Anytime Mailbox is the biggest name in virtual mailboxes worldwide, with 2,500+ locations, including two in the Algarve (Loulé and Quarteira). If you are searching for it, you probably want to know two things: what it actually costs once the fees land, and whether there is a better option for Portugal. Both answers below.
What Anytime Mailbox does well
- The app is genuinely good. Push notifications, a per-item dashboard where you decide what gets opened, forwarded or shredded. Nobody in the Portuguese market matches it.
- The network. If you need addresses in several countries under one account, Anytime is built for that.
- Established processes for identity verification and mail handling, refined over years.
Where the model hurts: the fee math
The advertised price is the entry ticket, not the cost. Plans start around $9.99/month with a small quota of incoming envelopes; actually reading your mail costs extra: open-and-scan is billed per item and per page (commonly $0.25 to $0.50 per page, plus handling on some actions), and each location sets its own rates because every Anytime address is a franchise run by an independent operator.
Run a realistic Portuguese month through it: four letters, say a 6-page IRS notice, a 3-page bank statement, a 2-page insurance letter and a 1-page condomínio notice. Base $9.99 + twelve pages of scanning + handling lands somewhere between $15 and $25, and you clicked "open and scan" four times in an app to get there. The franchise model also means your experience depends entirely on the Loulé or Quarteira operator: reviews of Anytime locations worldwide are split for exactly this reason, and if your operator closes, your address disappears with it.
The alternative math, for Portugal specifically
| Anytime Mailbox (Algarve) | Portugal Mailbox | |
|---|---|---|
| Advertised price | from ~$9.99/month | €9.99/month |
| Scanning of contents | Per item + per page | Included: 5 letters/month, no per-page fees |
| Realistic month (4 letters, 12 pages) | ~$15-25 | €9.99, flat |
| How scans arrive | In the app, after you request each one | Emailed automatically, within 1 business day |
| Operator | Local franchisee, rates vary by location | Single operator (Carta Registada group) |
| Guarantee | No | 30-day money-back |
When Anytime is the right choice anyway
Honesty works both ways. Choose Anytime if you need addresses in multiple countries under one roof, if you receive parcels (Portugal Mailbox is letters-only), or if you want per-item control over what gets opened rather than everything scanned by default. Those are real advantages of their model, and no flat-fee service replicates them.
And if what you actually need is a company registered office or tax domicile, neither service is the answer: that is the virtual office category (LXoffice and similar in Lisbon), at 15-24€ + VAT with the legal obligations to match. Full category comparison here: Best Virtual Mailbox Services in Portugal.
Flat fee, mail in your inbox
Portugal Mailbox: a real Portuguese address, every letter scanned to your email within 1 business day. €9.99/month, scans included, no per-page fees, 30-day money-back guarantee.
Get your address →Frequently asked questions
Is Anytime Mailbox legit?
Yes: it is a real, established company. The frustrations users report are about the pricing model (fees per action) and operator variability, not about legitimacy.
Can I switch from Anytime Mailbox to another service?
Yes. Activate the new address first, update the senders that matter (bank, Finanças, insurers), keep the old box for a month of overlap, then cancel. The senders' update is the only real work either way.
Does either service work as my NIF or company address?
No. Correspondence services are not registered offices or tax domiciles; that requires a virtual office product with different legal duties.