How do I find the SMTP server for my email?

If you're using Outlook or Gmail to manage your work-related emails, then it's likely that you'll also be managing your personal correspondence as well. In fact, most of us have multiple accounts on various platforms like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and Slack -- but we can only access one mailbox at a time!

The good news is if you're looking for help with connecting your mail app to HubSpot, there are some quick steps you can follow so you don't need to spend hours searching through online forums trying to figure out what setting means what. We've got all the info you need right here...

How do I find my SMTP settings?

One way to quickly locate your SMTP (or Mail Transport Protocol) servers is by navigating to Settings " Accounts " Connected Email Providers in Microsoft Outlook. If you're not sure where this option lives in Outlook, just search for "Connected Email Provider" in your browser and click the first result. You will see a list of options including several which allow you to choose from different providers such as Yahoo!, Google, iCloud, and more.

You may notice an entry called "Email Address," however, this isn't actually related to the SMTP server itself. It's simply the default email address used when composing new messages via Outlook and other apps. For example, if you were to compose a message to yourself, you would enter "myemail@example.com." The actual value of this field does not change depending on whether you connected to Gmail, Hotmail, etc.

As mentioned above, another method of locating your SMTP server is by visiting Settings " Account Settings " Advanced Options in Google Chrome. This screen contains a dropdown menu labelled "Use alternate SMTP Server" which allows you to select between two options: Use system Default and Specify Alternate SMTP Server. Selecting either option reveals additional fields within the box allowing you to specify the hostname, port number, username, and password.

Note: While these methods won't show you every single possible combination of values for each field, they should give you enough information to get started. Keep in mind that many services offer multiple ways to configure their SMTP service and the exact details about how to set them up vary per platform.

Can I use any SMTP server to send emails?

Unfortunately, no. As previously stated, the purpose of SMTP is to transfer electronic data across networks, ensuring delivery without requiring users to manually retype the message themselves. Therefore, it's essential that the recipient has the correct software installed to properly receive your e-mails.

This is why you must verify that your SMTP server is capable of handling incoming traffic before attempting to send anything. To check this, visit the website of whichever provider you plan to use and type in the domain name followed by /verify. A verification code will display upon completion. Enter this into the relevant textbox and click Verify Now. Click Send Test Message to test the connection. The results should indicate success or failure.

For instance, if you wanted to send an e-mail to me@hubspot.com, you'd type hubspot.com/verify into the input box and hit submit. If everything worked correctly, you should receive a response showing the status of the operation along with the verification code. Once verified, you can proceed to send the e-mail normally.

In case you aren't sure what domains are supported by your chosen SMTP server, take a look at our article listing popular SMTP hosts around the world.

Can I use a different SMTP server for sending mail?

Yes, though you will still need to ensure that both your sender and receiver have compatible applications installed. One solution is to create separate folders containing only attachments, meeting notes, invoices, etc., while leaving the rest of your content untouched. Then, you could forward all non-attachment e-mails to your preferred SMTP server.

Another approach is to switch over entirely to a third party application. These include tools like Mandrill, Zoho Mail, SendGrid, and others. Each offers unique features and benefits so you might want to research them further to determine which best suits your needs.

What SMTP server should I use?

When choosing between SMTP providers, consider factors such as reliability, support availability, pricing plans, reputation, and customer reviews. Most importantly, make sure that your selected provider provides the ability to integrate seamlessly with your existing workflow.

If you're currently using Office 365 and your organization already uses Exchange Online, you can skip ahead to the next section. Otherwise, let's move onto other solutions.

First, there's G Suite. Unfortunately, although it includes powerful collaboration capabilities, it lacks robust security measures. This makes it unsuitable for sensitive communications such as those involving financial transactions. Additionally, its pricing model doesn't provide much flexibility for organizations who require volume discounts.

Next, there are numerous companies offering cloud-based alternatives to traditional email hosting, including Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, Rackspace Cloud Hosting, and more. Although these typically cost less than standard web hosting, they lack advanced functionality like calendar sharing and file syncing. For these reasons, many professionals prefer to stick with hosted offerings provided by established brands such as Microsoft and Google.

