An update on leaving Gmail for Fastmail

Since my previous article about leaving Gmail sparked considerable discussion on Hacker News, I thought it appropriate to provide an update on my experience with Fastmail after switching. In essence, I believe I made the right choice by selecting Fastmail. Although there are cheaper email hosts available, Fastmail's value outweighs the cost for me.

Instead of forwarding my Gmail to my new address, I opted for a fresh start. This decision turned out to be the right one, particularly regarding inbox organization. Gmail's automatic sorting of emails into various categories has been instrumental in maintaining a manageable inbox despite little effort on my part. To improve organization further, I implemented subdomain addressing.

Each important account now has a unique or category-based subdomain, and any mail sent to these addresses automatically gets directed to the corresponding folder without requiring any manual rule creation.

Transitioning to Fastmail proved easier than anticipated, mainly because I kept my Gmail address active as a junk inbox. I only had to update the accounts I genuinely cared about, which amounted to around ten. Furthermore, Fastmail allows connecting up to 100 domains, a feature that proved useful as I added a new address using my blog domain, a desire I had been contemplating.

Interestingly, there seems to be a correlation between my new Fastmail address and the increase in email replies to my blog posts. Previously, I had a Proton address designated for email replies, but since making the switch, I've experienced enhanced motivation to blog and reach out when I come across intriguing content.

If you're contemplating a move similar to mine, a point worth considering is that your sent emails may initially be "greylisted" by recipients' email providers, particularly if your domain is newly registered. This issue applies to both your hosting provider and the destination email host. For instance, emails sent from my newly registered domain were delayed for a few hours when delivered to Gmail addresses.

However, messages from my established blog domain were delivered immediately. It took about a day or two for Gmail to fully trust the new domain, resulting in the delay being eliminated. I find this situation more frequent than I initially anticipated. To address this, Fastmail offers the option to generate randomized addresses that route to your inbox, allowing you to easily block services by toggling the address and sending all incoming mail to the trash.

Additionally, Fastmail's apps are solid, and their documentation is comprehensive. Overall, the transition has been smoother than I expected, and I believe similar experiences can be had irrespective of the destination, especially if you opt for an address on your own domain. This simplifies future migrations as well.