Email Settings GuideQuick answer: the Gmail IMAP server is imap.gmail.com, port 993, SSL. SMTP is smtp.gmail.com, port 465 (SSL) or 587 (TLS). POP3 is pop.gmail.com, port 995, SSL. Give it your full address plus an app password. Apps offering Google sign in skip the code entirely.
What Changed Recently#
Google has rebuilt Gmail's sign in rules over the past few years. Old tutorials are wrong about most of this. Here's the current truth.
Latest update
Gmail stopped fetching mail from other accounts. Google removed the "Check mail from other accounts" POP feature and Gmailify from Gmail on the web. If you used Gmail as a hub for a work mailbox or an old ISP address, that feed has gone quiet. Mail already imported stays. To keep a combined inbox, connect each account in a desktop email app or set up forwarding at the other provider.
The IMAP toggle
The "Enable IMAP" setting is gone from Gmail. IMAP is now always on for personal accounts, so any tutorial telling you to enable it first is out of date. Nothing to switch on, nothing you can switch off. Google Workspace is the exception: admins still control IMAP for the whole organization.
The sign in change
Your Google password no longer works in plain IMAP fields. Google turned off basic authentication, first for personal accounts and later for Google Workspace. Apps now need either a "Sign in with Google" window (OAuth) or a 16 character app password. Google documents app passwords as the one exception to the OAuth rule.
Before You Begin#
Two things decide whether your Gmail setup works on the first try. Sort them out before touching any server field.
1. Turn on 2-Step Verification
App passwords don't exist until 2-Step Verification is on. The App passwords page won't even appear for you. Turn it on at myaccount.google.com → Security, then come back for the key.
Where: App password steps below →
2. Know which Gmail you have
Personal Gmail and Google Workspace use the same servers but different rules. On Workspace, your admin can switch off IMAP or block app passwords for the whole company, so a "wrong password" error may not be your fault at all.
About Gmail#
Gmail is Google's email service, running since 2004 and serving both free personal accounts and paid Google Workspace accounts on company domains.
Both account types ride the same mail infrastructure, which is why 1 settings page covers them. Where Gmail differs from every other provider is the archive model: mail lives under labels instead of folders and everything sits in a master archive called All Mail. Your email app sees each label as a folder, which works fine once you know about it and causes the famous duplicate download problem when you don't. The comparison section shows the fix.
@gmail.com and @googlemail.com are the same mailbox with 2 spellings. Google Workspace addresses on your own company domain use identical servers with your work address as the username. Only the sign in rules differ, which your admin controls.
| Service Name | Gmail (personal) and Google Workspace (business) |
| Owned By | Google LLC |
| Running Since | 2004 |
| Email Domains | @gmail.com, @googlemail.com and any custom domain on Google Workspace |
| Webmail URL | mail.google.com |
| Protocols Supported | IMAP (always on), POP3, SMTP |
| Password for Email Apps | App password (16 characters) or Google OAuth sign in |
| Free Storage | 15 GB shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos |
Gmail Webmail Login#
The browser is always the fallback when an app misbehaves and for Gmail it's also where every security setting lives:
Webmail
Security and App Passwords
myaccount.google.com → Security
Account Recovery
accounts.google.com → Recovery
Do You Need to Enable IMAP in Gmail?#
No. Google removed the Enable IMAP setting and IMAP is now always on for personal Gmail accounts. Every tutorial sending you to Settings → Forwarding and POP/IMAP to flip a switch describes an option that no longer exists. Skip that step and go straight to the app password.
Two related settings do still exist. Google Workspace admins control IMAP for the whole organization at admin.google.com under Apps → Google Workspace → Gmail → End User Access. A missing connection on a work account is therefore an admin conversation, not a settings hunt. And each label has its own Show in IMAP checkbox under Settings → Labels, which decides what your email app sees. That checkbox matters more than it looks: it's also the fix for duplicate downloads.
