Spark email app: A powerhouse for iPhone, iPad and Mac [Awesome Apps]

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Spark - featured image

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I’ve spent years searching the App Store for the best email app – and in doing so, I’ve tried them all. Spark is my favorite because it equips users with accessible power features, which make wrangling email on iOS, iPadOS and macOS as easy as ABC.

When friends of mine bemoan the limitations of Apple’s built-in Mail app, I point them to Spark, from Ukrainian developer Readdle. Spark is by no means a new addition to the App Store. But over the years, the developer added a strong set of features – many of which found their way into other email clients for iPhone, iPad and Mac.

Spark: The best email app

Chief among these features is Spark’s Smart Inbox. While you can add multiple email accounts into the app from a range of providers (including Gmail, Outlook, Exchange and iCloud), Smart Inbox automatically sorts your incoming mail from all configured accounts into one of three categories – Personal, Notifications and Newsletters. This makes it easy to process mail while on the move.

On iOS and iPadOS, gestures play a big role in how you deal with email. You can swipe to mark email as read or unread, or to “pin” a message to the top of your Smart Inbox.

This feature is a real lifesaver for me. Pinning messages allows you to temporarily deal with priority messages, pinning them to act upon later. In this way, even if you see an important email at an inconvenient time, you can be sure you won’t forget it.

Spark's power features make it a cut above the rest.
Spark’s power features make this email app a cut above the rest.
Screenshot: Joe White/Cult of Mac

Composing email is a dream

Spark takes task-management even further through its support for other apps and services. My favorite integration is Todoist. With the Todoist plugin, users can easily add specific messages to new items, adding a description and due date. It’s been said before that one should never use their inbox as a to-do list – support for services like Todoist helps ensure this doesn’t happen.

Composing email in Spark is also a dream – and three features here really stand out.

Send later, reminders and templates

First, Spark has a fail-safe “send later” feature – tapping it lets you send your email to the cloud, with Spark pushing it out to recipients at a predetermined time. You don’t need Spark to be open and running at the time of sending, which is great.

Second, Spark also lets users keep a lookout for replies using a “remind me” tool. If you haven’t received a reply to an email within a set timeframe, the app can remind you to follow up.

Third, Spark allows users to create templates for email. If you find you’re often sending the same type of message day in, day out, email templates will take some of the pain away.

Spark for Teams

Spark for Teams pushes the email client to the next level, allowing teammates to add private in-line comments to email, share messages, and create drafts. It adds an extra dimension to the app, which businesses could really appreciate.

Last of all, like many email clients for iOS, iPadOS and macOS, Spark also includes a calendar that plugs directly into your configured accounts. Although the built-in calendar is the area of Spark I’d most like to see improved over time (with the experience not quite matching up with Apple’s own Calendar app), it’s a nice addition that makes scheduling meetings from Spark incredibly easy.

Templates make email composition even quicker.
Templates make email composition even quicker.
Screenshot: Joe White/Cult of Mac

Download the Spark email app

You could spend months searching the App Store for a better email app than Spark and not find one. (Trust me, I have.)

Spark really does cover all the bases. It’s an efficient and reliable email client that boasts all the power features you need to get work done – whether on the move from an iPhone or iPad, or at home at your Mac.

Price: Free

Download from: iOS and iPadOS App Store and macOS App Store

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