Zazu vs. Leto: school emails turned into a task list, or an assistant that asks who's taking it.
Leto does one job well, and for free: it reads school emails in Gmail, including linked newsletters, PDFs and images, and turns them into tasks and events. You get a calendar feed, a Today page for each child and one SMS reminder a day, and each parent has their own login. It passed an independent CASA Tier 2 security assessment in March 2026. Its pages don't describe the next step: deciding which parent handles it. Zazu reads the family's Google or Microsoft 365 email and calendars, with permission, and asks both parents in iMessage and WhatsApp who's taking each job. If you want school email sorted for free, use Leto. If you want the jobs shared out, that's Zazu.
Leto features and prices checked on November 5, 2026. They change.
The difference in one table.
What it is
An AI family assistant that notices what changed and speaks up first
A free web app that turns school emails into tasks, events and a daily reminder
Where it lives
Inside iMessage and WhatsApp. There's no app to install
A web app with a Today page for each child, a calendar feed and one SMS reminder a day
Email it reads
Google or Microsoft 365, with permission. It picks out what needs doing across the family inbox
Gmail and Google Workspace, up to 3 accounts, from school senders you choose. Outlook is on its roadmap
Calendars
Reads the Google or Microsoft 365 calendars you already use, and adds entries once a parent says yes
Sends events out as an iCal feed for Apple, Google or Outlook. It doesn't describe reading your calendar
What it covers
Deadlines, forms, appointments, pickups and renewals, from school and beyond
School email, including linked newsletters, PDFs and images. PTAs can add Leto to their mailing list
Both parents
Talks to each parent and carries messages between them, in the chats you already use
Each parent gets a login, the same family tasks and a personal calendar feed. Caregivers can be invited
Who takes each job
Asks both parents who's taking it, and makes sure every job has an owner
Leto doesn't describe a chat or asking who takes a job. Both parents see the same tasks
Taking action
Drafts the reply, the RSVP, the calendar entry, and always asks before it acts
View-only: it can't send, delete or change your emails. Tasks are pulled automatically from senders you chose
Price
Nothing to pay for 7 days, then $19 a month. Cancel by sending STOP
Free for families, no card. Leto says it intends to launch a paid Premium Family plan in 2027
Privacy
Reads with a parent's permission. Data is stored on AWS in the US, never sold or used for advertising
Independent CASA Tier 2 assessment, March 2026. Data hosted in the US; email bodies ordinarily deleted after processing
When Leto is the better choice.
You want it free. Leto costs families nothing today, with no card and no trial clock.
School email is the whole problem, and a task list, a calendar feed and one reminder a day would solve it.
Your school sends long newsletters and PDFs. Leto reads linked newsletters, PDFs and images from the senders you pick.
You'd like it quiet: a Today page for each child and one reminder a day, not a conversation.
When Zazu is the better choice.
Your family email is on Microsoft 365. Leto reads Gmail and Google Workspace for now; Zazu reads Google and Microsoft 365.
There are two of you, and the hard part is who is doing what. Zazu asks both parents who's taking each job.
It isn't just school. Zazu also reads your calendars and the rest of the inbox: the dentist appointment, the pickup change, the renewal.
You want to answer back, in iMessage and WhatsApp, where you already talk to each other: ask a question, or say yes to a draft.
You want something that speaks up first: plans changed, rain on the day of the outdoor party, a day off school nobody noticed.
Can you use both?
You can, but think about which part you need. Leto is good at turning school email into a tidy task list and calendar feed, and it's free. Zazu covers what sits around it: the rest of the inbox, Microsoft 365 accounts, the calendars you already keep, and the conversation with both parents about who takes what. If school email is all you need, Leto on its own may be enough. If you use both, they can read the same Gmail side by side, and Leto never changes your emails.
Questions.
Is Leto free?
Yes. Leto is free for families today, with no credit card and no trial clock, and free for schools and PTAs too. It says it intends to launch a paid Premium Family plan in 2027, with no fixed date and 30 days' email notice. Zazu has no free plan: nothing to pay for 7 days, then $19 a month, and you cancel by sending STOP.
Does Leto work with Outlook?
Not yet. Leto reads Gmail and Google Workspace accounts, up to three, and lists Outlook and Yahoo as on its roadmap. It connects to personal email, not to school systems, and sends events to Apple, Google or Outlook calendars as a feed you subscribe to. Zazu connects to Google and Microsoft 365 email and calendars, with permission from the parent who connects each account.
What can Leto see in my Gmail?
When you connect, Leto looks back 90 days to find school senders, skipping sent mail, drafts, spam and trash, and you choose which senders it tracks. Access is view-only, so it can't send, delete or change emails. It says email bodies are ordinarily deleted after processing, data is hosted in the US, and it passed a CASA Tier 2 assessment in March 2026.
Does Leto tell both parents?
Each parent gets their own Leto login, the same shared family tasks and a personal calendar feed, and caregivers or grandparents can be invited. Leto doesn't describe a chat or asking who takes a job, so who does what is up to you. Zazu messages both parents in iMessage and WhatsApp and asks who's taking each job.
Which is better for two working parents, Zazu or Leto?
If school email is the problem and you're happy splitting the jobs yourselves, Leto is free and focused on exactly that. If the hard part is everything around it, the rest of the inbox, the calendars and who takes each job, Zazu reads the family's Google or Microsoft 365 email and calendars, with permission, and asks both parents in iMessage and WhatsApp before anything happens.
Try Zazu.
Message Zazu and see what it notices by tonight.