Setting up email on your phone: IMAP or POP?

To set up email on your phone, choose IMAP, enter your full email address as the user name and use the server name from your control panel. Incoming mail runs over port 993 with SSL/TLS, outgoing mail over port 465 with SSL/TLS or port 587 with STARTTLS. If receiving works but sending does not, the user name and password for the outgoing server are almost always missing.

Choose IMAP, not POP3

Most problems come from one choice at the start. With IMAP your mail stays on the server and your mailbox looks the same on every device. With POP3 your phone collects the mail and deletes it from the server. After that it no longer shows up on your computer, and mail that exists only on your phone is not in any backup of the server either.

The details you need

• Your full email address as the user name, so not just the part before the at sign.
• The password of the mailbox. If you no longer know it, set a new password for that mailbox in the control panel.
• The server name for incoming and for outgoing mail. Copy the server name from your control panel exactly.
• Incoming: IMAP, port 993, security SSL/TLS.
• Outgoing: SMTP, port 465 with SSL/TLS or port 587 with STARTTLS, with the same user name and the same password.

Test the address and the password in webmail first. If signing in fails there, the fault is not in the settings of your phone.

Setting up on an iPhone or iPad

1. Open Settings. In recent versions of iOS, tap Apps, then Mail, then Mail Accounts. In older versions, tap Mail straight away and then Accounts.
2. Tap Add Account, choose Other and then Add Mail Account.
3. Enter your name, your email address, the password and a description, and tap Next.
4. Choose IMAP at the top.
5. Under Incoming Mail Server, enter the server name as the host name, your full email address as the user name, and the password.
6. Under Outgoing Mail Server, enter exactly the same three details. The user name and password are marked as optional there. Fill them in anyway, or you will be able to receive but not send.
7. Tap Next. The iPhone verifies the details. Leave Mail switched on and tap Save.

To check the ports, open the account again: under Advanced for incoming mail, and under SMTP, in the primary server, for outgoing mail.

Setting up on Android

On most Android devices you use the Gmail app, even for an address that is not a Gmail address.

1. Open Gmail, tap your profile picture at the top right and choose to add another account.
2. Choose Other.
3. Type your email address, tap Next and choose Personal (IMAP).
4. Enter the password.
5. In the incoming server settings, check the user name, which must be your full email address, and enter the server name.
6. For the outgoing server, leave the switch that requires sign-in turned on, and enter the same server name, user name and password.
7. Choose the sync options and give the account a name.

Common mistakes

• Receiving works, sending does not. Authentication for outgoing mail is switched off or left empty. Enter the same details for the outgoing server as for the incoming one. This is by far the most common cause.
• Only the part before the at sign as the user name. The server does not recognise you and the phone keeps asking for the password.
• A space in the password. When you copy the password, a space often comes along unnoticed.
• Port and security do not match. Port 465 belongs with SSL/TLS, port 587 with STARTTLS. If you swap them, the phone keeps waiting until the connection drops.
• Dismissing a certificate warning. It usually appears when you enter a server name other than the one from your control panel: the certificate then does not match the name. Correct the server name; do not accept the warning.
• Sent messages do not show up on the computer. The phone is then storing them locally. On an iPhone, under Advanced, choose the folder on the server for the sent mailbox.

If your mailbox is full

With IMAP everything stays on the server, so over time the mailbox can fill up. If senders get their message back, read my mailbox is full: what now. If you only need an extra address, an alias may be enough: see mailbox or alias. What comes with mail on your own domain is described on email hosting.

Frequently asked questions

Which ports do I use for IMAP and SMTP?

For IMAP, port 993 with SSL/TLS. For SMTP, port 465 with SSL/TLS or port 587 with STARTTLS. Without encryption your password travels across the network in readable form.

Can I use the same address on my phone and on my computer?

Yes, as long as both use IMAP: then they see the same folders and messages. If one device is set to POP3, it takes the mail away before the other one sees it.

My phone keeps asking for the password. What now?

Sign in to webmail with the same address and password. If that fails, set a new password in the control panel. If it works, check the user name and type the password again instead of pasting it.

Still stuck?

Let us know via contact which email address it concerns, which device you use and which error message you see. Never send us your password.