Finally, you can always opt to run your own email server. There are plenty of articles explaining how to build one, but the process requires a fair amount of technical knowledge and experience. For beginners, it might prove difficult to navigate through the myriad of choices available. Furthermore, you'll probably encounter errors during setup. All things considered, running your own server is definitely something you should avoid unless you know exactly what you're doing.

There's also the possibility that you're using an outdated version of Windows 10 that doesn't fully support modern operating systems. If that describes you, upgrading to a newer OS will prevent issues similar to those described above. However, once again, you'll need to invest a significant chunk of money in purchasing hardware upgrades.

1. How to locate your mail account’s settings

In this article, we will show how to find your mail account’s settings so that you can configure them.

Open an app such as Mail, Calendar, Contacts, etc.

Tap More from the bottom right corner.

Select Accounts & Passwords (or Settings) if you are using a Windows PC.

On Android devices, go into Apps > Google Play Store > Your apps > All installed apps > [Name of App] > Account settings.

You may need to tap Advanced options first before selecting Account Settings.

Go through all the steps listed under Email and password to set up your email account.

Setting Up Gmail

Gmail is probably the easiest way to get started with HubSpot CRM because it comes preconfigured out of the box. We recommend setting up your new email address here instead of creating another new email address within HubSpot. That's because you won't be able to import contacts across between two separate addresses.

To log into the Gmail website, enter https://www.google.com/settings/gmail/inbox in your browser and click Sign in below.

Click Turn On next to Use my current webmail client when signing in? If you choose Yes, you'll see a pop-up asking whether you want to sign in to your existing G Suite domain. Click Continue to proceed with the setup process.

Enter your username and password, and select Next.

If you're looking to send an email from Gmail or Outlook but can't remember which servers are involved, here's everything you need to know about each step of sending an email.

Sending an email involves many different steps, including setting up your account with a mail service provider (MSP) like Google or Microsoft (depending on whether it's Gmail or Outlook), connecting your mailbox to that MSPS' system, configuring your email client software to use those services, then finally composing your message and hitting Send. So let's take a look at all of these parts individually so you know exactly where to start if you want to compose that next important email!

There's only one thing more frustrating than not having access to your emails: not knowing where to begin when trying to get them back online again after they've been lost due to some kind of computer problem. Let's talk through the first part of this process before we move onto the rest.

Which server is required to send emails?

First, you'll have to determine which server will be handling your outgoing messages. This isn't necessarily something that's easy to figure out, because most ISPs don't make their SMTP servers readily available -- especially if you pay by the month instead of per-use. You might also run into issues finding certain ports open either on your ISP's end or on the other side if someone else hosts your website, depending on who owns the IP addresses for your SMTP server.

Fortunately, though, there are ways around this issue. If you'd rather give your ISP a bit more control over your incoming messages without giving up any privacy, you can always set up a custom SMTP server using a third-party solution such as Postini or Cloudflare. These companies offer paid plans that allow you to create a separate connection for just your own domain(s).

This way, even if hackers manage to break into your main SMTP network, they won't be able to reach anyone connected to your new dedicated line. It's also smart to keep track of all of your outgoing connections via a logging program so you know exactly what's happening when you try to send an email.

Is there a public SMTP server?

The easiest method for finding your SMTP server is to check your Internet Service Provider's website. Unfortunately, the majority of ISPs aren't very helpful in providing that sort of data unless you specifically ask for it. That said, you should still consider checking with whoever provides your internet/web hosting package to see if your company has made its SMTP settings publicly accessible. Most likely, they will have done so.

You may also be able to contact your web host directly to request this info. Since these types of providers often provide multiple accounts under various names, however, you'll probably need to dig deeper. Your best bet is to search for "email" within the support section of your webhosting dashboard.

Is SMTP server free?

Another good resource to go to for figuring out your SMTP server is the Whois database maintained by ICANN. Here, you can input whatever domains or subdomains you wish to research and click Search. Then select the Data tab and choose View Report. From there, scroll down until you locate the Status column, followed by the Server field. The number listed here indicates the type of server your site uses. For example, 1 means that the hostname associated with the IP address belongs to a private organization, while 4 signifies that the domain or subdomain is hosted by a commercial entity.

