Lookout gives your people the user interface with ribbon and shortcuts they have used for years. Underneath, it is Open Source, built on open standards, and keeps your mail on your own computers and servers.






Windows
macOS
LinuxMoving away from Microsoft rarely fails in the data center. It fails at the desk, when people lose the habits of years and the project stalls. Lookout keeps the habits and replaces everything underneath.
At the desk
File, Home, Send / Receive, Folder and View. The ribbon groups have the names you know: New, Delete, Respond, Move, Tags and Find.
Ctrl+R replies, Ctrl+Shift+M starts a new email and Ctrl+2 opens the calendar. Press Alt and the KeyTips appear on the ribbon.
The Rules Wizard, Search Folders, Color Categories, Check Names, the Scheduling Assistant, and your Digital IDs in the Trust Center.
Your work account, a shared team calendar and your private mailbox side by side. Favorites show the inboxes of all accounts together.
Invitations go back and forth with people on Outlook, Exchange, Microsoft 365, Google and Apple.
The modern interface of Parula is one setting away, with the same accounts and the same mail.
In the server room
Lookout works with Exchange and Microsoft 365, and with every server that speaks the open standards JMAP, IMAP and CalDAV/CardDAV, such as Stalwart, Nextcloud or openDesk. You choose the server software that fits your organization, and you can change it later.
Lookout connects each computer directly to your servers and keeps the data on the computer. Your mail never passes through our servers or any other service in between.
Switch the desks to Lookout while Exchange keeps running. Move the mailboxes later, on your own schedule. People keep the same window through both moves.
People type their email address and password. Lookout finds the server with Autoconfig and Exchange AutoDiscover.
Lookout runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. An Outlook-style desktop no longer requires Windows.
Read it, audit it, build it yourself. A few paid features, such as the Exchange connectors, are proprietary with source available.
Lookout is made by Beonex GmbH in Germany, by long-time Thunderbird developers.
Try it here
Lookout answers to 64 keyboard shortcuts from Outlook. Click into the box and press the ones you use every day.
Click here, then press a shortcut
0 of 64 tried
Some keys belong to your browser, such as Ctrl+N. Click those in the list. On a Mac, press Cmd where the list says Ctrl.
Side by side
| Capability | Outlook | Lookout |
|---|---|---|
| Exchange on-premise & Microsoft 365 | Yes | Yes - EWS, Graph, OWA, ActiveSync |
| Delegated & shared mailboxes | Yes | Yes |
| Scheduling with free/busy | Yes | Yes |
| Mail rules | Yes | Yes |
| S/MIME encryption | Yes | Yes |
| OpenPGP with Autocrypt | No | Yes |
| JMAP mail, calendar, contacts | No | Yes |
| CalDAV/CardDAV | No | Yes |
| Chat | No - separate Teams app | Built in - XMPP, Matrix (coming soon) |
| Video meetings | No - separate Teams app | Built in - WebRTC (coming soon) |
| Phone calls | No - Teams app with addons | Built in - SIP (coming soon) |
| Sync | New Outlook via Microsoft Cloud | Directly to your device |
| Native Linux app | No | Yes - deb, rpm, pacman, AppImage |
| Source code | Closed | Open, on GitHub |
Built on open standards, so your mail, calendars and contacts work with any compatible server and are never locked into one vendor.
The code is public, so anyone can check what happens to your data, and your mail never depends on one company’s decisions.
Created by the people behind Thunderbird mail core parts and Owl for Exchange.
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Install Lookout and add your account. It only takes a few minutes, and it opens with the interface you know.