Just after GTD apps, Mac email apps have been far and away one of The Sweet Setup’s most-requested reviews. So we asked the inimitable Jason Snell to tackle it.

Our pick? Mailbox.

Airmail is also one of our top choices, especially for folks who prefer more keyboard shortcuts and power-user features. I’ve spent time with Airmail, and it’s pretty rad, but it never totally stuck for me — I kept going back to the default Mail.app. And I had written Mailbox off altogether because it has a much more simple approach. But after Jason suggested it as the best alternative for most folks, I started using it on my Mac and I’m actually very impressed. The UI is very basic and understated, and the lack of most bells and whistles actually is calming — there’s less to think about when it comes to mowing through your email, and so you actually end up doing something about it.

So, thanks to Jason, I’ve moved all my personal email over to Mailbox on Mac and iPhone.

Our favorite third-party email app for OS X is Mailbox