For instance, if you were to visit org/en/lookup?servername=smtpserver&querytype=nameservice&flags=-1&statuscode=4&domainregistrantid=&domainadminaddress=&domainadministratorphone=&domainbillingcontactperson=&domaintechnicalcontactsupportperson=&domainlegalrepresentativecontactperson=&domainregistereddate=&domainexpirydate=&domaincreationdate=&domainupdatehistory=&domainlastchange=&domainregistrarorganization=&domainregistrarwebsite=&domainregistrarcountry=&domainregistrarcity=&domainregistrarstate=&domainregistrardsubjectlineprefix=&domainregistrarpostalcode=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliverystreetaddress=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresstype=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresscity=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddressregion=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresscountries=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresscouncilorstate=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddressprovince=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresscountry=&domainregistraremailaddress=&domainregistrarfaxnumber=&domainregistrarmobilephonenumber=&domainregistrarhomepageurl=&domainregistrarprivacynoticeurl=&domainregistrartermsofserviceurl=&domainregistrarauthenticationkey=&domainregistraraccountlockoutperiod=&domainregistrardomainlockingmethod=&domainregistrarpasswordrequired=&domainregistrarverificationkey=&domainregistrarcustomersupportphone=&domainregistrarcustomercontactforme="">https://whois.icann.org/en/lookup?servername=smtpserver&querytype=nameservice&flags=-1&statuscode=4&domainregistrantid=&domainadminaddress=&domainadministratorphone=&domainbillingcontactperson=&domaintechnicalcontactsupportperson=&domainlegalrepresentativecontactperson=&domainregistereddate=&domainexpirydate=&domaincreationdate=&domainupdatehistory=&domainlastchange=&domainregistrarorganization=&domainregistrarwebsite=&domainregistrarcountry=&domainregistrarcity=&domainregistrarstate=&domainregistrardsubjectlineprefix=&domainregistrarpostalcode=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliverystreetaddress=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresstype=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresscity=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddressregion=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresscountries=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresscouncilorstate=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddressprovince=&domainregistrarphysicaldeliveryaddresscountry=&domainregistraremailaddress=&domainregistrarfaxnumber=&domainregistrarmobilephonenumber=&domainregistrarhomepageurl=&domainregistrarprivacynoticeurl=&domainregistrartermsofserviceurl=&domainregistrarauthenticationkey=&domainregistraraccountlockoutperiod=&domainregistrardomainlockingmethod=&domainregistrarpasswordrequired=&domainregistrarverificationkey=&domainregistrarcustomersupportphone=&domainregistrarcustomercontactforme="

So, once you have your server information, you can head over to your email client and configure your settings accordingly. In Gmail, for instance, select Settings & Accounts from the dropdown menu on the left sidebar. Choose Email Compose window from the list of options below. Then, enter your details.

Finally, check off Enable SMTP Authentication and leave Use SSL ticked. Click Save Changes at the bottom right and wait for your changes to apply.

How much does SMTP cost?

As mentioned above, you can purchase additional features from your ISP. One option would be to buy a premium plan that includes enhanced security measures for your SMTP server. Another would be to sign up for a monthly subscription to a third-party provider like Mailgun, Mandrill, Amazon SES, or Rackspace.

Mailgun offers a basic $5/month plan that allows unlimited recipients, although it doesn't include spam protection. As long as you stay away from blacklists, you shouldn't experience too much trouble with it. Mandrill's cheapest plan starts at $19/year, but it comes with plenty of perks including bulk delivery, spam filtering, advanced reporting tools, and analytics.

Amazon SES costs $15/month, as well as offering full spam protection and anti-DDoS measures. And lastly, Rackspace's Email Service provider is slightly cheaper at $7.50/month, but you can expect to receive similar benefits. Note that none of these solutions come cheap. However, since you're paying for a one-time setup fee plus ongoing expenses, it could actually save you money in the long term compared to buying your own SMTP server outright.

