By Manish, who makes LocalInbox · Facts checked October 2026
Canary Mail is an AI email app for Mac, iPhone, Windows and Android. It's free without AI; the AI Copilot comes with Growth ($36 a year) or Pro+ ($100 a year). Canary sorts and prioritises mail on your device, but drafts and summaries use hosted cloud AI, which it says isn't trained on your mail. LocalInbox is Mac-only, writes summaries, replies and drafts on your Mac, and costs a one-time $19 to $49.
At a glance
| Feature | LocalInbox | Canary Mail |
|---|---|---|
| Price | One-time licence: $19 early access, then $49 | Free without AI; Growth $36/year, Pro+ $100/year |
| Where AI runs | Apple's on-device model, or a model you run in Ollama or LM Studio, on your Mac | Triage on your device; drafts and summaries on hosted cloud AI |
| Accounts | Gmail, iCloud, Yahoo, AOL, Fastmail, Zoho, GMX, Proton Bridge, any IMAP | Gmail, Outlook, Exchange, Office 365, iCloud, Yahoo, Zoho, Proton Mail |
| Devices | Up to 3 Macs | 2 on the free plan, 5 on paid plans |
| Platforms | Mac | Mac, iPhone, iPad, Windows, Android |
When LocalInbox is the better choice
- You want drafts and summaries written on your Mac, not by a hosted model.
- You'd rather pay once than every year.
- You want Ask your mailbox answers with numbered sources you can open.
When Canary Mail is the better choice
- You want one mail app on Mac, iPhone, Windows and Android.
- You use Outlook or Exchange today.
Sources
Facts about Canary Mail were checked in October 2026 and can change; check its website for current prices and features. Facts about LocalInbox come from its own documentation.
Questions
Does Canary Mail run its AI on-device?
Partly. Canary says triage, prioritisation and search indexing run on your device, while drafts and summaries use hosted cloud AI. In LocalInbox, summaries, replies and drafts are written by Apple's on-device model or a model server on your Mac.