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Riseup Email

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Spec score 8.6 #10 of 29 in Private Email Services

What it is

Riseup Email is a free email account available through webmail or a mail client. Riseup describes the service as part of movement-run communications infrastructure for activists and allies. New accounts require an invite code from someone who trusts the applicant, and each account has 1 GB of storage. Riseup recommends Thunderbird and lists mail-client options for Linux, Mac, Windows, Android, and iOS. Clients connect using IMAP or POP, with SMTP for outgoing mail. Riseup says messages are individually encrypted on its servers and can be unlocked with the account password, but the service is not end-to-end or client encrypted unless users add Mailvelope or another OpenPGP solution. It says it does not log users’ internet addresses or include the sender’s IP address in outgoing email. Riseup services have Tor onion services, and email to certain activist providers is delivered over them. Trash messages are deleted after 21 days and Spam after 7 days. Riseup does not back up all old messages, so users are responsible for keeping their own copies. The service is funded entirely by small user donations.

Spec sheet

What it does
Riseup provides privacy-focused email for activists and social-movement organizations.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Audience
Riseup describes its email as part of movement-run communication infrastructure for activists and allies.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Privacy
Riseup says it does not log users’ internet addresses and does not embed the sender’s IP address in outgoing email.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Support
Riseup directs users who need help to submit a help ticket.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Headquarters
Lacey, Washington, USARead 28 Sep 2026 · riseup.net
Founded
1999Read 28 Sep 2026 · riseup.net
Access
Creating an account requires an invite code from someone who trusts you.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Account privacy
Riseup says signup does not require a phone number or personal information and uses invite codes instead.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Aliases and filters
Account settings support email aliases and filtering rules.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Backups
Riseup says it does not have backups of all old messages and makes users responsible for keeping their data safe.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Backups limitation
Riseup warns that it does not keep backups of all old messages.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Client support
Riseup recommends Thunderbird and publishes setup guidance for email clients including Geary and iOS Mail.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Data deletion
Users can destroy their account data from account management.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Encrypted disk
Riseup says its physical servers use full-disk encryption and are not cloud-hosted.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Encryption at rest
Riseup says messages are individually encrypted on its servers and can only be unlocked using the account password.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
End-to-end encryption
Riseup says its email is not end-to-end or client encrypted unless users add Mailvelope or another OpenPGP solution.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
End-to-end encryption limit
Webmail is not end-to-end encrypted; users must use OpenPGP through a compatible client or Mailvelope.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Funding
Riseup says its email service is funded entirely by small donations from users.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Funding model
Riseup says the email service is funded entirely by small user donations.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Invite-only signup
Account creation uses invite codes instead of requiring a phone number or personal information.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
IP privacy
Riseup says it does not log users’ internet addresses and does not embed sender IP addresses in outgoing mail.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Legal disclosure history
In a 2017 statement, Riseup disclosed complying with two sealed FBI warrants and said new accounts would receive personally encrypted storage.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Limit: invite restriction
Privacy Guides participants criticize the service for remaining invite-only, which limits normal consumer signup.Read 15 Oct 2026 · discuss.privacyguides.net
Limit: limited documentation
A Privacy Guides participant describes Riseup documentation as adequate but not especially extensive.Read 15 Oct 2026 · discuss.privacyguides.net
Limit: no custom domains
Privacy Guides participants say Riseup does not support custom domain names.Read 15 Oct 2026 · discuss.privacyguides.net
Limit: no MFA
Privacy Guides participants report that Riseup does not offer multi-factor authentication.Read 15 Oct 2026 · discuss.privacyguides.net
Limit: spoofing concern
A Whonix forum post criticizes the absence of a DMARC policy and says this can enable spoofing of Riseup addresses.Read 15 Oct 2026 · forums.whonix.org
Mail clients
Riseup recommends Thunderbird and lists client options for Linux, Mac, Windows, Android, and iOS.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Mailing-list scale
