Martin vs Shortwave: 2026 comparison
Your personal AI chief of staff for inbox, calendar and life admin.
AI email client — natural-language search, summary, scheduled send, and AI-drafted replies grounded in your inbox.
Martin vs Shortwave — specs
| Spec | Martin | Shortwave |
|---|---|---|
| Agent Rank | 70 / 100 (B) | 72 / 100 (A) |
| Autonomy | Semi-autonomous | Assistant |
| Pricing | Subscription · from $25 | Freemium · from $9 |
| Open source | No | No |
| Capabilities | Tool use, Memory, Voice | RAG, Memory, Tool use |
| Integrations | 3 apps | 3 apps |
| Verified | Verified | Verified |
| Released | May 2025 | Feb 2025 |
Agent Rank breakdown
- Autonomy fit
- 8
- Capabilities
- 6
- Integrations
- 6
- Pricing value
- 7
- Polish & maturity
- 5
- Verifiability
- 10
Auto-computed from autonomy, capabilities, integrations, pricing, maturity and editorial verification. Updated every deploy. How is this computed?
- Autonomy fit
- 7
- Capabilities
- 6
- Integrations
- 6
- Pricing value
- 8
- Polish & maturity
- 6
- Verifiability
- 10
Auto-computed from autonomy, capabilities, integrations, pricing, maturity and editorial verification. Updated every deploy. How is this computed?
Pros & cons
- +AGENTS15 coupon makes the math obvious — $21/mo forever
- +Strong on Apple ecosystem (iMessage native)
- +Voice-memo intake feels effortless on iOS
- −Microsoft 365 integration is the weak spot
- −No team plan; truly a personal assistant only
- −Limited custom workflow builder vs Lindy
- +Best AI-native email client in 2026 — search, summarize, draft all natural-language
- +Built specifically for Gmail; faster + smarter than Gmail itself
- +Cheap relative to Superhuman with better AI features
- −Gmail-only — no Outlook support
- −AI assistant is helpful but not yet revolutionary
- −Smaller user base means fewer integrations than Gmail/Outlook ecosystems
Pricing
- +Inbox + calendar
- +Voice memo intake
- +iMessage integration
- +AGENTS15 coupon: $21/mo forever
- +Higher message limits
- +Custom workflows
- +Priority support
- +Basic AI summary
- +90-day search
- +Unlimited search
- +AI assistant
- +Scheduled send
- +Shared inboxes
- +Send delegation
- +Admin controls
Which one should you pick?
Pick Martin if you want the highest autonomy and the verification loop is in place.
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Frequently asked
Should I pick Martin or Shortwave in 2026?+
Pick Martin if you want the highest autonomy and the verification loop is in place. Pick Shortwave if cost is the main constraint. Most working teams running both can use Martin for primary work and Shortwave for the workflows where its specific strengths matter.
What's the price difference between Martin and Shortwave?+
Martin starts at Subscription · from $25; Shortwave starts at Freemium · from $9. Shortwave is the cheaper entry option. For team deployments the TCO can differ — use the AI Agent Rank TCO calculator for your specific volume.
Which is more autonomous, Martin or Shortwave?+
Martin is the more autonomous of the two (Semi-autonomous vs Assistant). Higher autonomy ships throughput faster but requires verification loops in place — see our autonomous-vs-copilot framing for when each tier wins.