I’ve been off Gmail for years and deleted all my Google accounts. Here’s how you can do it, too.

Step 1: Export your emails from Gmail into an EML file.

Step 2: Sign up for a new paid email provider: Tuta, Mailbox.org, Proton to name a few.

Step 3: Import your emails.

Done.

Optional Steps (that I recommend):

1. Buy your own domain name (e.g., YourSurnameEmail.com)
2. Set up your email provider to use your Custom Domain name. Or alternatively, sign up for a service like Addy.io and use your domain name there to create alias emails.
3. Go to your domain name manager and add the settings your email provider tells you to use. This will enable your domain name to serve emails.
4. Start sending and receiving emails using your own custom email address that belongs to you.
5. Don’t like your email provider after a few years? Simply find a new one. Change your domain name settings to point your domain name to your new email provider. All your email addresses stay with you and you NEVER have to change email addresses again.
6. Swap every email login you have to use a new alias email. For example, facebook123@yoursurname.com for Facebook, random.word123@yoursurname.com for some web site login, Steam123@yoursurname.com for Steam gaming, etc. Save all credentials to your password manager.

With this, you now have a unique email address for every single service, and all those alias email addresses forward your email to your actual email address. The benefit is that no one knows your real email address except you. Bye bye SPAM. When an alias email gets leaked or sold, you’ll know which company failed you. Simply swap to a different alias email, and disable the compromised alias - all SPAM stops.

Installing spyware and wire taps in my home was never appealing to me.