PressedMail Free is a complete email client for one mailbox. The paid plans add more mailboxes and more tools around the mail. Which one you need depends on a short list of things you will actually do, so this post starts there.
Prices and limits below are the ones on the pricing page at the time of writing. Check it before you buy.
A silent animation of how AI credits are spent, about 15 seconds. PressedMail AI tags mail, scores spam and checks phishing without an AI key of your own. Auto-tagging costs 1 credit per email. The spam and phishing checks on one email share 1 credit, so all three on one email cost 2. Running one again costs another credit, and credits never expire.
What Free covers
Free connects one mailbox per site. You get the whole client for it: reading, composing in rich text, Markdown or plain text, folders, threads, search, tags, email rules, attachment previews, a phone layout and the mailbox lock. It also sends WordPress’s own mail through one SMTP server you set up under Settings, WordPress Email, with a delivery log.
There is no subscription, no trial that expires, and no PressedMail account to create. Updates come from WordPress.org.
If one address is all you read from the dashboard, Free is enough. The first-message tutorial works on Free from start to finish.
What the paid plans add
Starter and Premium share the same features and differ in how many sites they cover. They add:
- more than one mailbox, read in a combined inbox, plus Yahoo Mail and iCloud Mail in the provider list
- contacts and a calendar beside your mail
- templates, signup forms, snooze, scheduled send, undo send and auto-replies
- AI tools and phishing checks, using your own provider or PressedMail AI credits
- more themes and layouts
- several SMTP servers with sender-based routing for WordPress mail
Ultimate and Lifetime add what teams and agencies ask for: campaigns, shared mailboxes, calendars and contact lists with Viewer, Responder and Manager roles, and white labelling.
Replacing Free with a paid build keeps your accounts, settings and data. Take a site backup before you switch editions, as you would before any plugin change.
Plans at a glance
| Plan | Price | Sites | AI credits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $49 a year | 1 | 10,000 a year |
| Premium | $89 a year | 10 | 25,000 a year |
| Ultimate | $169 a year | 100 | 50,000 a year |
| Lifetime | $499 once | 100 | 200,000 once |
Credits matter only if you use PressedMail AI. If you bring your own AI provider, the provider bills you and the credits are not involved.
What you see on screen
The main screen is the same on every edition. A paid build shows more in the header and the account switcher.
- The account switcher. Choose one mailbox, or the combined inbox that merges them.
- The search box.
- The icon cluster. A paid build adds contacts, calendar and templates here.
- The folder pane.
- The message list.
- The reading pane.
- The status bar.
- The speed dial, a round button you can drag.
The screenshot comes from a paid build, so it shows the combined inbox and the extra icons. A Free site shows one mailbox and fewer icons.
The Accounts tab shows where the plans differ for sharing.
- Add Account.
- Signature.
- The star that marks the default account.
- Share. Sharing a mailbox needs Ultimate or Lifetime.
- Edit.
- Delete.
Pick by what you will do
Ask what you will do in the next month.
If you read one address and send from it, stay on Free. Add the WordPress SMTP setup if you also want password resets to go through your own server.
If you juggle several addresses, or want contacts, a calendar or scheduled send in the same place, Starter or Premium covers it. Choose by the number of sites. Snooze, scheduled send and undo send and the combined inbox are part of that.
If several people on a site need to work in one mailbox, or you want to hand clients a branded version, you need Ultimate or Lifetime. The agency guide shows what that setup looks like on one site.
If you are still comparing tools, the plugin comparison and the SMTP plugin comparison explain how PressedMail differs from a send-only plugin.
Frequently asked questions
Does Free stop working after a while?
No. Free needs no license key and has no expiry.
Do I need a PressedMail account for Free?
No. Install it from the WordPress.org directory and connect your mailbox. Your provider’s own terms and limits still apply.
Do I need AI credits?
Only for PressedMail AI. AI is off until an administrator sets it up, and you can use your own provider instead.
Which plan fits an agency?
Ultimate or Lifetime. They cover up to 100 sites and add shared mailboxes with roles and white labelling.
Can I move from Free to paid later?
Yes. WordPress’s plugin management guide covers uploading a plugin ZIP. Your accounts, settings and data stay in place.
Manage your email inside WordPress
PressedMail Free adds an email client directly to your WordPress dashboard. Connect a compatible IMAP/SMTP mailbox, read and send mail, organize messages, and configure WordPress SMTP.