Gmail IMAP Settings#
IMAP is the right incoming protocol for anyone reading Gmail on more than 1 device. Google holds the mailbox and each device you connect shows the same view.
| IMAP Server | imap.gmail.com | |
| Port | 993 | |
| Encryption | SSL/TLS (required) | |
| Username | Your full email address, whether @gmail.com, @googlemail.com or your Google Workspace domain | |
| Password | App password (or OAuth in apps that offer Google sign in) | |
| Authentication | Required |
Gmail POP3 Settings#
POP3 downloads mail to 1 device. Unlike IMAP, Gmail's POP still has controls in webmail. The Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab decides whether POP hands over your whole history or only new mail, plus what happens to messages afterwards. Set that first or POP behaves unpredictably. Not sure POP is right? See the comparison below.
| POP3 Server | pop.gmail.com | |
| Port | 995 | |
| Encryption | SSL (required) | |
| POP Behavior | Set in webmail under Forwarding and POP/IMAP: "Enable POP for all mail" re downloads your whole history, "for mail that arrives from now on" starts fresh. Pick before connecting | |
| Username | Your full address, gmail.com, googlemail.com or your Workspace domain | |
| Password | App password (or OAuth in apps that offer Google sign in) |
Gmail SMTP Settings#
SMTP handles outgoing mail. Reading fine but sending dead? This table is your suspect. Gmail uses 1 outgoing server for both IMAP and POP3 setups and officially supports 2 ports, so pick whichever your app defaults to.
| SMTP Server | smtp.gmail.com | |
| Port (SSL) | 465 | |
| Port (TLS) | 587, equally official. Google documents both ports | |
| Encryption | SSL or STARTTLS (required) | |
| Username | Your full email address | |
| Password | Same as incoming mail | |
| Authentication | Required. In classic Outlook, tick outgoing server authentication or sending will fail. |
Using smtp.gmail.com from Apps, Websites and Devices
The same outgoing server works far beyond email clients. WordPress SMTP plugins, help desk software, office scanners and printers all send through Gmail happily once 3 things line up. Use an app password as the SMTP password, since devices can't open a Google sign in window. Pick port 587 with TLS, the combination the widest range of software supports. And set the From address to the Gmail account itself, because Google rewrites mismatched senders.
Remember the 500 message daily cap counts this sending too, so a busy contact form shares the quota with your own mail. Google Workspace offices have a better road for heavy device sending. Admins can set up the smtp-relay.gmail.com relay in the admin console, which authenticates by IP or account and carries higher limits.
Check Gmail IMAP Settings Online#
Checking Gmail IMAP settings online needs no download at all. The lookup is this page itself: current, verified values you copy straight from the browser. Got a company address that opens in Gmail? Type it below and see which page applies.
Does my email address use these settings?
Runs in your browser only. Your address is never sent anywhere or stored.
To test the account itself, sign in once at mail.google.com. A working webmail login plus 2-Step Verification switched on means an app password is 1 minute away and every table above will connect.
Look Up IMAP Settings for Any Email Domain#
This page covers Gmail and Google Workspace. Need settings for a non Google address too? Our free lookup database imapsettings.com covers the rest, custom company domains included.
imapsettings.com
Complete email settings database, by Univik
Enter any email address and get the incoming and outgoing server settings for that domain in 1 step:
Your address is used only to find the settings for that domain. Nothing is stored or shared.
Gmail App Password Setup#
Google killed plain password sign in for email apps. What works now is either OAuth, the Google sign in window that opens in a browser or a 16 character app password typed into old fashioned password fields. Here's the 10 second way to tell which one your app needs:
| Where you sign in | Regular password | App password |
|---|---|---|
| mail.google.com and the Gmail app | ✓ Works | ✗ Not needed |
| Apps with a Google sign in window (OAuth) | ✓ Works, inside that window | Not needed |
| Plain IMAP or POP3 fields, scanners, printers, older apps | ✗ Rejected | ✓ Required |
How to Create a Gmail App Password
- Turn on 2-Step Verification at myaccount.google.com → Security. Without it the App passwords page doesn't exist for your account.
