Gmail's SMTP settings allow you to choose your favorite email client.
Setting up an email client such as Outlook or Thunderbird to send email requires entering in certain information provided by your Internet service provider or email service. For sending mail, you will enter information about the provider's SMTP server. SMTP, or "simple mail transfer protocol," is the set of rules computer programs and servers follow in order to send email to one another. Gmail provides a free SMTP server for anyone with a Gmail account to use to send mail from the email program of her choice.
Instructions
1. Enable POP mail in Gmail by opening Gmail in a web browser and signing in to Gmail. Then click "settings" near the top of the main Gmail window and choose the "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" tab. Enable POP for all mail or for mail that arrives from this point forward, and choose whether or not you want Gmail to keep a copy of new mail in your Gmail inbox.
2. Open the email program you wish to configure to use Gmail's free SMTP server. Find the program's "preferences" or "options" menu and choose to edit your existing email account.
3. Change the outgoing mail server address to Gmail's SMTP server ("smtp.gmail.com" without the quotation marks), and choose to use authentication. If your email software doesn't allow for authentication, you will not be able to use Gmail's SMTP server to send mail.
4. Choose to use a secure connection, with either SSL or TSL encryption. Depending on which you use, enter the port number in the space provided next to the type of security you use. For SSL, use port 465; for TSL, use 587.
5. Type your account name in the space provided in your email software settings. For your account name, use your Gmail user name followed by "@gmail.com" without the quotation marks.
6. Enter your Gmail password in the password field.
7. Test your new email settings by sending yourself an email. If you receive the email in your inbox, the SMTP settings are correct. If you do not receive your email, review your Gmail "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" settings to ensure you entered all settings correctly. If this does not work, follow Gmail's instructions for configuring your specific email client. You'll find the instructions in this article's Resources section: Click on the link "Gmail: Configuring Other Mail Clients."
Tags: your email, your Gmail, email client, Gmail SMTP, SMTP server, account name, email program