Shortwave Business costs $9/user/month for full AI email features, team inboxes, and Google Workspace support. The free plan is limited to personal Gmail only with capped AI features. Shortwave is Gmail-only — Outlook and Microsoft 365 are not supported.
Shortwave Pricing Plans at a Glance
| Feature | Shortwave Free | Shortwave Business | alfred_ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost | $0 | $9/user/mo | $24.99/month |
| Annual billing discount | Yes | Yes | |
| Gmail support | |||
| Outlook / Microsoft 365 | |||
| AI email triage | Limited | ||
| AI reply drafting | Limited | ||
| Automatic task extraction | |||
| Daily briefing | |||
| Team inboxes | |||
| Shared threads | |||
| Calendar management |
Shortwave vs alfred_ — February 2026
Shortwave Free Plan
Shortwave’s free plan is available for personal Gmail accounts. You get access to the core Shortwave email interface — threaded conversation bundles, priority inbox, and a limited number of AI-assisted actions. The AI features are meaningfully capped on the free tier, so heavy users will hit the ceiling quickly.
Importantly, the free plan does not support Google Workspace (business Gmail) or team collaboration features. If you’re evaluating Shortwave for your company, you’ll be looking at the Business plan from day one.
- Personal Gmail accounts only (not Google Workspace)
- AI features limited — capped usage per month
- No team inboxes, shared threads, or collaboration tools
- Good for testing the interface, not for serious work
Shortwave Business Plan ($9/user/month)
The Business plan at $9/user/month is where Shortwave’s full feature set unlocks. You get unrestricted AI features (reply drafting, search, summarization), team inboxes for shared email addresses like support@ or hello@, and priority support. Annual billing provides a modest discount.
For a team of five, that’s $45/month. For a team of ten, $90/month. Shortwave’s pricing scales directly with headcount, which matters for growing companies.
- Full AI reply drafting and email summarization
- Team inboxes for shared email addresses
- Google Workspace (business Gmail) support
- Priority support and admin controls
Hidden Costs and Limitations
Shortwave’s pricing is fairly transparent, but there are real limitations that function as hidden costs:
- Gmail only: If your team uses Outlook or Microsoft 365, Shortwave isn’t an option. This is a hard wall, not a soft limitation.
- Per-user scaling: At $9/user/month, costs compound as your team grows. A 20-person team pays $180/month.
- No task extraction: Shortwave doesn’t automatically pull action items out of emails into a task list. You still need to process manually.
- No calendar integration: Shortwave is email-only. Calendar conflicts, meeting prep, and scheduling still require separate tools.
- No daily briefing: You still open your inbox and process it yourself. Shortwave makes that faster, but it doesn’t eliminate the work.
Is Shortwave Worth the Price?
Shortwave is genuinely good software. The interface is polished, the AI features are real, and the team inbox capability adds clear value for customer-facing teams. If you’re a Gmail-first organization and your primary goal is a better email client with AI drafting assistance, $9/user/month is reasonable.
The case weakens for solo professionals and executives who need more than a better inbox interface. Shortwave helps you work through email faster — it doesn’t handle email for you. You’re still the one reading, prioritizing, and deciding. The AI assists; it doesn’t act autonomously.
For Outlook users, the decision is simple: Shortwave doesn’t work with your email provider at all.
The Better-Value Alternative: alfred_
alfred_ at $24.99/month is designed for professionals who want their email handled, not just made faster to process. While Shortwave is a better inbox interface, alfred_ is an autonomous AI executive assistant that acts on your behalf.
alfred_ works with both Gmail and Outlook, triages your inbox while you sleep, drafts replies you can send with one tap, automatically extracts tasks from emails, manages your calendar, and delivers a daily briefing so you start each morning knowing exactly what needs your attention. The 30-day free trial lets you test whether it fits your workflow before committing.
- Works with Gmail AND Outlook — no provider lock-in
- Automatic task extraction from emails — no manual processing
- Calendar management alongside email — one tool handles both
- Daily briefing delivered every morning — acts while you sleep
- Flat pricing — not per-user, stays predictable as you grow
Our Verdict
Shortwave: a polished Gmail inbox with AI assistance
Shortwave is a solid AI-enhanced Gmail client that makes email faster to process. At $9/user/month for Business, it's reasonably priced for Gmail teams. But it's a better-email-interface play, not an autonomous assistant. It doesn't handle email for you — it helps you handle it faster. Outlook users can't use it at all. If you want software that acts on your behalf — triaging, drafting, extracting tasks, and managing your calendar — alfred_ at $24.99/month is the stronger choice.
Best for
- Gmail-first teams who want a better email interface with AI drafting
- Customer-facing teams using shared inboxes (support@, hello@)
- Organizations already fully committed to Google Workspace
Not for
- Outlook or Microsoft 365 users — Shortwave does not support them
- Solo professionals who want email handled autonomously, not just faster
- Anyone who needs calendar management alongside email in one tool