
| Assistant | Answer |
|---|---|
| Lindy | Yes. Says replies wait for you. |
| Fyxer | Yes. Says replies wait for you. |
| Shortwave | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Gemini in Gmail | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| SaneBox | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Superhuman | Yes. Says replies wait for you. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
Keeps email out of model training?Its own pages say your email is not used to train modelsLindy: Yes.Fyxer: Yes.Shortwave: Yes.Gemini in Gmail: Yes.SaneBox: Not stated.Superhuman: Not stated.Microsoft 365 Copilot: Yes.
| Assistant | Answer |
|---|---|
| Lindy | Yes. Says your email is not used for model training. |
| Fyxer | Yes. Says your email is not used for model training. |
| Shortwave | Yes. Says your email is not used for model training. |
| Gemini in Gmail | Yes. Says your email is not used for model training. |
| SaneBox | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Superhuman | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Yes. Says your email is not used for model training. |
Logs what it did?Its own pages say every action is loggedLindy: Yes.Fyxer: Not stated.Shortwave: Not stated.Gemini in Gmail: Not stated.SaneBox: Not stated.Superhuman: Not stated.Microsoft 365 Copilot: Not stated.
| Assistant | Answer |
|---|---|
| Lindy | Yes. Says every action is logged. |
| Fyxer | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Shortwave | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Gemini in Gmail | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| SaneBox | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Superhuman | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Not stated. Not on the pages read. |
What an AI email assistant costs
List prices, USD unless marked AU$| Assistant | Free plan | Cheapest paid plan | Next plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lindy | US$50 in free credits, one-off | US$29.99 a user a monthPlus | US$99.99 a user a monthPro |
| Fyxer | US$0Free | US$37 a person a month, annualPro | US$64 a person a month, annualTeam |
| Shortwave | None, 14 day trial | US$30 a seat a monthBusiness | US$45 a seat a monthPremier |
| Gemini in Gmail | None, 14 day trial | $9.90 a user a monthBusiness Starter, AU site | $19.80 a user a monthBusiness Standard |
| SaneBox | None, free trial | US$4.54 a month, paid biyearlySnack, 1 account | US$7.46 a month, paid biyearlyLunch, 2 accounts |
| Superhuman | US$0, but Free excludes Mail | US$33 a member a month, annualBusiness, includes Mail | CustomEnterprise |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Not published | AU$47.90 a user a month, annualCopilot Business | Not published |
Four checks before you trust one with your inbox
Every tool on this list drafts well in a demo. The test is whether it still works after a month of your real email. Finlay Ekins wrote about this in his newsletter: "Often with AI it is so easy to spin up the demo or first version, but that final 10% that gets the thing working takes real focus and time." For an inbox, that last 10% is your own rules and your edge cases.
Before a trial, check four things:
- Write down your email triage rules first. Hourglass's Michael Batko says his productivity course "actually starts with cleaning up what's already in your head... And then we actually go into inbox and calendar to do lists". A tool can only follow rules you can state.
- Confirm it never sends. Lindy, Fyxer and Superhuman say replies wait for you. The others don't say, or don't draft.
- Ask where your email is stored. Fyxer offers EU, UK and US regions on Enterprise. Copilot offers an EU Data Boundary. No tool on this list states an Australian region.
- Price the whole team, not one seat. Fyxer's Team plan is US$64 a person a month. Copilot is AU$47.90 a user a month.
If you need it on your own servers, with your own triage rules
Some teams need email triage that none of the seven offer. Hourglass's custom AI Inbox is built for them:
- What it does. "An AI agent reads, sorts, and prioritises every email, then drafts the replies that need you, in your own voice." It is "not a smarter filter or another folder."
- Where it runs. "Your data never leaves your business. Everything we build runs on your own servers and your own accounts."
- Who it suits. "teams of ~10-100 people without an engineering team." Hourglass says "we build it from the context we get from our conversations to 80%, ship it to the client within 1-2 weeks, and refine it together week by week".
"One of our clients has an executive assistant who manages 500+ emails a day (~3 hours daily). Our AI Inbox now runs it." (Hourglass July 2026 update)
She called it "revolutionary", then went on holiday and left it running. "It's gone from 5 users to being used by a 35-person office in 7 weeks." Like Fyxer and Lindy, it "never sends without you". Finlay Ekins described an earlier version in his newsletter: one client went from "sorting 600 emails/day manually before, to now running the tool 24/7 to manage them."
How the assistants were scored
- Inbox work, 10 points. Does the inbox work: sorts and prioritises incoming mail (3), drafts replies (4), works without being prompted, on arrival or on a schedule (3).
- Connections, 10 points. Works where you already email: Gmail (3), Outlook or Microsoft 365 (3), a CRM such as HubSpot or Salesforce (2), MCP or an API (2).
