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Shortwave vs Slashy

Two fact sheets from our own research, side by side — pricing, platforms, API access and status re-checked by us rather than quoted from the vendors.

The short answer

Entry price
Shortwave from $18/mo, Slashy from $25/seat/mo — different billing units, so no direct winner
Free plan
Only Shortwave (Slashy has paid plans only)
Best fit
Shortwave: People who search and question years of Gmail history · Slashy: Founders and investors whose inbox is the main coordination surface
Platforms
Shortwave: Web, macOS, Windows, iOS, Android · Slashy: Web
Trust score
About even — Shortwave 96, Slashy 96

From our own records as of each tool's last check. Anything we have not confirmed is left out rather than guessed. How we verify

ShortwaveAI-first email client for Gmail with deep assistant searchSlashyEmail client that drafts replies in your voice, holds the meeting and chases threads that stalled

Side by side

FactShortwaveSlashy
CategoryEmail ManagementEmail Management
Pricing modelFreemiumPaid
Starts at$18/mo$25/seat/mo
Trust score96 / 10096 / 100
PlatformsWeb, macOS, Windows, iOS, AndroidWeb
CompanyShortwave Communications, Inc.Slashy, Inc.
Last verifiedOct 15, 2026Oct 16, 2026

What our research says

Shortwave

Still the most capable AI layer we have seen on top of Gmail, and it is now cheaper to try: a free plan and an $18 individual Pro tier sit below the $30-plus business seats. The value is in asking questions of years of old mail, so people who only triage today's inbox will not get much from the paid tiers.

Pros

  • Free plan and an $18 individual tier make it possible to test the assistant without a business seat
  • AI search answers questions across the mail archive, not just keyword hits
  • Model tier, AI quota and filter count scale clearly from plan to plan
  • Native apps on all major desktop and mobile platforms

Cons

  • Business seats at $30 to $120 a month are expensive next to Gmail's built-in AI
  • Free plan limits search history to 90 days and adds a Shortwave signature to sent mail
  • No annual discount is offered; billing is monthly only

Slashy

Slashy's difference from the pile of inbox assistants is that one instruction spans the reply, the calendar hold and the attachment instead of just producing text. Style learning from your own sent mail makes the drafts usable rather than generic. It is priced like a premium client and there is no free tier, so the trial week is your only look before paying.

Pros

  • A single instruction can draft the reply, hold the calendar slot and attach the file
  • Drafts learn tone from your sent mail and from each correction you make
  • Meaning-based search across threads and attachments, not keyword matching
  • Finds stalled threads and prepares the follow-up before you notice
  • SOC 2 Type II and CASA Tier 2, with a stated no-training commitment from its model providers

Cons

  • No free tier at all — the only entry is a card-backed 7-day trial
  • $25 to $30 per seat per month is high for an inbox tool
  • Full inbox and calendar access is required for it to work at all
  • Enterprise pricing is unpublished

Which one fits

Choose Shortwave if you need

  • People who search and question years of Gmail history
  • Small teams that share threads and assign emails inside the inbox
  • Users who want AI filters to sort incoming mail without hand-written rules

Choose Slashy if you need

  • Founders and investors whose inbox is the main coordination surface
  • People who spend more time scheduling than writing
  • Teams that want drafts prepared before they open the thread

Shortwave vs Slashy: the questions people ask

Is Shortwave cheaper than Slashy?

They charge in different units, so there is no like-for-like answer: Shortwave starts at $18/mo, Slashy at $25/seat/mo. Entry price is the lowest paid plan as we last verified it.

Does Shortwave or Slashy have a free tier?

Shortwave has a free tier; Slashy has paid plans only.

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