Is FutureMe Still Free? What Changed and What It Costs Now
FutureMe no longer gives away a free letter. Here is what its plans cost, why it changed and where to write to your future self without paying.
The short version. No. FutureMe used to let anyone send one letter to their future self at no cost, and that free letter is gone. Writing there now needs a paid annual plan: $2 a year for one letter or $12 a year for unlimited letters with images and video. If the free version is what you came for, you will want somewhere else.
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| FutureMe, The Little Hit | $2 a year | One letter a year |
| FutureMe, Big Energy | $12 a year | Unlimited letters, with images and video |
| timedrop.it, free account | Free | 2 letters a year with photos, a voice note and dates up to 10 years |
| timedrop.it, extra letters | $3 each | No subscription, credits never expire |
So is FutureMe still free?
No. The free letter is the thing almost everyone remembers FutureMe for, and it is the thing that changed. The site is a subscription now, so the cheapest way to write anything is a paid plan.
Reading a letter someone already sent you stays free. The charge applies to writing and scheduling.
What FutureMe costs now
- The Little Hit, $2 a year. One letter a year.
- Big Energy, $12 a year. Unlimited letters, with images and video.
Both are billed annually. Pricing moves, so check FutureMe before you pay, and treat the figures here as what was true when this page was last revised.
Why it stopped being free
A letter scheduled ten years out is ten years of storage, backups and working deliverability, paid for on the day it was written. FutureMe has been carrying that since 2002 on a free tier, and a subscription is the straightforward way to fund it.
Worth saying plainly: charging for this is reasonable. The awkward part for anyone arriving now is that the free option they were told about no longer exists.
Is FutureMe safe?
Two separate questions hide inside that one, and they have different answers.
Will it still be there? Its record is long. FutureMe has been running since 2002 and has delivered millions of letters, which is a far better durability signal than most services in this category can offer.
Can anyone read it? FutureMe’s privacy policy does not describe encrypting letter content, and letters arrive as ordinary email, so it is safest to assume the service can read them. For a cheerful note to yourself that is fine. For anything you would be uncomfortable having read by a stranger, it matters, and it is the reason encryption exists.
Where to write to your future self instead
- timedrop.it. A free account includes two letters a year, with photos, a voice note and unlock dates up to ten years out. Contents are encrypted in your browser before they reach us and stored as ciphertext, with the key sealed separately. Extra letters are $3 each.
- Scheduled email. Gmail and tools like Boomerang will send a message to yourself on a date. Free, and Gmail accepts dates years ahead, but the message sits readable in your mailbox until it sends and the plan quietly depends on you keeping that address.
- A paper letter. Costs nothing, survives any company closing and carries your handwriting. It also depends entirely on you remembering where you put it.
We build one of these, so read that list with the appropriate suspicion. The honest summary is below.
Which should you choose?
- Already paying for FutureMe and happy with it: stay. $2 a year is a fair price and the service has earned its reputation.
- You wanted the free letter: try timedrop.it or scheduled email.
- The letter is private, or carries photos or a voice: pick something encrypted.
- Sending it more than a year out: a scheduled email will struggle.
Frequently asked questions
Is FutureMe still free?
No. FutureMe removed its free letter. Writing and scheduling a letter there now requires a paid annual plan, starting at $2 a year. Reading a letter someone already sent you is still free.
How much does FutureMe cost?
Two annual plans: The Little Hit at $2 a year for one letter, and Big Energy at $12 a year for unlimited letters with images and video. Check FutureMe directly before paying, since pricing changes.
Why is FutureMe not free anymore?
A letter scheduled years ahead means years of storage, backups and deliverability paid for on the day it was written. FutureMe carried that on a free tier from 2002, and moved to subscriptions to fund it.
Is there a free alternative to FutureMe?
Yes. A free timedrop.it account includes two letters a year, encrypted in your browser before they reach the server. Scheduling an email to yourself in Gmail is also free, though the message sits readable in your mailbox and only arrives if that account survives the wait.
Is FutureMe safe to use?
It has been running since 2002, so it is unusually durable for this category. Its privacy policy does not describe encrypting letter content, so assume the service can read them. For anything private, choose a service that encrypts the contents in your browser before storing them.
