Latest Email Hosting Requirements for Your Canadian Business

Having a professional email hosting service in Canada is incredibly vital for any business today.

No matter how small your company may be, you want your emails to reflect your brand in a positive light and ensure every communication flows smoothly.

When evaluating email hosts in Canada, key aspects like reliability, security, performance, and ease of use should top your priority list.

So what exactly is email hosting?

Essentially, it is the backbone that powers your business email inbox.

A dedicated email host in Canada takes care of all the technical configurations so emails to your custom domain don’t end up in spam folders or experience any downtimes disrupting your correspondence.

The right email hosting plan for your needs depends on your business size, email usage, and whether you want features like synchronization across devices.

Carefully compare options as rates can range anywhere from less than $5 to $20+ per user/month for enterprise-grade solutions.

Factors to Consider For Your Canadian Business:

• Complies with Canada’s anti-spam laws
• Allows automatic responses like out-of-office messages
• Seamlessly forwards emails to alternative addresses
• Includes adequate mailbox storage size

Equipping yourself with the must-have features will ensure your business emails are working optimally.

Read on to dive deeper into key considerations when evaluating email hosting providers.

Email Hosting Basics in Canada

Before deciding on an email hosting provider in Canada, you need a solid grasp of the fundamentals.

Let’s break down exactly how email hosting works and key terminology.

What is Email Hosting?

Email hosting simply refers to a service that manages the servers, software, and infrastructure required to send and receive emails for your domain. The host stores your emails on secured servers and makes them accessible through web browsers, desktop clients like Outlook, or mobile apps.

Key Functions of an Email Host

An email hosting provider performs several key functions:

• Provisions and maintains email servers
• Creates email accounts associated with your domain name
• Routes emails to appropriate mailboxes
• Encrypts emails to protect privacy
• Backs up email data for redundancy
• Provides tools and interface to access emails

Email Hosting VS Web Hosting in Canada

While they sound similar, web hosting and email hosting are very distinct – think of them as separate tools with different purposes:

In most cases, it makes strategic sense to choose specialized providers focused exclusively on email hosting over bundling it with a basic web hosting plan.

Features to Look For in an Email Host in Canada

Now that you understand the core functionality of email hosting, let’s explore must-have features to enable seamless delivery and usage of your business emails.

Reliability and Uptime

Downtimes can have catastrophic consequences for a business if you suddenly cannot access emails.

Prioritize rock-solid stability in any email hosting service with guaranteed 99.9% or higher uptime in their Service Level Agreement.

The host should have geo-redundant servers and backup power to mitigate potential outages.

Security

Email security should be paramount, especially with increasing phishing attacks and spam.

Required safety capabilities include:

• TLS/SSL encryption for securing messages
• Two-factor authentication for account logins
• Spam filters to isolate unwanted emails
• Robust firewall, malware protection, and virus scanning

Adequate Storage Space

Depending on your business’ email volume, storage needs can increase rapidly over time.

Scale requirements by projecting growth, but most plans start at 50 GB per user.

Higher-end enterprise options offer 1 TB or more of allocation per inbox.

Compatibility and Accessibility

Your email host in Canada must integrate smoothly across devices and email clients your team prefers working in, such as:

• Native apps like Apple Mail or Outlook
• Webmail through desktop and mobile browsers
• Email forwarding to alternative addresses
• Instantaneous synchronization across devices

Scalability

As your venture grows, so can email demands.

Choose a flexible email host that allows you to easily add mailboxes and scale up resources to match needs month-by-month rather than lock you into rigid packages.

Bandwidth and Delivery

Under the hood, email hosting performance and deliverability comes down to technical factors like bandwidth, IP addresses, and domain setup.

Sending & Receiving Emails

Here is the basic sequence when sending and receiving emails:

1. User composes email in an email client or web interface
2. Message is encrypted and routed to the sender’s outbound email server
3. Email host performs security scans and spam filtering
4. Host relays message to receiving server based on the recipient’s domain
5. Recipient server accepts message and deposits it into the correct mailbox
6. Receiver downloads message to their device email client

Bandwidth Capabilities

Bandwidth determines how much data can be transferred at one time.