- Open myaccount.google.com/apppasswords and sign in again if asked.
- Name the password after the app it's for, like "Outlook" or "Office scanner", then select Create.
- Copy the 16 characters. Google displays them in 4 blocks. Type them with or without spaces, both work.
- Paste it as the password in your email app with your full address as the username. Done: the window shows the key only once.
Set Up Gmail in Email Clients#
The servers and ports are always the same. Only the menus differ. Jump to your app:
Outlook (Windows and Mac)
- Start in Outlook at File → Add Account or, in new Outlook, Settings → Accounts → Add account.
- Enter your Gmail or Workspace address. If Outlook opens a Google sign in window, use it and skip the rest. For manual setup open Advanced options and check "Let me set up my account manually".
- Choose IMAP and enter
imap.gmail.comport993(SSL) andsmtp.gmail.comport465SSL or587TLS, both official. - Use your app password, not your regular password, when Outlook asks.
- Finish, then mail yourself a test so sending and receiving are both proven.
Apple Mail (macOS)
- In Apple Mail choose Mail → Settings → Accounts and add an account.
- Select Google from the account types. Apple Mail signs you in through the browser with OAuth. Only Other Mail Account needs the app password route.
- Enter your name, address and app password, then continue.
- Should server fields appear, they take imap.gmail.com and smtp.gmail.com from the tables.
- Enable Mail in the checkbox list and finish.
iPhone and iPad
- iPhone owners go to Settings → Apps → Mail → Mail Accounts and choose Add Account.
- Tap Google, sign in through the browser window that opens and iPhone finishes everything with OAuth. Only the Other → Add Mail Account path needs an app password.
- Enter your details with the app password, then tap Next.
- Servers only show on the Other path. Give it imap.gmail.com and smtp.gmail.com if they do.
- Save and the account verifies against Google directly.
Android
- The Gmail app is native here. Add account → Google signs you in with OAuth and no servers exist to type.
- In Samsung Email or another app, pick Other (IMAP) only for deliberate app password setup.
- Enter your address and app password. If auto setup fails, pick Manual setup.
- Enter the servers:
imap.gmail.com993 SSL incoming,smtp.gmail.com465 SSL outgoing. - One pull to refresh and your labels arrive as folders.
Thunderbird
- In Thunderbird the path is Account Settings → Account Actions → Add Mail Account.
- Enter your name, address and app password, then select Continue.
- Thunderbird recognizes Gmail instantly and offers OAuth as the default sign in. Keep IMAP selected.
- Configure manually only on purpose, when you want app password sign in instead of OAuth.
- Select Done. Folders sync on first open.
Gmail Webmail Settings#
Those tables handle the connection. Everything below shapes what Gmail does with your mail once it is connected. All of them live at mail.google.com under the gear icon → See all settings. Turn on keyboard shortcuts under the General tab and the ? key then shows the full shortcut list anywhere in Gmail.
Signature
See all settings → General → Signature. Gmail supports several signatures per address and lets you pick defaults for new mail and replies separately. Signatures set here appear in webmail only. Outlook and phone apps use their own.
Vacation Auto Reply
See all settings → General → Vacation responder. Set first and last days so it switches off by itself and tick "Only send to my contacts" to keep it away from mailing lists. Google sends the reply server side, so it runs with your computer off.
Filters and Folders
See all settings → Filters and Blocked Addresses → Create a new filter. Google applies these on its own servers, so mail is already sorted by the time your phone or Outlook syncs. They can also apply labels, which your email app then sees as folders.
Spam and Blocked Senders
Open any message → 3 dot menu → Block sender or manage the list under Filters and Blocked Addresses. Gmail's spam filtering is aggressive, so check the Spam folder before assuming a message never arrived.
