The short answer
Want free AI help inside Gmail? Start with Gemini. Want your inbox triaged? Fyxer. Want a new, AI-first email app? Superhuman Mail or Shortwave. Want tasks done for you by email? Emily.
At a glance
| Gemini in Gmail | Fyxer AI | Superhuman Mail | Shortwave | Emily | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kind | Built into Gmail | Inbox add-on | Separate email app | Separate email app | Assistant you email |
| Reads your inbox | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No - calendar only |
| Sends for you | No - you send | No - drafts only | Drafts; you send | Not confirmed | Yes, as your assistant |
| Scheduling | Suggests times in your reply; the recipient picks one | Drafts times or a link | Finds times, booking links | Not confirmed | Books end to end |
| List price | Some features free; Google AI Pro £18.99 a month | From $22.50 per user a month billed annually | From $30 a month | From $30 per seat a month | £5 a month including 50 actions |
Prices are list prices as published on 21 September 2026, in the currency and billing basis shown. They change, so check the provider's own page before you buy.
What makes Emily different
Whichever tool you compare her with, these are the things Emily is built around.
Talk to her like a real assistant
Write the way you would to a PA: "Find an hour with Sam next week and chase the contract if he goes quiet." She asks when something isn't clear and will think a problem through with you, so she's a sounding board as well as a doer.
Arranges things without you
She does the back-and-forth with the other people, checks your calendars and just asks you to pick a time. Then she sends the invite and chases anyone who goes quiet.
Every calendar you use
Connect Google, Microsoft and Apple calendars, including more than one account of each. She checks them all before she offers a time and can keep one in sync with another.
Your emails and other people's
Forward or CC her your own mail, or give your Emily address to clients, candidates and suppliers. She deals with what they send and can pass each kind of email to the right person on your team.
Yours to shape
Rules for how she handles certain emails, notes she remembers about you and your contacts, and automations such as weekly updates, reminders and follow-ups.
Your information and the web's
She works from your files, notes and contacts, and uses live web search for anything beyond them, such as finding a local tradesperson or checking a fact.
Acts only with your say-so
She acts on what you ask and the rules you've set, can send you a draft first, and checks with you when she isn't sure. A message that fails sender checks is held, never acted on.
Private by design
She never reads your mailbox. She sees only the emails that reach her and the calendars you connect, and your data is stored in the UK.
Email, text, Claude or ChatGPT
Email her from any provider, text her from a UK mobile, or connect her to Claude or ChatGPT and delegate from there.
Gemini: the built-in option
Google has been building Gemini into Gmail: thread summaries, Help me write and suggested replies, with some features now free (Google started with English in the US). Help me schedule suggests times when you and your guests are free and puts them in your reply; the recipient picks one and the invite is created. On Google Workspace, Help me schedule is on Business Standard and Plus.
Fyxer, Superhuman Mail and Shortwave: inside your inbox
Fyxer labels and drafts inside Gmail and says plainly that it never sends. Superhuman Mail and Shortwave replace the Gmail interface with their own AI-first email apps; Shortwave works with Gmail and Google Workspace only. All of them need access to your whole mailbox.
Emily: an assistant you delegate to
Emily has her own address. You email her from Gmail with a task - book a call with Sam, chase the supplier until they reply - and she does it, from start to finish. She connects to your Google Calendar, not your Gmail, and adds Google Meet links when you want them.
What she doesn't do: triage your inbox or draft replies to everything that arrives. If that's the job, one of the options above fits better.
Questions
What is the best AI email assistant for Gmail?
Gemini is the natural starting point because it's built in. Fyxer suits inbox triage, Superhuman Mail and Shortwave suit people who want a new email app, and Emily suits people who want tasks done for them.
Does Gemini send emails or book meetings for me?
Gemini helps you write and suggests meeting times in your reply, but you send the email. Once the recipient picks a time, Google creates the event.
Is there a Gmail AI assistant that doesn't read my email?
Emily. She works only with the emails you send her and connects to your Google Calendar, not your Gmail.
Sources
- Google - Gmail enters the Gemini era
- Gmail help - Help me schedule
- Google Workspace - compare Business editions
- Google AI plans (UK)
- Fyxer - pricing and FAQ
- Superhuman Mail - plans
- Shortwave - pricing
- Shortwave - supported accounts
- Emily pricing (landing page)
- Emily privacy policy - where data is stored and processed
We wrote this page, and Emily is our product, so read it with that in mind. Every fact about another product comes from its own public pages, checked on 21 September 2026. Where we couldn't confirm something, we say so. Product names belong to their owners, and we're not affiliated with them. Spotted something out of date? Email help@emily-wrf.com and we'll fix it.
Try Emily for yourself
14-day free trial, no card required. See if delegating by email suits you.