Riseup reports hosting more than 14,000 mailing lists with over four million subscribers.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Maker founding
Riseup’s home page says the collective has operated since 1999.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Maker headquarters
Riseup describes its collective as based in Seattle, with members worldwide.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Maker legal entity
Riseup Networks is identified in nonprofit records as a U.S. 501(c)(4) organization with EIN 20-0394008.Read 15 Oct 2026 · projects.propublica.org
Message retention
Riseup says messages in Trash are deleted after 21 days and messages in Spam after 7 days.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
OpenPGP webmail limit
Riseup’s OpenPGP documentation says encrypted mail cannot currently be sent or received directly in webmail.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Outage: August 2026
Riseup’s status page records an outage beginning August 7, 2026 that lasted nine hours and 40 minutes.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseupstatus.net
Outage: January 2026
Riseup’s status page records a mail-service outage on January 15, 2026 that lasted two hours.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseupstatus.net
Outage: October 2026
Riseup’s status page records scheduled email maintenance on October 6, 2026 with eight hours and 30 minutes of downtime.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseupstatus.net
Password hashing
Riseup says account passwords are stored with Argon2 memory-hard digests.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Password recovery
A lost password can only be recovered with the account recovery code; Riseup says it cannot bypass this requirement.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Personally encrypted storage
Newer accounts encrypt messages individually so stored mail is unlocked with the user password.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
POP download
POP access can download mail and delete it from Riseup servers.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Praise: activist use
Privacy Guides participants report that activists and journalists use Riseup under demanding threat models.Read 15 Oct 2026 · discuss.privacyguides.net
Praise: privacy
Trustburn reviewers repeatedly praise Riseup’s privacy and security emphasis.Read 15 Oct 2026 · trustburn.com
Praise: usability and support
Trustburn reviewers repeatedly describe the website as easy to use and support as responsive.Read 15 Oct 2026 · trustburn.com
Protocols
Mail clients can connect using IMAP or POP, and Riseup provides SMTP for outgoing mail.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Rating on Internet.nl
73 out of 100 from 1 testRead 15 Oct 2026 · discuss.privacyguides.net
Rating on OpenMyAnything
90 out of 100 from 1 reviewRead 15 Oct 2026 · openmyanything.com
Related nonprofit
Riseup Labs describes itself as the 501(c)(3) sister organization to Riseup Networks and focuses on free-software research and education.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseuplabs.org
Security guidance
The secure-connection documentation recommends TLS or SSL for IMAP, POP and SMTP connections.Read 15 Oct 2026 · help.riseup.net
Service
Riseup Email provides an email account accessible through webmail or a mail client.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Storage
Riseup says email accounts have 1 GB of storage space.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Storage quota
Each mailbox has 1 GB of storage.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Support and documentation
The service provides online help pages and a help-ticket form.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Tor
Riseup says its services have Tor onion services and that email to certain activist providers is delivered over Tor onion services.Read 8 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Tor services
Riseup offers Tor onion services for its services and can deliver mail to participating activist providers over Tor.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Transport encryption
Riseup encrypts server-to-server traffic when the recipient provider supports it.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net
Web access
Mail is available through mail.riseup.net.Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net

Plans and prices

Riseup Email Free Funded by user donations 1 GB mailbox · invite code required · Trash auto-deleted after 21 days · Spam auto-deleted after 7 days Read 15 Oct 2026 · riseup.net

Every Riseup Email plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Free email account with 1 GB of storage.
  • Works through webmail or clients using IMAP or POP.
  • Riseup says it does not log users’ internet addresses.
  • Tor onion services are available.

Limits

  • An invite code is required to create an account.
  • Email is not end-to-end encrypted without an added OpenPGP solution.
  • Trash is deleted after 21 days and Spam after 7 days.
  • Riseup does not back up all old messages.

Who it suits

Riseup Email suits activists and allies seeking movement-run communications infrastructure. It requires an invite and expects users to keep their own copies of messages they need.

Verdict

Riseup Email offers free accounts with client access and privacy measures described by the provider. The invite requirement, 1 GB limit, and lack of built-in end-to-end encryption are important to weigh before signing up.

Where Specifiction places it

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