The short answer
- Choose Ziflow if you approve lots of different creative (video, print, packaging, websites) alongside email, need enterprise controls such as SSO and e-signatures, or have complex multi-stage routing.
- Choose Mailfois if email is the main job: sign-off on the live email, plus the campaign plan by market, translation, brand checks and a library of everything approved, at a price a small team can justify.
Who’s writing this: I’m Liam Kane and I built Mailfois, so I’m not neutral. I’ve tried to be fair about where the other tool is the better choice. Facts and prices come from each company’s own website and help pages, checked on 15 October 2026.
Side by side
| Ziflow | Mailfois | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Proofing any creative: over 1,200 file types, video, print, live websites | Email: the plan, the email, its translations, sign-off and results |
| Reviewing an email | As an image, PDF or ZIP, or raw HTML proofed like a web page; Ziflow says it isn’t an inbox-rendering tool | The live email from its preview link or HTML, on desktop and phone, with brand checks shown alongside |
| Outside reviewers | Unlimited and free on every plan, by proof link | Unlimited and free, by private link with no account |
| Reminders | Deadlines on paid plans; automatic reminders on Enterprise | Reply-by dates and automatic reminders on every plan |
| Workflow | 1 stage (Free), 2 (Standard), 3 (Pro), unlimited (Enterprise) | Review rounds, or two-stage (your team, then the client) |
| Campaign planning | Intake forms and briefs; no campaign calendar | Email calendar by market with build-by, sign-off and send dates |
| Translation | Not built in | Copy Bank: translators work in the email from a link, approved lines reused |
| Brand checks | ReviewAI on Enterprise | Brand Guard on every plan: rule-based checks against your brand kit |
| Price | Free (2 users); Standard $199 a month, Pro $329 a month (billed yearly, 15 and 20 users); Enterprise on request | Free; Pro £12 a month; Team £24 per seat a month |
Where each one wins
Ziflow is better for
- Approving more than email: video, audio, print, packaging, banners and websites in one tool.
- Enterprise needs: SSO and SCIM, lifetime audit trails, e-signatures, white label.
- Complex routing with many stages and templates.
- Teams of 15 to 20 people, which the first paid plans include.
Mailfois is better for
- Teams whose work is mostly email.
- Sign-off on part of an email: Legal approves the footer, Pricing the offer, and approved wording is reused.
- Seeing the live email, with brand and accessibility findings next to it.
- The rest of the email job: the plan by market, translation, the library and results.
- Small teams: a free plan with sign-off, and paid plans from £12 a month.
What a team of five pays
| Ziflow | Mailfois | |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest plan that fits five people | Standard, $199 a month billed yearly ($2,388 a year) | Team, £120 a month (5 seats), billed monthly |
| Automatic reminders | Enterprise, price on request | Included |
| Outside approvers | Free | Free |
Prices before tax, from each company’s pricing page. Ziflow shows prices in dollars without naming the currency.
Using both
Some teams keep Ziflow for print, video and brand creative, and use Mailfois for the email programme, where the plan, translations and the exact email that sends all need to be in one place.
Comparing more tools? See the best email approval software for 2027, with 12 tools side by side.
Frequently asked questions
Can Ziflow proof HTML emails?
Yes, as a web-page proof from raw HTML, or as an image, PDF or ZIP. Ziflow’s own guide says it isn’t an inbox-rendering tool and points to Litmus or Email on Acid for testing across email clients.
Do reviewers need a Ziflow account?
No. Ziflow allows unlimited reviewers, including people outside your company, by proof link on every plan. Mailfois approvers also use a private link with no account.
What is a cheaper Ziflow alternative for email?
For email teams, Mailfois has a free plan and paid plans from £12 a month for one person or £24 per seat for a team, with sign-off, automatic reminders and brand checks included.
Liam Kane is an email and marketing automation specialist with over ten years in marketing and seven in email, planning and building campaigns on Marketo, Bloomreach and Silverpop. He founded Mailfois, so read his take on it with that in mind. More about Liam.
Sources, checked 15 October 2026: Ziflow pricing, Ziflow on email proofing, Mailfois sign-off. Prices are in the currency each company publishes and change over time, so check before you buy. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.