- Control, 10 points. You stay in control: nothing sends without your approval (5), a log of what the assistant did, below Enterprise (5).
- Data, 10 points. Data control: email not used for model training by default (4), SOC 2 or ISO 27001 (3), a data region choice (3).
- Price, 10 points. Price: published price (3), free plan that includes the AI (3), a plan with the email AI at US$30 or AU$45 a user a month or less (4).
- Team, 10 points. Team and Australia: shared ownership of email or follow-ups (4), several inboxes on one seat (3), prices published in AUD (3).
Total score out of 60. Scored 5 October 2026.
Each assistant was scored out of 60 on six tests worth 10 points each, using only the vendor's own published pages, read on 2026-10-05.
Equal totals are ordered by inbox work.
How close the top two are. Lindy leads Fyxer by one point, 47 to 46. Lindy's #1 rests on the control test, on its per-action log ("Every action Lindy takes is logged.") and its approval step ("Nothing irreversible happens without your approval."). Without the control test, Fyxer (41) leads Lindy (37). Fyxer wins team (7 to 3) and connections (8 to 7, because Outlook is named on its pages).
Who the list is for. The buyer is an Australian executive, EA or team of 5 to 50 people choosing an assistant for Gmail or Outlook.
What was not scored. Shared-inbox clients (Missive, Front) and general assistants (ChatGPT, Claude) were left out because they are not built for one person's inbox triage. MailMaestro, Inbox Zero, Serif, Perplexity and Spark were not read this round. Hourglass AI Inbox was not scored because Hourglass publishes this list.
Floor scores. Superhuman and Microsoft 365 Copilot are scored on what their pages showed. Some pages failed to load, so their scores may rise on a re-read.
Third-party roundups from Missive and Inbox Zero were read for framing only and did not affect scores.
References
- Lindy home page (cited for Lindy)
- Lindy pricing (cited for Lindy)
- Lindy security page (cited for Lindy)
- Fyxer home page (cited for Fyxer)
- Fyxer AI email assistant page (cited for Fyxer)
- Fyxer pricing (cited for Fyxer)
- Fyxer security page (cited for Fyxer)
- Shortwave home page (cited for Shortwave)
- Shortwave pricing (cited for Shortwave)
- Shortwave security page (cited for Shortwave)
- Google Workspace AI page (AU) (cited for Gemini in Gmail)
- Google Workspace pricing (AU) (cited for Gemini in Gmail)
- Google Workspace generative AI privacy help (cited for Gemini in Gmail)
- SaneBox home page (cited for SaneBox)
- SaneBox pricing (cited for SaneBox)
- Missive AI email assistant roundup (third party) (cited for SaneBox)
- Superhuman home page (cited for Superhuman)
- Superhuman plans (cited for Superhuman)
- Microsoft 365 Copilot Business (AU) (cited for Microsoft 365 Copilot)
- Microsoft Copilot enterprise data protection (cited for Microsoft 365 Copilot)
- Finlay Ekins, A Ferrari with no fuel
- Michael Batko on the Startmates podcast
- Hourglass July 2026 update
- Inbox Zero AI email assistant roundup (framing only)
Common questions
What is the best AI email assistant?
Lindy is the best AI email assistant on this list, with 47 out of 60. It sorts the inbox, drafts replies in your voice, asks before anything irreversible and logs every action. Fyxer is one point behind on 46.
What is the best AI email assistant for Outlook?
Fyxer. It works with both Outlook and Gmail and scores 46 out of 60. Microsoft 365 Copilot is built into Outlook but scores 20.
What is the best AI email assistant for Gmail?
Lindy scores highest overall and works with Gmail. Shortwave (32) is the strongest Gmail-first email client. Gemini in Gmail (24) is the cheapest if you already pay for Google Workspace.
What is the best AI email assistant for an executive assistant?
Fyxer, on 46 out of 60. It drafts replies in your tone, works with Outlook and Gmail, has a team plan and says it will never send an email on your behalf. Its team ran the UK's largest executive assistant agency. Lindy (47) leads overall because it logs every action.
Do AI email assistants send emails on their own?
Fyxer says it will never send an email on your behalf. Lindy asks for approval before anything irreversible. Superhuman says its drafts wait for you.
Which AI email assistant shows prices in Australian dollars?
Only Microsoft 365 Copilot, at AU$47.90 a user a month on an annual plan. Google's Australian page shows $9.90 for Business Starter without a currency marker.
Is there a free AI email assistant?
Fyxer has a US$0 Free plan. Superhuman has a free plan, but it excludes Mail. Lindy offers US$50 in one-off credits. Shortwave and Gemini in Gmail offer 14 day trials.