Forwarding
See all settings → Forwarding and POP/IMAP → Add a forwarding address. Google's own recommended replacement for the retired POP import: have another account push its mail here or push Gmail's mail elsewhere, with filters deciding which messages forward.
POP3 vs IMAP#
Gmail adds a twist to this old question. IMAP shows you Gmail's labels as folders and keeps everything in sync. POP3 hands over messages according to the POP options in webmail and knows nothing about labels. If you left a POP setup running years ago, it still works, but IMAP is the right answer for anyone with a phone.
| Feature | IMAP | POP3 |
|---|---|---|
| Where mail lives | On Google servers (imap.gmail.com) | Downloaded to 1 device (pop.gmail.com) |
| Multiple devices | ✅ Everything stays in sync | ❌ Each device sees different mail |
| Sent and deleted mail | ✅ Synced everywhere | ⚠️ Stays only on that device |
| Offline reading | ⚠️ Cached mail only | ✅ Full local copy |
| Server storage used | Yes, counts against your quota | Can be freed after download |
| Best for | Phone + computer, everyday use | Single PC, local archives |
Gmail Sending and Storage Limits#
Google publishes its limits, which makes Gmail easier to plan around than most providers. The numbers that matter for email apps and bulk moves:
| Daily sending limit | 500 messages for personal Gmail, up to 2,000 for Google Workspace |
| Attachment size | 25 MB to send, 50 MB to receive |
| Free storage | 15 GB, shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos. A full quota blocks incoming mail |
| IMAP connections | 15 simultaneous connections per account |
| Bandwidth per day | IMAP: 2,500 MB down and 500 MB up. POP: 1,250 MB down. These bite during first syncs and bulk backups |
| What happens at the limit | Sending pauses for up to 24 hours while receiving keeps working. Bulk tools should pace themselves under the bandwidth caps |
Troubleshooting Gmail Connections#
Find the exact error your email app shows, then apply the fix:
| Error you see | What it means | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| 535-5.7.8 Username and Password not accepted | The app sent your regular Google password over basic authentication, which Google no longer accepts | Use a 16 character app password or re add the account through the app's Google account type so OAuth takes over. |
| App passwords page missing or empty | 2-Step Verification is off, Advanced Protection is on or a Workspace admin blocked app passwords | Turn on 2-Step Verification first. On a work account, ask your admin whether app passwords are allowed before changing anything else. |
| Every message appears twice in the app | The app syncs both the Inbox label and the [Gmail]/All Mail archive, which hold the same messages | In Gmail: Settings → Labels → uncheck Show in IMAP for All Mail. The duplicates vanish on the next sync. |
| Too many simultaneous connections | Gmail allows 15 IMAP connections per account and your devices used them up | Sign out of email apps you no longer use and restart the one you do. Old phones quietly holding connections are the usual culprit. Setting up several computers in a row? Google's own advice is to pause between each one so the cap doesn't lock you out temporarily. |
| Everything worked until I changed my Google password | Changing the account password revokes every app password automatically | Create fresh app passwords and update each device. OAuth connections survive a password change, so consider re adding accounts via Google sign in. |
| Gmail stopped collecting my other mailboxes | Google removed the "Check mail from other accounts" POP fetching from Gmail on the web | Connect the other account directly in a desktop app, set up forwarding at that provider or use the Univik Email Migration Tool to bring its history into Gmail permanently. |
Reader Reported Fixes
Two fixes pulled from real Gmail support threads, for the times the standard steps lead nowhere.
Delete the account from the app, then re add it choosing the Google account type. Apps that stored Gmail as a generic IMAP account years ago keep failing basic authentication forever. Re adding through the Google option switches the connection to OAuth and the app password question disappears entirely.
