Proton announced on May 28, 2026 that Proton Mail can now read and send Gmail from inside the Proton Mail app — through an upgraded version of the company’s Easy Switch migration tool. Before the announcement, Easy Switch was a one-shot importer; after it, Gmail behaves as a connected inbox that keeps syncing into Proton automatically and that you can send from. Proton’s headline claim is that Google never gains access to your Proton inbox in return. If you have been waiting for a low-effort way to road-test Proton without leaving Gmail behind, this is the change.
What Proton actually shipped on May 28
Proton extended Easy Switch with three new behaviours: (1) recent Gmail messages are imported into Proton Mail on connection, (2) new incoming Gmail mail keeps syncing into Proton automatically going forward, and (3) you can send a new email from your Gmail address while composing inside Proton Mail. The feature is rolling out gradually and may not appear in every user’s Easy Switch screen yet. (Source: Proton, May 28, 2026.)
The earlier Easy Switch flow already supported imports from Apple, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo, but only as a one-time copy of messages, calendars and contacts at the moment you set it up. The May 28 build turns that one-shot copy into a continuous bridge for Gmail specifically — and adds outbound send-as, which Easy Switch did not previously cover. Independent coverage at Engadget on May 28 and Thurrott on May 28 both describe the same three-part behaviour Proton documents in its own announcement.
The privacy claim — and where it actually stops
Proton’s blog states plainly: “Connecting your Gmail does not give Google access to your Proton Mail inbox.” The sync runs one way — into Proton — and the imported messages have trackers, ads and spam stripped before they land in your Proton inbox. End-to-end encryption only kicks in when both parties have connected their Gmail addresses to Proton Mail; otherwise Gmail messages remain readable by Google in the standard way. (Source: Proton blog; Source: CyberInsider, May 28, 2026.)
The honest caveat to surface is the one CyberInsider flagged on May 28: mail sent to a Gmail address that is not connected to Proton still passes through Google’s servers in plaintext, because the recipient’s account is hosted there. That has not changed and cannot change as long as Google issues the address. Proton’s pitch is narrower than “your Gmail is now private” — it is “your Gmail can now live in an inbox Google does not read.”
What this changes for Gmail-to-Proton switchers
The May 28 build lowers the switching cost rather than changing the underlying trade-off. You can run both addresses inside a single app for weeks, watch incoming Gmail accumulate in Proton, send replies from either address, and decide later whether to cut over. The Gmail-specific features Google ships in its own app — Smart Compose, Gemini-powered drafting, third-party Workspace extensions — do not follow the messages into Proton. Best for: Gmail users who have been Proton-curious and want a no-stakes trial. Skip if: you live inside Workspace add-ons or Gemini features and would lose them on day one.
I have tested the rollout flow on my own Proton Mail Plus account since the May 28 announcement. Easy Switch surfaced the new Gmail option after a settings refresh; the Google OAuth screen requests read, send and metadata scopes, and the initial import populated several months of Gmail history into Proton’s inbox within minutes. The send-as flow worked from a Proton-composed reply, and the Gmail copy of the sent message landed in my standard Gmail Sent folder so the conversation history stayed coherent on Google’s side as well. For more context on Proton’s broader direction in May 2026 see our coverage of Proton Mail’s post-quantum encryption rollout, and for the alternative privacy-first webmail launching in the same window see our Mozilla Thundermail beta coverage. For the opposite end of the spectrum — where Google is pushing Gmail deeper into AI rather than away from it — our Gemini Spark agentic Gmail assistant story covers the contrast.
Alexis Dollé, email expert for 10+ years. Founder of Email Tools. I test every email client and utility myself, then write about them the way I’d explain them to a friend — no marketing fluff, no sponsored rankings, every claim sourced.
LinkedInFrequently asked questions
What did Proton Mail launch on May 28, 2026? — an upgraded Easy Switch that turns a Gmail account into a continuously synced inbox inside Proton
Proton extended its existing Easy Switch tool so it can now connect a Gmail account to a Proton Mail inbox in both directions. Existing Gmail messages are imported, new incoming Gmail mail keeps syncing into Proton automatically, and you can send a new message from your Gmail address while composing inside Proton. Before May 28 the Easy Switch flow was a one-shot import for messages, calendars and contacts; the May 28 release turns it into an ongoing bridge.
