How to Change Email Server Settings for POP3 and IMAP on All Major Email Clients

Changing your email server settings shouldn’t be this hard, but modern email clients seem determined to hide these options from you. Whether you’re migrating to a new email provider, your IT department has changed servers, or you just need to update your SMTP settings, finding where to make these changes can be frustratingly difficult.

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve had to help people find these settings, so here’s a comprehensive guide for every major email client.

Why You Might Need to Change Email Server Settings

There are several common scenarios where you’ll need to manually update your email configuration:

• Your email provider has changed their server addresses
• You’re moving to a new hosting provider
• Your IT department has migrated to new mail servers
• You need to switch from POP3 to IMAP (or vice versa)
• You’re troubleshooting delivery issues and need to update ports or security settings

Whatever your reason, let’s get into it.

Windows: Microsoft Outlook (Microsoft 365 / Outlook 2021)

Here’s where things get annoying. Microsoft has made it increasingly difficult to access manual server settings in newer versions of Outlook. The “New Outlook” app doesn’t even support manual server configuration for many account types. If you’re using the new Outlook and need manual control, you’ll need to switch back to “classic” Outlook or use the Control Panel method.

Method 1: Through Windows Control Panel (Recommended)

This is the most reliable method and works regardless of which Outlook version you’re using.

1. Close Outlook completely
2. Open the Start Menu and search for Control Panel
3. Click on User Accounts (or go to View by: Small icons and look for Mail (Microsoft Outlook))
4. Click Mail (Microsoft Outlook) - if you don’t see this, Outlook may not be installed as the default mail client
5. Click Email Accounts…
6. Select your email account and click Change…
7. You’ll now see all your server settings:
   • Incoming mail server (POP3 or IMAP)
   • Outgoing mail server (SMTP)
   • Username and password
8. Click More Settings… to access:
   • Outgoing Server tab - authentication settings
   • Advanced tab - port numbers and SSL/TLS settings

Method 2: Through Classic Outlook

If you’re using classic Outlook (not the new Outlook app):

1. Go to File > Account Settings > Account Settings…
2. Select your email account and click Change…
3. If you see a simplified view, look for Manual setup or additional server types or click More Settings…
4. Update your incoming and outgoing server addresses
5. Click More Settings… to change ports and encryption

Important Note About Exchange and Microsoft 365 Accounts

If your account was set up as an Exchange or Microsoft 365 account, you won’t be able to change the server settings directly. You’ll need to remove the account and re-add it as a POP3 or IMAP account to get manual control.

Mac: Apple Mail

Apple Mail makes this reasonably straightforward, though they’ve moved things around in recent macOS versions.

macOS Ventura and Later

1. Open Mail
2. Go to Mail > Settings (or press ⌘ + ,)
3. Click the Accounts tab
4. Select your email account from the left sidebar
5. Click Server Settings
6. Here you can edit:
   • Incoming Mail Server (IMAP/POP) - hostname, username, port
   • Outgoing Mail Server (SMTP) - hostname, username, port
7. Untick Automatically manage connection settings if you need to specify custom ports or security settings

Older macOS Versions

1. Open Mail
2. Go to Mail > Preferences
3. Click Accounts
4. Select your account
5. Click Server Settings to modify incoming and outgoing server details

iPhone and iPad: iOS Mail

Apple has hidden the email server settings a bit deeper in iOS, but they’re still accessible.

iOS 17 and Later

1. Open Settings
2. Scroll down and tap Mail
3. Tap Accounts
4. Select the email account you want to modify
5. Tap the email address at the top (this opens the account details)
6. Scroll down to Incoming Mail Server and Outgoing Mail Server sections
7. Tap on each field to edit:
   • Host Name - your server address
   • User Name - your email username
   • Password - your email password

To Change Advanced Settings (Ports, SSL)

1. From the account screen, tap Advanced at the bottom
2. Here you can configure:
   • Use SSL - toggle on/off
   • Authentication - password type
   • Server Port - custom port numbers
   • IMAP Path Prefix - if required by your provider

Android: Gmail App

The Gmail app handles most email accounts these days on Android, including non-Gmail accounts.

Changing Settings in Gmail App

1. Open the Gmail app
2. Tap the hamburger menu (three lines) in the top left
3. Scroll down and tap Settings
4. Select the email account you want to modify
5. Scroll down to find Incoming settings and Outgoing settings
6. Tap each to modify:
   • Username
   • Password
   • Server (hostname)
   • Port
   • Security type (SSL/TLS/None)

Samsung Email App

If you’re using a Samsung device with the built-in Email app:

1. Open the Email app
2. Tap the hamburger menu (three lines)
3. Tap the gear icon (Settings)
4. Select your email account
5. Tap Account settings
6. Scroll to find Incoming server settings and Outgoing server settings
7. Modify the server addresses, ports, and security settings as needed

Android: Microsoft Outlook App

The Outlook mobile app is more limited than its desktop counterpart:

1. Open Outlook
2. Tap your profile icon in the top left
3. Tap the gear icon (Settings)
4. Select your email account under Mail accounts
5. Unfortunately, you’ll find limited options here - Outlook mobile doesn’t expose full server settings for all account types

If you need full manual control on Android, the Gmail app or a third-party client like FairEmail or K-9 Mail offers more flexibility.

Common Email Server Settings Reference

Here are the standard ports for each protocol. The good news is that most email clients will automatically select the correct port based on the protocol and security settings you choose, so you usually don’t need to change these manually. But if you’re troubleshooting connection issues or your provider uses non-standard ports, here’s what the defaults should be:

Incoming Mail (Receiving)

Protocol	Port	Security	Notes
IMAP	993	SSL/TLS	Standard secure IMAP - most common
IMAP	143	STARTTLS or None	Legacy or internal servers
POP3	995	SSL/TLS	Standard secure POP3
POP3	110	STARTTLS or None	Legacy or internal servers

Outgoing Mail (Sending)

Protocol	Port	Security
SMTP	465	SSL/TLS
SMTP	587	STARTTLS
SMTP	25	None (often blocked)

Common Provider Server Addresses

Microsoft 365 / Outlook.com:

• Incoming: outlook.office365.com
• Outgoing: smtp.office365.com

Gmail:

• Incoming: imap.gmail.com (IMAP) or pop.gmail.com (POP)
• Outgoing: smtp.gmail.com

Yahoo Mail:

• Incoming: imap.mail.yahoo.com
• Outgoing: smtp.mail.yahoo.com

iCloud:

• Incoming: imap.mail.me.com
• Outgoing: smtp.mail.me.com

Troubleshooting Tips

If you’re having issues after changing your settings:

Authentication failures: Double-check your username. Some providers want just the username, others want the full email address.

Connection timeouts: Verify the port number matches the security type. Using SSL on a non-SSL port (or vice versa) will fail.

“Cannot verify server identity” errors: This usually means the server hostname doesn’t match the SSL certificate. Check you’ve got the correct server address.

Outgoing mail not sending: Many providers require authentication for SMTP. Make sure “My outgoing server requires authentication” is enabled and set to use the same credentials as your incoming server.

Port 25 blocked: Most ISPs block port 25 to prevent spam. Use port 587 or 465 instead for outgoing mail.

Wrapping Up

It’s frustrating that something as fundamental as email server settings has become so hidden in modern email clients. Microsoft’s push towards their “simplified” new Outlook means power users often have to jump through hoops to access basic configuration options.

If you’re regularly helping users with email setup, bookmark this guide. And if you’re an IT admin, consider documenting your specific server settings somewhere your users can easily find them - it’ll save everyone a lot of time.