Hotmail vs. Gmail — What's the Difference?

Hotmail and Gmail, both giants in the world of email services, have distinct histories and characteristics. Hotmail, launched in 1996 by Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith, was one of the first webmail services on the Internet. It was acquired by Microsoft in 1997 and later rebranded as Outlook.com. Gmail, on the other hand, is a product of Google and was introduced in 2004. It rapidly gained popularity due to its clean interface and ample storage space.

Both Hotmail and Gmail revolutionized how people perceived and used email. Hotmail's introduction gave users a way to access emails from any location, negating the need for dedicated email clients. Gmail, while arriving later, redefined user expectations by offering a whopping 1 GB of storage at a time when competitors were providing far less. Moreover, Gmail's integration with Google services made it a preferred choice for those entrenched in the Google ecosystem.

Hotmail's transition to Outlook.com saw numerous upgrades in its interface and security features. However, Gmail, always a step ahead, utilized Google's prowess in search technology, providing users with a powerful search function within their emails. Gmail's threading of conversations, allowing users to follow email chains easily, was another feature that set it apart.

While both Hotmail and Gmail have had their moments of brilliance, their parent companies' overarching strategies played roles in their evolution. Microsoft integrated Hotmail into its suite of products, while Gmail became a cornerstone of Google's ever-expanding list of interconnected services.