Once you've got your SMTP configured, you'll definitely want to test it out. Open up your browser and navigate to the URL assigned to your chosen SMTP server. Make sure that your username and password work correctly and that your server is accepting connections. Also, double-check that you entered all relevant information properly.

Now that you understand the basics of how to find your email server, you can focus on getting your email working again. Once you've regained access to your inboxes, it's time to read our guides to recovering deleted files, fixing broken links, and cleaning up your junk folders.

What is an SMTP server?

An SMTP server (short for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) allows a computer connected to the Internet to receive emails sent by other computers.

When someone sends you an email message using their own software like Microsoft Outlook or Google Inbox, they have access to both the client-side application that reads and writes data on the user’s PC as well as the email server where this data goes when it leaves the sender’s machine.

The email server stores all incoming messages until the recipient manually deletes them from its database. When the recipient opens his or her email program, the mail server passes along any new messages waiting for him or her.

This setup works fine most of the time, but if you want to be able to check your email anywhere at anytime, then you'll need more than just one email address. If there's no central place for everyone to store their email addresses, then you could end up having multiple different accounts set up with different providers, making it difficult to keep track of what you've read and not yet responded to.

SMTP servers allow users to sign into a single account so that every email gets stored under that same name. This way, when you log in to your email provider, you will see only those messages from people who signed up through that service. It also means that if you don't use the same email address everywhere, you won't lose track of important messages because you might forget about one of your old ones.

You can easily set up a Gmail account or Outlook 365 (previously Microsoft Office 365) with an SMTP connection if you don't already have one. This way, whenever someone sends you an email from their own domain it will automatically route through your computer so that you get the message at its intended destination.

If you're not sure where to look for these settings, this guide should help you figure out which website or app you need to use to locate them. We'll also explain each setting's purpose as well as show you how to configure them using Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge on either macOS or Windows 10.

In addition to helping us understand how to find our mail servers, we've compiled some useful tips below about why you might want to change your default settings and whether there are any security risks when doing so. It's important to know all of this before deciding if changing your email forwarding settings is worth the effort!

How do I find my SMTP and POP3 server?

Before you start looking for the SMTP and POP3 server locations, it may be helpful to understand what they actually mean. If you open the Settings page in Gmail or Outlook 365, you'll see two options listed under "Email" called Send Mail As and Email Forwarding. These are both ways you can forward emails onto another service without having to manually add recipients every time.

The first option is Send Mail As. When you select this option, instead of sending emails via your ISP's SMTP server directly, the recipient gets forwarded to your Gmail/Outlook 365 mailbox. The second option is Email Forwarding, which allows users to send messages from their own domains to other people or services outside of their own network.

With this feature enabled, anyone who receives an email sent by a user whose account has been configured to use Email Forwarding can reply straight back to their original sender without needing to log into the receiving service themselves. However, this isn't always ideal because sometimes people forget to send replies, especially while traveling away from home.

Since most businesses prefer to keep their internal communication private, it makes sense to only let employees access their company's email accounts via the company's SMTP server. That way, even though the employee could technically read everyone else's personal correspondence, they won't have access to anything sensitive like client data.

It would therefore make more sense to allow those same employees to receive incoming messages from customers' external addresses without requiring them to login to the customer's account. For example, a hotel receptionist likely wouldn't need access to a guest's bank details, but they'd probably appreciate being able to respond to guests' requests right after checking-in instead of waiting until they return later in the day.

This is exactly why Gmail lets you choose between the two options above -- unless you specifically disable the ability to send outgoing emails, you'll still be able to communicate with others via your usual methods. But once you turn off that functionality, you'll no longer receive new notifications from websites, apps, or social media platforms. You'll never miss a thing again!

However, if you work somewhere small enough that you rarely interact with clients outside of your office, then choosing to disable this option might not be necessary. Many smaller companies offer free Wi-Fi to their tenants, or even just provide computers for public use. In such cases, it doesn't really matter if you can't send outgoing emails since nobody ever uses them anyway.

For example, if you were working as a freelance web developer on a project that required you to regularly check your email, then disabling the option to send emails would save you several hours per week. On the flip side, if you worked in a larger organization with strict policies against communicating with outsiders, then enabling the feature might prove beneficial.