First sync crawling or the client freezing on a huge mailbox: cap folder size at 10,000. Gmail's own guidance for slow or crashing clients is Settings → Forwarding and POP/IMAP → Folder size limits → limit to 10,000 messages. The client syncs recent mail fast and the archive stays reachable in webmail.
Personal Gmail vs Google Workspace#
Same servers, different rules. If your address ends in your company's domain and opens in Gmail, you're on Google Workspace and these differences decide what you can and can't do:
| What differs | Personal Gmail | Google Workspace |
|---|---|---|
| IMAP access | Always on, no setting exists | Admin controls it for the whole organization |
| App passwords | Available once 2-Step Verification is on | Admin can block them entirely |
| Daily sending | 500 messages | Up to 2,000 messages |
| Storage | 15 GB free, shared | Set by your Workspace plan |
| Bulk device sending | Through smtp.gmail.com only | Admins can also use the smtp-relay.gmail.com relay for printers, scanners and apps |
| Who fixes access problems | You, at myaccount.google.com | Your admin, at admin.google.com → Apps → Google Workspace → Gmail |
Moving between the two? Leaving a job, closing a company account or promoting a personal mailbox to a custom domain all mean copying mail between Google accounts, which Google doesn't do for you in 1 step. Back up the source mailbox first, then let the Univik Email Migration Tool copy every label from one account to the other over IMAP. Rather not do it yourself? Our Email Migration Services team runs Workspace moves end to end and verifies every label arrived.
One warning for leavers: a Workspace mailbox belongs to the organization. When the admin suspends the account, IMAP access ends that day, so the time to copy your mail out is before your last week, not after.
Use These Settings in Univik Email Backup#
Point Univik Email Backup at imap.gmail.com with the values above and your whole account, every label and attachment, becomes PST, MBOX, EML or PDF files on your own disk. They outlive the account itself.
- Install Univik Email Backup on Windows and open it.
- Select Gmail from the source list. If it isn't listed by name, choose IMAP.
- Use your full Gmail address with an app password. Your regular password won't work here either.
- Should it want servers typed in,
imap.gmail.comon993with SSL is all it needs. Include All Mail for the full archive. - Choose PST, MBOX, EML or PDF and a folder, include [Gmail]/All Mail, then run the backup. Large mailboxes download in the background.
Two Gmail-specific tips. Back up the [Gmail]/All Mail folder and you have everything, archived mail included, because All Mail is the master copy behind every label. And yes, Google Takeout exists and is free: it produces a 1 time MBOX export, which is fine for a snapshot. A backup tool earns its keep when you want PST for Outlook, repeat backups on a schedule or single message restores instead of a 20 GB archive file.
Univik Tools That Use These Settings#
Setting up an app is often step 1 of a bigger move. These 3 tools sign in with exactly the settings on this page:
Email Backup
Download your complete Gmail mailbox, All Mail and every label, to PST, MBOX, EML or PDF before switching or closing the account.
Email Backup Tool →
Email Migration Tool
Copy every Gmail label straight into Microsoft 365, another Google account or any IMAP mailbox. No manual export needed.
Email Migration Tool →
Email Converter Tool
Got a Google Takeout MBOX or files from an old client? Turn them into PST, PDF or whatever your new app prefers.
Email Converter Tool →Prefer to let experts run the whole move instead?
Not keen on spending an evening in server fields and security pages? Skip the whole thing. The team plans the move, runs the transfer, verifies every label landed and hands you the completion report. Running since 2013, from 1 mailbox to full Google Workspace tenants.
Email Settings Glossary#
IMAP
Internet Message Access Protocol. The protocol behind imap.gmail.com. Google keeps everything server side, so labels, read state and the archive match across devices.
POP3
Post Office Protocol version 3. The pop.gmail.com route: mail lands on 1 computer and Gmail's webmail POP options decide what stays behind. The veteran protocol, still fine for a deliberate 1 machine archive.