Entry-level email plans may cap limits or throttle speeds.

Business-grade solutions offer premium bandwidth to handle increased loads without disruption.

Dedicated IP Addresses

Opt for a dedicated IP over shared options for superior deliverability rates and sender reputation.

A dedicated IP produces the same reverse DNS lookup result regardless of the sending device.

It also allows consistent application of DMARC authentication.

Keeping email downtimes at bay requires understanding technical capabilities.

Next, let’s look at leading hosted email services available in Canada.

Key Email Hosting Providers in Canada

The Canadian email hosting landscape has a diverse set of providers catering from microbusinesses all the way up to large enterprises.

Let’s evaluate top solutions fitting the needs of most customers.

1. G Suite (Now Google Workspace)

G Suite by Google Cloud tops popularity for its seamless integration with other Workspace apps.

Key Features:

• 30GB inbox storage
• Custom @yourcompany email addresses
• Phishing and spam detection
• Integration with Google Drive, Calendar, Meet and more
• Mobile device synchronization

Pricing:

Ideal For: Small businesses that want simplicity without needing advanced configuration options beyond what Google provides.

2. Microsoft Exchange Online

Exchange Online delivers the outlook experience subscribers expect with the backend infrastructure handled by Microsoft.

Key Features:

• 50GB inbox storage
• Outlook integration
• Mobile synchronization
• Email encryption
• Uptime SLAs

Pricing:

Ideal For: Companies invested in the Microsoft technology stack.

3. Truehost Emails

Truehost.ca offers a full-featured email management platform with strong deliverability rates.

Key Features:

• IMAP + Exchange ActiveSync Support
• Custom domains
• Built-in calendar, contacts and tasks
• Robust mobile experience
• SSL encryption

Pricing:

Ideal For: Businesses that want rich features without breaking the bank.

4. Rackspace Email Hosting

Rackspace is a popular option in Canada given its data center location choices.

Key Features:

• 100GB inbox storage
• Cloud Office suite integration
• Email encryption
• Predictive email security
• 99.9% uptime SLA

Pricing:

Ideal For: Companies that value renowned support expertise.

5. HostPapa

HostPapa specializes in Canadian hosting including cost-effective email plans.

Key Features:

• 500 GB inbox storage
• cPanel email management
• iOS/Android synchronization
• SpamAssassin filtering
• Email forwarding

Pricing:

Ideal For: Budget-conscious businesses.

Email Hosting Legal Requirements in Canada

When assessing your options, ensure any potential provider adheres to Canada’s stringent laws especially around permission, consent, and privacy.

CASL Compliance

Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) sets rules all commercial emails must comply with or risk severe penalties.

Fortunately, most email hosts automatically account for CASL by:

• Requiring proof of opt-in consent before sending emails
• Honoring unsubscribe requests within 10 days
• Identifying sender info and contact details

Study CASL specifics based on your email communication plans before picking an email provider.

Privacy and Security

Under PIPEDA (Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act), your customers’ private data including emails is protected by law requiring consent and disclosure.

Beyond reporters and audits, verify your email host employs adequate measures like:

• Encryption technologies securing emails and data transfers
• Access controls and permissions
• Activity monitoring and logging
• Testing for vulnerabilities

Following industry best practices ensures you exercise reasonable care around privacy.

Making the Switch

When transitioning email hosting providers, careful planning ensures no messages get lost along the way.

1. Back Up Existing Data

Before closing your old accounts, export and securely archive all previous emails and contacts either to your local computer or cloud-based storage.

This provides a redundant copy should anything get lost.

2. Update MX Records

MX records tell sending mail servers exactly which host handles your incoming mail.

When switching providers, work with your domain registrar to update the MX pointers seamlessly directing traffic to the new host first before removing legacy records.

3. Import Data

Most modern hosts make uploading existing emails and contacts a breeze with handy import wizards.

Configure any customized settings like signatures and automatic replies after the migration finalizes.

Follow this checklist when moving providers to enjoy an interruption-free email experience throughout the process enabling your business to stay productive.

Read also: 5 Types of Email Hosting in Canada: How To Choose