Captchainbox vs Hey.com Screener: Automated vs Manual Sender Filtering

Hey.com and Captchainbox share the same core philosophy: unknown senders shouldn't automatically reach your inbox. Both products implement a gating mechanism for new contacts. But the execution is fundamentally different — and so is the commitment required from you.

How Hey.com's Screener Works

Hey.com is a full email service (not a Gmail add-on) from 37signals, the company behind Basecamp. When you sign up, you get a new @hey.com email address. Its Screener feature works like a bouncer at a club:

• The first time someone emails you, their message lands in The Screener
• You manually review each new sender and decide: approve or reject
• Approved senders go to your Imbox (important mail) permanently
• Rejected senders are blocked — you'll never see their email again

The Screener is entirely manual. You are the gatekeeper, reviewing every new sender yourself.

How Captchainbox Works

Captchainbox connects to your existing Gmail account via Google OAuth. It automates sender verification:

• Your whitelist is built automatically from your sent mail history
• Unknown senders are automatically archived and sent a CAPTCHA verification link
• Senders who complete verification are unarchived and permanently whitelisted
• You never need to manually review or approve anyone

The sender is the gatekeeper — they prove their intent by completing a quick challenge.

Comparison

Feature	Captchainbox	Hey.com Screener
Requires new email address	No — works with existing Gmail	Yes — @hey.com address
Screening method	Automated CAPTCHA verification	Manual sender approval
Your time required	None (fully automated)	Daily review of new senders
How senders get through	Complete a 30-second CAPTCHA	Wait for you to approve them
Works with Google Workspace	Yes	No
Calendar integration	Uses Gmail's native calendar	Hey Calendar (separate product)
Price	Free beta	$99/year

The Key Difference: Who Does the Work?

With Hey.com, you review every new sender. If you receive 10 cold emails per day from new senders, you're reviewing 10 entries in The Screener daily. That's work — less work than reading the emails themselves, but work nonetheless.

With Captchainbox, the sender does the work. They receive an auto-reply with a verification link and either complete it (real humans) or don't (AI tools sending at scale). You don't review, approve, or reject anyone. The system handles it.

The Switch Cost Question

Hey.com's biggest barrier is the email address switch. Moving to @hey.com means updating every service, contact, and account that uses your current email. For someone who's had the same Gmail address for a decade, this is a significant migration with ongoing friction (forwarding, missed emails during transition, contacts who still use the old address).

Captchainbox requires no migration. It connects to your existing Gmail account and operates within Gmail's infrastructure. Your email address stays the same. Your contacts notice nothing.

When to Choose Hey.com

• You want to rethink your entire email workflow, not just cold email
• You're attracted to Hey's opinionated design (Feed for newsletters, Paper Trail for receipts)
• You don't mind switching email addresses
• You prefer manual control over who can email you

When to Choose Captchainbox

• You want to keep your existing Gmail address
• You don't want to manually review new senders daily
• Your primary problem is AI cold email, not email workflow design
• You need Google Workspace compatibility

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I forward my Gmail to Hey.com?

Yes, but forwarding adds complexity and means you're maintaining two email systems. Many Hey.com users report gradually migrating contacts to their @hey.com address over months, which is a significant ongoing effort.

Does Hey.com block AI cold email effectively?

Yes — if you reject cold email senders in The Screener, they can't reach you again. The protection is effective but requires your active participation for every new sender.

Which has better privacy?

Hey.com blocks tracking pixels and read receipts by default, which is a strong privacy feature. Captchainbox doesn't read email content at all — it only checks sender addresses against your whitelist. Both are privacy-respecting in different ways.