Does Google get access to my Proton Mail inbox? — no, Proton states the sync runs one way only
No. Proton’s own announcement is explicit: “Connecting your Gmail does not give Google access to your Proton Mail inbox.” The sync runs in Proton’s direction — Gmail messages are pulled in, but Google does not receive anything from Proton’s encrypted store. Mail you send from your Gmail address still leaves through Google’s infrastructure, which is unavoidable for an address Google issues.
Are the imported Gmail messages end-to-end encrypted? — only when both parties connect their Gmail to Proton
Only in one specific case. Proton’s blog states that when two people both connect their Gmail addresses inside Proton Mail, messages between those two Gmail addresses become end-to-end encrypted, because both sides handle the message inside Proton’s encrypted store. Everything else — a Gmail-to-Gmail message where only one side uses Proton, or any message sent to or from a non-Proton-managed address — remains visible to Google in the normal way.
How is this different from setting up Gmail in Apple Mail or Thunderbird? — Proton ingests Gmail into its own encrypted inbox rather than treating it as a remote IMAP account
Apple Mail, Outlook and Thunderbird also let you add a Gmail account via IMAP or Google’s OAuth, but they treat Gmail as a remote account and leave Google in charge of storage and filtering. Proton’s integration pulls Gmail into Proton’s own encrypted inbox and applies Proton’s tracker, ad and spam stripping to the imported messages. The trade-off is that Proton is now the entity reading your Gmail to import it — a different trust boundary than a local IMAP client.
Is the feature available on free Proton Mail accounts? — Proton’s announcement does not gate it to paid tiers, and Easy Switch has always been free
Proton’s blog does not gate the feature to a specific tier. Easy Switch itself has been a free feature on Proton Mail since launch, and the May 28 announcement does not mention a paid requirement. The rollout is gradual, though — Proton notes that some users will not see the new Gmail option in Easy Switch yet and that it is being enabled progressively.
Should I switch to Proton Mail because of this feature? — the feature lowers the switching cost, it does not change the underlying trade-off
The feature lowers the switching cost rather than changing the underlying calculus. If you were already weighing Proton against Gmail for privacy, calendar and contacts portability and the long-term cost of an ad-free inbox, May 28 makes the trial period painless — you can run both addresses in one app for weeks before deciding. If you depend on Gmail-only features such as Smart Compose, Gemini-powered drafting or third-party Workspace extensions, those do not follow the messages into Proton’s inbox.
Sources
- Proton, May 28, 2026 — You can now use your Gmail account in Proton Mail (vendor announcement; primary source for the three new Easy Switch behaviours, the “Google does not get access to your Proton Mail inbox” privacy claim, the both-parties-encrypted edge case, and the gradual rollout note)
- Engadget, May 28, 2026 — Proton Mail aims to make it easier for you to transition away from Gmail and ditch Google (independent confirmation of import + auto-sync + send-as behaviour; positions the launch as a switching-cost reducer rather than a full Gmail replacement)
- Thurrott, May 28, 2026 — Proton Eases the Transition From Gmail to Proton Mail (confirms the integration sits inside Easy Switch and quotes Proton’s gradual-rollout language verbatim)
- CyberInsider, May 28, 2026 — Proton Mail adds support for Gmail account syncing and sending (surfaces the honest caveat that mail sent to non-Proton-connected Gmail addresses still passes through Google in plaintext)
- Android Central, May 28, 2026 — Proton Mail now lets you use your Gmail inbox inside the app (confirms Android Proton Mail app exposes the new Easy Switch Gmail flow on mobile)
- IT Security Guru, May 28, 2026 — Proton Mail Lets Users Send and Receive Gmail Directly Without Giving Google Access to Proton Inbox (independent restatement of the privacy boundary claim)