Back in the day, many of us used the included Outlook Express with Windows. It was fast and easy to use, so why not? That said, Outlook Express isn't available anymore. However, you can install an email program from another company or use Windows Live Mail, Microsoft's improved version of an email program. Here are our favorite choices.

1: Mozilla Thunderbird
Mozilla Thunderbird comes to you from the same group that developed the popular Mozilla Firefox web browser. After missing Outlook Express and getting tired of Windows Live Mail, I finally switched to Thunderbird Portable. You extract it to a folder and run it. Backing it up is as easy as moving the entire folder somewhere else. The spam filtering is good but seems to occasionally allow emails marked as spam to get through and a few other glitches you most likely will never notice. Where it also excels is add-ons. If the program does not do what you want, find an add-on that does. They install easily and are stable. Thunderbird remains a Majorgeeks Pick and our favorite choice.

Download at https://majorgeeks.com/Mozilla_Thunderbird_Portable_d4423.html

2: Windows Live Mail
Windows Live Mail is better than Outlook Express as far as security goes. It has good spam filtering and phishing protection. We found it a bit more challenging to use and wish it had an Outlook Express mode to simplify it and make it more comfortable, but overall it's still pretty good. You do need to have a Windows Live account; this is an unnecessary and annoying step, especially given that it wants to install all of the Microsoft Live programs by default. Typical Microsoft's pretty good but not great.

Download at https://majorgeeks.com/Windows_Live_Mail_d5670.html

3: Pegasus Mail
Pegasus Mail has been around since 1990, and once again, it looks a lot like Outlook Express with many more features. It is lightweight and multi-lingual. The list of features here for such a light email client is impressive. Spam filtering, multiple identities, HTML mail generation, offline mode, SSL support, help files, drag and drop support, various users, and more. Maybe the name isn't the greatest, but don't overlook this one.

Download at https://majorgeeks.com/Foxmail_d2055.html

4: Foxmail
Foxmail is a lesser-known client from China. It is lightweight and can also do HTML templates, test searches, attachment previews, and calendars, and it even supports an Exchange account. It may lack many features that larger, more popular email clients have, but once again, if you want an Outlook Express look and simplicity, this might be the one.

Download at https://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/foxmail.html

5: IncrediMail 2
Let me avoid being beaten up by cyberbullies and explain why Incredimail is on this list. You wouldn't catch a geek using this unless he wanted to lose a hard-earned man card. It's cute. Cute. You get lots of 3D effects, smilies, animations, emoticons, backgrounds, and an adorable barking dog, to name a few. Again, it has a similar look to a bubbly Outlook Express. Eventually, she switched to Thunderbird. If cute is your thing, this is the one you want. Your Mom or Grandmother will LOVE it.

Download at https://majorgeeks.com/IncrediMail_2__d2049.html

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