How to Access Gmail in Outlook 2010 (And What to Do If You Can’t)

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POP and IMAP setup guide with troubleshooting
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This wikiHow teaches you how to use Microsoft Outlook 2010 to send and receive messages through your Gmail account. As of 2025, Gmail discourages using versions of Outlook older than Outlook 2016 to access your email, as they don't support the latest security. [1] Still, you may be able to make it work by creating an app password for your Google account and/or enabling "Less Secure Apps." Before you can add your Gmail account, you'll also need to make some quick settings changes in Gmail on the web.

Set Up Outlook 2010 for Gmail: What to Know

Google doesn't support old versions of Outlook, but there are some workarounds. First, enable POP or IMAP in Gmail, then add your account to Outlook 2010. If your password isn't accepted, create an app password and enter that instead. Try enabling "less secure apps" if that doesn't work.

Section 1 of 4:

Setting Up Gmail for POP or IMAP

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  1. Sign in to https://www.gmail.com on your computer. As of January 2025, IMAP is enabled by default in Gmail. If you prefer to use Gmail as a POP server, you will still need to enable POP in Gmail. [2] Not sure which to use? Here's a quick description of each:
    • IMAP: This is the most common method to receive email. When you use IMAP, your messages stay in Gmail so you can access them on any device. IMAP will only download your messages when you click them in Outlook, which will be useful if you ever want to access your Gmail through the Gmail website or mobile app. IMAP is enabled by default, but continue with this method to make sure you haven't turned it off.
    • POP: When you use POP to access your Gmail in Outlook, each Gmail message will be downloaded to your PC and erased from Gmail. Once you download the email, it will only exist in Outlook. If you want to use POP, continue with this method.
    • If you've already set up Gmail in Outlook 2010 but it stopped accepting your password, jump down to Fixing Username and Password Not Accepted .
  2. It's in the upper-right corner of your inbox.
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  4. It's the horizontal menu that runs across the top of the Settings page.
  5. If it's currently disabled, select Enable IMAP to turn the feature on. This allows you to check your mail in other apps, including Outlook 2010.
  6. If you want to use POP, you can choose whether to enable POP for all mail (including any already in your inbox), or for mail that arrives from now on .
    • If using POP, you can choose what to do with the message once you retrieve it in Outlook. You can opt to keep Gmail's copy in your Inbox (a behavior similar to IMAP), mark Gmail's copy as read, archive Gmail's copy, or delete Gmail's copy.
  7. Now that you've made this change, you can start setting up Outlook.
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Section 2 of 4:

Adding a Gmail to Outlook 2010

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  1. It'll be in the Microsoft Office folder in the Start menu.
  2. You'll see + Add Account under "Account Information." This opens the Add New Account wizard.
    • If you already have a Gmail account set up and want to change its settings:
      • Click Account Settings instead.
      • Click Account Settings…
      • Select your Gmail address and click Change .
      • Skip to step 5 .
  3. It's the option at the bottom of the window. Click Next to move to the next step.
  4. It's the first option.
  5. Type your name the way you wish it to appear to other people. Then, type your Gmail address into the "Email address" field.
  6. Choose the type of server you want to use in the "Server Information" section.
  7. What you'll enter depends on whether you're using POP or IMAP:
    • IMAP
      • The incoming mail server is imap.gmail.com .
      • The outgoing mail server (SMTP) is smtp.gmail.com .
    • POP
      • The incoming mail server is pop.gmail.com .
      • The outgoing mail server (SMTP) is smtp.gmail.com .
    • Type your Gmail address into the "User Name" field.
    • Enter your Gmail password into the "Password" field.
  8. It's at the bottom-right corner of the window.
  9. It's the second tab at the top of the window.
  10. The information is as follows:
    • Check the box next to "My outgoing server (SMTP) requires authentication."
    • Select Use same settings as my incoming mail server .
  11. It's the final tab in the window.
    • If you're using IMAP, the incoming server port should be 993 , and the encryption type should be SSL . [3]
    • If you're using POP, the incoming server port should be 995 , and the encryption type should be SSL .
    • The Outgoing server (SMTP) port should be 587 , and the encryption type should be TLS .
      • If you have a hard time sending email with these settings, switch the encryption type to SSL and change the port to 465 .
  13. Outlook will now attempt to test your account settings. If everything is working properly, you will see a "Congratulations!" screen and can start using your account. Click Finish to close the window, and click the Home tab to head to your inbox.
    • If the test is unsuccessful, return to your settings and make sure you've entered everything correctly.
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Section 3 of 4:

Fixing Username and Password Not Accepted

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  1. Go to https://myaccount.google.com/apppasswords in a browser. If you get an error like Username and password not accepted or Invalid credentials , you'll be asked to enter your username and password repeatedly. If you're positive your Gmail password is incorrect, you're likely getting this error because Outlook 2010 doesn't have a high enough security level for Gmail. The most secure option is to get a newer version of Outlook, but you may be able to get around the problem by creating an app password for Outlook 2010. [4]
  2. Once you're signed in, you'll be taken to the "App passwords" screen.
  3. This displays a 16-character app password.
  4. Just type 16 characters displayed in the window to log in. Your Gmail messages should start to send and receive in a few moments.
  5. If using an app password didn't work, you can try enabling Less Secure Apps for your Google account. This will not work if you have two-step verification enabled for your Google account, and we don't recommend disabling that helpful security feature . Still, if your only option is to use Outlook 2010 to access Gmail via POP or IMAP, this will work for you. You can enable this feature at https://myaccount.google.com/lesssecureapps .
    • Once enabled, generate a new app password, then try to send and receive email via Gmail account. When you enter your 16-character app password, you will be able to check your messages.
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Section 4 of 4:

Other Options

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  1. If you can't get Outlook 2010 to work with Gmail because of Google's new security features, don't worry—you have plenty of better options:

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      References

      1. ↑ https://support.google.com/mail/answer/7126229
      2. ↑ https://support.google.com/mail/answer/7126229?hl=en
      3. ↑ https://support.google.com/a/answer/9003945
      4. ↑ https://support.google.com/mail/answer/7126229
      5. ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/connected-email-accounts-like-gmail-and-yahoo-not-working-in-outlook-com-a99a1f0b-700d-4b3b-8f9a-28d463ff07f2
      6. ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/set-up-gmail-accounts-46274497-95ea-4a7d-9651-d246aa63eb5e

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Log into https://www.gmail.com .
      2. Click the gear and choose See all Settings .
      3. Click the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab.
      4. Enable IMAP and select Save Changes .
      5. Open Outlook 2010.
      6. Click File and select Add Account .
      7. Click Manual setup or additional server types .
      8. Select Internet E-mail and click Next .
      9. Enter all relevant information for Gmail.
      10. Click Next and then Finish .

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