How to Setup Gmail in Mac Mail App?

Google’s Gmail is one of the most common email providers in the world. Aside from being easy to use, it also has an advantage of using single sign-on with other popular Google products. In fact, you can automatically sign-in to Chrome, YouTube and other products when you already signed into Gmail account.

As a result of the simple interface and powerful integration, most people don’t mind connecting to the web via Safari to grab their messages. But, what if you don’t need to launch Safari every time you want to check for new messages? You can easily integrate Gmail to the default Mail app on your Mac and access emails instantly.

Related: Find real sender of an email in Gmail.

Why Should You Use Mail App?

Well, using Safari and accessing Gmail through web interface has its own advantages. However Mail is a handy app on Mac. With Apple’s Mail application, you can keep all your emails organized within a single app. Furthermore, not only does it provide notifications, but you’ll also have access to your new messages with just one click.

• You can configure different emails like Gmail, your own custom domain email, Yahoo!, Outlook, etc.
• You don’t need to open different websites to access different emails.
• Get instant notification as and when you get an email.
• One click to open email and respond on the go.
• Make use of your contacts and calendars from Gmail on your Mac and improve your productivity.

So, how can you setup Gmail in Mac Mail app? The setup depends on the version of macOS you have installed on your Mac. We strongly recommend you to upgrade to the latest macOS version to have secure and stable Mac. If your Mac does not support the latest OS then its time to consider upgrading your Mac to newer one.

Setup Gmail on Mac OS Mojave to OS X Mavericks

From MacOS Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra to the OS X El Capitan, Yosemite, and Mavericks, here is how to set up the Gmail account with the email client.

Click on the “Apple” icon on top left corner and go to “System Preferences…” option. Alternately, you can just click on the “Settings” icon straight from the dock, if it is there.

Click on the “Internet Accounts” icon on the third row.

On the “Internet Accounts” preferences page, you’ll find lot of email service providers like iCloud, Google, Exchange, etc. that are compatible with your Mac. Select the “Google” icon.

A small window pops up which requires your Gmail address to proceed. Input the email and click “Next.” If you can’t remember your email address or you don’t have one, select “Forgot Email” or “Create Account” respectively. Otherwise, type your password on the next page and click “Next” again.

Finally, the page displays a list of apps like Mail, Contacts, Calendar and Notes that you can use with the Gmail account on your Mac. Ensure to tick the “Mail” option and click “Done” button.

You can see the Gmail account is now added to the list in the left pane.

Click on the “Details…” button showing against to your Gmail id. By default your Gmail account will have the description as Google. However, you can change the description and display name of your Gmail account to show in the Mail app.

That’s all; your Gmail account will automatically be set up on your Mac’s Mail application. Just click on the Mail app icon on your dock to launch it.

Setup Gmail on OS X Mountain Lion and OS X Lion

The steps to set up your Gmail account using the mail app is slightly different in older versions of the Operating System. Whether you’re using OS X Lion or OS X Mountain Lion, follow the steps outlined below.

• Launch the “System Preferences”.
• Click on the “Mail, Contact & Calendars” icon and choose Gmail.
• Type your email address including your password, and click “Setup”.
• Place a check next to the mail icon from a list of apps to use with the Gmail account and click “Done”.

Manually Setup Gmail in Mail App

If you have problem with the above method then you can add Gmail accounts manually on your Mac.

• Launch Mail app and go to “Mail > Accounts”, this will open the preferences section.
• Click on “Add Other Account…” and choose “Mail account” option.
• Enter the email address and password of your Gmail account and use incoming mail server as “imap.gmail.com” and outgoing mail server as “smtp.gmail.com”.
• Click on “Sign In” button to login to your Gmail account and start using Mail app.

Related: How to add Gmail in iPhone and iPad?

Wrapping Up

Now that you understand the steps to set up your Gmail account on your Mac, what are you waiting for? Set up your email today to avoid the stress of reading your messages via Safari.