SMTP
Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. Sends your outgoing mail. The sending half: smtp.gmail.com carries everything outbound while IMAP or POP3 only receive.
SSL / TLS / STARTTLS
The encryption layer. Encryption for the connection. Gmail uses SSL on 993, 995 and 465 and STARTTLS on 587, with nothing unencrypted accepted at all.
App Password (App Password)
A 16 character code that replaces your real password inside apps like Outlook when they connect to imap.gmail.com. Google shows it only once and revokes every one of them when your Google password changes.
OAuth
The "Sign in with Google" browser window. Your password goes to Google alone and the app receives a token it can't reuse elsewhere. Google's preferred method and the reason your password never touches the app.
How We Verify These Settings#
Gmail is the most connected provider in Univik software. Since 2013 our backup and migration tools have opened daily sessions against imap.gmail.com for thousands of users, which puts a changed Google rule in our connection logs before most guides notice anything.
Three things have to agree before a value goes on this page. A live IMAP and SMTP connection from Univik Email Backup, Google's own published documentation and a fresh app password made through the current myaccount.google.com flow. A Google announcement sends us back to the tables the same week. A scheduled pass runs quarterly anyway.
Spot a mismatch with what Google shows you? Report it, we retest the same week and the correction gets its own entry in what changed recently.
Help & Support
Gmail Email Settings: FAQ
Use imap.gmail.com on port 993 with SSL. Your username is the full address. The password is either an app password or whatever the Google sign in window accepts. Full details sit in the IMAP settings section.
Google turned off basic authentication, so plain password fields reject even the correct password with error 535-5.7.8. Create an app password and use that instead or re add the account through the app's Google option so the sign in happens in a browser window.
IMAP for almost everyone. Labels, read state and archive stay identical everywhere. POP3 suits exactly 1 machine that wants its own downloaded copy. Full comparison here.
Google removed it. IMAP is always on for personal Gmail now, so there's nothing to enable before connecting an app. On Google Workspace the control moved to the admin console, where your admin switches IMAP on or off for everyone. Details in the Enable IMAP section.
No. Google shows an app password only at creation. Make a new one at myaccount.google.com/apppasswords, it takes under a minute. Old ones keep working until you delete them or change your Google password, which revokes all of them at once.
Yes, when you use an app password or OAuth sign in. Each one can be revoked on its own at myaccount.google.com/apppasswords without touching anything else. Prune the list whenever you retire a device.
Backing up the All Mail folder over IMAP captures the lot in 1 pass, archived mail included. A dedicated tool saves it in standard formats. See how to back up your Gmail mailbox. If you got a Google Takeout MBOX or files from an old client, an email converter changes them to PST, PDF or whatever your new app opens.
Yes. A Workspace address on your company domain uses imap.gmail.com, smtp.gmail.com and pop.gmail.com exactly like personal Gmail, with your work address as the username. The difference is control: your admin decides whether IMAP and app passwords are allowed. The comparison table lists every difference.
The email migration tool signs in to both mailboxes over IMAP and copies label by label with dates intact. This page supplies the Gmail side: the IMAP values plus an app password.
This page covers 1 mailbox; for a whole Workspace domain or many staff accounts, our managed email migration service does the entire job for you.
Isolate it in 2 steps. Sign in at mail.google.com: if webmail works, the problem is your app, usually a revoked app password or the 15 connection cap. If webmail fails too, check your storage quota first, because a full 15 GB blocks incoming mail, then recover the account at accounts.google.com.
Other Email Provider Settings
Summary: Gmail Settings at a Glance
- IMAP: imap.gmail.com, port 993, SSL/TLS
- POP3: pop.gmail.com, port 995, SSL/TLS
- SMTP: smtp.gmail.com, port 465 or 587
- Username is always your full email address
- App password or OAuth required for email apps
- Pick IMAP for phone + computer sync
- Attachment limit: 25 MB per message
- IMAP is always on, no setting to enable