One mailbox, on all your devices
Read on your phone, but still bold on your laptop? Or a sent email you can only find on one device? With IMAP you see the same thing everywhere. Here’s how to set it up in the apps you already use.
IMAP or POP: why the difference matters
Your email lives on a server. The question is what your devices do with it. With POP, one device downloads the messages and stores them locally; often they are then removed from the server. Read them on your laptop and your phone no longer sees them. IMAP works the other way round: messages stay on the server and every device shows the same state. Read, moved to a folder or sent: updated everywhere at once. If you work on more than one device, or share an address with colleagues, IMAP is almost always the right choice. Do keep an eye on storage: because everything stays on the server, your mailbox keeps growing.
Messages stay on the server. Every device sees the same.
One device collects everything. The rest sees nothing.
The details you need
Many apps find the settings themselves as soon as you enter your email address and password. If that doesn’t work, you need four details from your email provider. The incoming mail server (IMAP), usually with port 993 and SSL/TLS. The outgoing mail server (SMTP), usually with port 465 and SSL/TLS, or port 587 with STARTTLS. Your username, which with most providers is your full email address. And your password. For the outgoing server, turn on the option that it also asks for your username and password. Without it, you can receive mail but not send it.
- Server
- imap.mailprovider.com
- Port
- 993
- Security
- SSL/TLS
- Server
- smtp.mailprovider.com
- Port
- 465 (or 587)
- Security
- SSL/TLS
The username is usually your full email address. For outgoing mail, turn on authentication with the same password. Fictional server names. Use exactly the details from your own email provider.
On your computer: Outlook, Apple Mail and Thunderbird
In the new Outlook for Windows, go to Settings, Accounts, Add account. If Outlook doesn’t recognise your address, choose the advanced settings and the IMAP account type. Note: the new Outlook syncs IMAP mail through Microsoft’s cloud. In classic Outlook, choose File, Add Account and then the advanced option to set up the account yourself. On a Mac, open Mail, choose Add Account and then ‘Other Mail Account’. Thunderbird usually looks up the settings itself; otherwise ‘Configure manually’ lets you enter them yourself.
The new Outlook syncs IMAP mail through Microsoft’s cloud.
On your phone: iPhone, Android and the Gmail app
On an iPhone or iPad, go to Settings, Apps, Mail, Mail Accounts and choose Add Account, Other, Add Mail Account. Enter your name, address and password and choose IMAP. On Android you can use the Gmail app, for example: tap your profile picture, Add another account, Other, and choose Personal (IMAP). The Gmail app on iPhone works the same way. Do you use Gmail on your computer to collect mail from other addresses? Google is phasing out that POP-based feature in 2026. Forwarding to Gmail, or adding the address as an IMAP account in the app, are then the alternatives.
Step 1 of 5
Menu names may differ slightly between versions.
If it doesn’t work: the usual causes
Most problems have a simple cause. A password with a typo, or an automatic capital letter on your phone. A username without the part after the @. A port that doesn’t match the chosen security, for example 993 without SSL/TLS. If you can receive but not send, authentication for the outgoing server is usually switched off. Getting a certificate warning? Use exactly the server name your provider gives you. And if sent mail doesn’t show up on your other devices, check whether your app uses the Sent folder on the server instead of a local folder.
01Sign-in fails
CauseA typo or automatic capital letter in the password, or a username without the part after the @.
FixType the password again and use your full email address as the username.
02No connection to the server
CausePort and security don’t match.
FixUse 993 with SSL/TLS for IMAP, and 465 with SSL/TLS or 587 with STARTTLS for SMTP.
03Receiving works, sending doesn’t
CauseThe outgoing server doesn’t ask for your username and password.
FixTurn on authentication for the outgoing server, with the same details as incoming.
04Certificate warning
CauseThe server name doesn’t match the server’s certificate.
FixUse exactly the server name your provider gives you, not a variant of your own.
05Sent mail only on one device
CauseThe app saves sent messages in a local folder.
FixIn the app, choose the Sent folder on the server as the folder for sent messages.
Agree on a fixed setup for your team
Setting up one mailbox is one thing; making sure the whole team does it the same way is another. Write one short guide with the correct server details and screenshots of the apps you use. Agree which folders you use and what the signature looks like, on the computer and on the phone. Record what happens if a phone is lost: change the password and remove the device. And for a general address like info@, a shared mailbox or an alias is often clearer than one password that everyone knows.
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