How do I find my SMTP server port?

Another reason many people end up asking how to find their SMTP server is due to confusion surrounding ports. Most people think that SMTP uses TCP Port 25, but that's incorrect. Instead, it uses DNS over TLS (DoT), which means that it connects to your email provider's DNS server rather than going directly to the IP address itself.

Using DoT, your email provider assigns a unique port to your email account, making it much harder for hackers to intercept your communications. So while TCP Port 25 does exist, it's used primarily by older protocols such as POP3 and IMAP4 whereas DoT was designed to replace these outdated methods with modern encrypted connections.

Because TCP Port 25 is reserved by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) for special purposes, you shouldn't expect to find it anywhere online. To learn more about TCP Ports, take a look at this article explaining what TCP Ports are and how they relate to HTTPS encryption.

To connect to your SMTP server using Gmail, click the three dots next to your username button and select More Controls. Then, scroll down to Advanced Settings and uncheck Enable less secure apps. Click Save Changes. Next, go to Settings & Accounts " Sign-in & sync " Email and toggle Turn on 2FA to enable Two Factor Authentication. Finally, head back to Settings & Apps " Connected Devices " Your Account. Here, you'll see all the devices connected to your account, including the ones you specified earlier.

To connect to your SMTP server using Outlook 365, follow these steps:

Open Outlook.com.

Scroll down to your profile picture and click Profile Options.

Click Edit My Info.

Select Change Password.

Enter a strong PIN code twice and confirm it.

Next, scroll down to Exchange SMTP EWS Port.

Unselect Use SSL/TLS and enter the correct values.

Lastly, select Apply.

What is SMTP server port?

As mentioned previously, SMTP relies on Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNS-SEC). Whenever someone types the URL for your company's website into their browser bar, their request goes through your company's DNS server first. After verifying that the requested domain exists, the DNS server returns a list of possible IPs that match the specific hostname. Based on whichever IP matches the hostname, your system then forwards the request to that location.

So if you wanted to visit www.example.com, your DNS server would return a list of different IP addresses that matched the hostname. One of these IPs would contain the exact string you typed, allowing you to reach the actual site.

Your SMTP server works similarly, except instead of referring to websites, it refers to email providers. By creating a DNS record for your SMTP server and instructing your internet browser to point towards that domain, you ensure that your system always reaches the proper destination.

When you enable DNS-securing features in Gmail, Outlook 365, Apple iCloud, etc., your systems will now require authentication before connecting to the SMTP server. With this extra layer of protection, it will be easier to prevent unauthorized individuals from accessing your emails.

How do I find my SMTP port number in Windows?

Microsoft created SMTP protocol versions 1 and 5, which are known as Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) version 4 and 5. Both of these protocols operate on UDP port numbers ranging from 53000 to 55999, depending on the operating system and software package.

Windows 7 and 8 include the standard SMTP service located inside the Network and Sharing Center menu item. Alternatively, you can search for it from Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Services. Once found, double-click the title to view detailed info about the service. Scroll down to the Status column and note the value beneath the Service status field.

On Windows 10, you'll need to perform similar tasks in Task Manager. Press Win + R and type taskkill /f /im msmtp.exe to bring up Process Explorer. Right-click msmtp.exe and select Open File Location. Navigate to C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe and press Ctrl+F5 to launch Firefox.

Once launched, navigate to Help " Troubleshooting Information " About Mozilla Firefox. Locate the Product Version line and copy it to clipboard, then paste it into Notepad. Close Firefox and reopen it. Now, switch back to Task Manager and repeat Steps 3 - 6. This time, however, you must append -v to the process name.

Finally, close Firefox and restart your PC. Go back to Task Manager and verify that the SMTP service is running properly. You should see a green check mark beside the entry instead of a red X.

Now that you know how to find your SMTP server, here are some additional resources for learning how to use it effectively:

How to Configure G Suite Email Addresses - A step-by-step guide to configuring Gmail for business.

Gmail Tips and Tricks - Learn everything you need to know about managing your email inbox.