TL;DR
SimpleLogin is an open-source email alias service now owned by Proton. They are the company behind ProtonMail. It creates permanent forwarding aliases...
Aspect
Temporary Email Services
SimpleLogin
Ownership and Trust
It varies by provider. Some temp email services are run by unknown operators with unclear privacy practices. You need to choose a reputable one. Services like NukeMail are transparent about their data handling. The industry as a whole has uneven standards.
SimpleLogin is open source and owned by Proton AG, a Swiss privacy company. You can audit the code yourself and Proton has a strong reputation in the privacy community. Because it is based in Switzerland, strong data protection laws apply. This is one of SimpleLogin's biggest strengths and sets it apart from most privacy tools.
Account Required
No account needed. Generate an address and use it immediately with zero personal information. This is the purest form of anonymous email access available.
You have to sign up with your actual email address because SimpleLogin needs a destination to forward mail to. SimpleLogin sees your real address and the full alias-to-inbox mapping. A forwarding service needs this data to work. Your anonymity depends on you trusting Proton with that information.
Free Tier
Unlimited throwaway addresses. No caps on how many you create. NukeMail lets you generate as many addresses as you need with no registration or payment.
You get 10 aliases on the free tier. That's enough for essential accounts but you'll run out if you use it for everything. Premium costs $4/month or $30/year for unlimited. Proton Unlimited subscribers get SimpleLogin premium included. It adds value if you already use ProtonMail.
Alias Longevity
Temporary by design. Addresses disappear after minutes or hours. You lose access permanently. This is a feature for privacy-conscious users who want no lingering trail.
Aliases are permanent. Use them for years. Disable individual aliases if they start receiving spam without affecting others. You can reactivate disabled aliases later if needed.
Two-Way Communication
Receive-only. You can't respond to emails sent to a temp address. This means you can only use it for tasks like getting a verification code or reading incoming mail.
You get full two-way email functionality. You can reply through any alias and the recipient sees that alias address instead of your real one. This feature makes SimpleLogin a practical tool for your daily personal and professional correspondence.
Custom Domains
Not available. You use whatever domain the temp email service provides. The domains may be blocked by some websites.
Premium users can add their own custom domain for aliases. These aliases look completely legitimate and you can't tell them apart from real email addresses. Because of this, no website blocklist can catch a custom domain alias.
PGP Encryption
Not available on temp email services. Emails are stored in plain text on the service's servers during their brief lifespan.
SimpleLogin lets you use PGP encryption for the emails it forwards to you. You just provide your PGP key and the service encrypts your messages before they reach your inbox. Because of this, your email content stays unreadable even if SimpleLogin servers are compromised.
Speed of Use
Instant. Open a temp email site, copy the address, paste it. Total time: 10 seconds. No login, no extension, no configuration.
It takes a little longer. You log into SimpleLogin and generate an alias or use the browser extension for one-click creation before you use it. The extension makes the process much faster and brings the experience close to instant.
Verdict
SimpleLogin is the better tool for ongoing email privacy. Use it if you want to protect your real address across dozens of services. You can manage everything from one dashboard, reply through aliases and use custom domains. SimpleLogin does all of that. The Proton ownership and open-source codebase add genuine trust.
Temporary email is the better choice when you need a disposable address right now with zero friction. You might be signing up for a sketchy free trial, grabbing a one-time download link or testing a signup flow. These tasks don't warrant creating a permanent alias. Temp email is faster and more anonymous and it costs nothing.
Privacy-focused users often run both tools. They use SimpleLogin for their real accounts and subscriptions. They use temp email for the throwaway junk they will never revisit. This combination covers every part of your email privacy needs without you overspending on either tool.
If you only pick one, think about whether your signups are one-time things or if you need them for a while. If most of your signups are throwaway, start with temp email. If you find yourself repeatedly wishing your temp addresses lasted longer, that's the signal to add SimpleLogin to your toolkit.
SimpleLogin's PGP encryption and custom domain support put it in a different league from temp email for security-conscious users. These advanced features require technical knowledge to set up and maintain. That might not be worth the effort for casual users who just want to keep their inbox clean. Temp email requires zero technical skill and delivers immediate value.