The quickest way to add another email account

Open Settings, tap Mail, then tap Accounts, then tap Add Account. Choose your email provider from the list — Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, AOL, or Others — and enter your email address and password. Your iPhone will verify the account and pull in your existing emails within a few minutes. You can then choose which apps (Mail, Calendar, Contacts) should use this account.

If your email provider is not listed, select Others and enter the incoming and outgoing mail server details yourself. You can find these on your email provider's website, usually under "IMAP settings" or "POP settings". Most people use IMAP, which keeps your emails synced across all your devices.

Once added, both accounts will appear in your Mail app. You can switch between them by tapping the Mailboxes button at the top left and selecting which account's inbox you want to view.

Key Takeaways

  • Go to Settings > Mail > Accounts > Add Account and choose your provider or select Others to enter server details manually.
  • Your iPhone will ask for permission to access Calendar and Contacts from the new account — you can turn these off if you only want email.
  • IMAP is the standard choice for most people because it keeps your emails synced across your phone, computer, and web browser.
  • If you use a work email with two-factor authentication or an app password requirement, you will need to generate an app-specific password rather than using your regular login.

When to use IMAP versus POP

IMAP and POP are two ways your iPhone can retrieve email. IMAP keeps a copy on the mail server and syncs changes across all your devices — if you delete an email on your phone, it disappears from your computer too. POP downloads emails to your phone and removes them from the server, so they exist only on the device where you downloaded them.

Use IMAP if you check email on multiple devices (phone, tablet, computer). Use POP only if you want emails stored only on your iPhone and nowhere else. Most people choose IMAP without thinking about it, and that works fine.

Adding a Gmail account with two-factor authentication

If your Gmail account has two-factor authentication turned on, you cannot use your regular Gmail password in the iPhone Mail app. Instead, you need to create an app password — a 16-character password that Gmail generates just for this app.

Go to myaccount.google.com, click Security in the left menu, scroll to App passwords, and select Mail and iPhone from the dropdown menus. Google will generate a 16-character password. Copy it, go back to your iPhone, and paste it into the password field when adding the account. Use this app password, not your regular Gmail password.

If you do not see the App passwords option, two-factor authentication is not turned on yet. You can either turn it on (which requires a phone number and a verification code), or you can use your regular Gmail password without it.

Adding a work email account

Work email accounts often require extra setup. Your company may use Microsoft Exchange, which iPhone supports directly — just enter your email address and password in the Add Account screen, and your iPhone will find the server automatically.

If your company uses a different system or requires a certificate, you may need to contact your IT department for the server address, username, and any special settings. Some companies send you a configuration profile — a file that sets everything up automatically when you tap it. If your company sent you one, open it in Mail and follow the prompts.

Work accounts sometimes require a device passcode or Face ID to access. This is a security measure your company set up, and you cannot remove it without contacting IT.

Choosing which apps use each account

When you add an account, your iPhone asks whether Mail, Calendar, and Contacts should use it. You do not have to say yes to all three. If you only want to receive email from this account and do not need its calendar or contacts, uncheck those boxes.

You can change these settings later. Go to Settings > Mail > Accounts, tap the account name, and toggle Mail, Calendars, and Contacts on or off. Turning off Mail does not delete the account — it just hides it from the Mail app.

What to do if your account will not verify

If you enter your password and your iPhone says it cannot verify the account, the most common reason is that you typed the password wrong. Tap back, tap the account name, and try again. Passwords are case-sensitive, so check that Caps Lock is off.

If the password is correct, your email provider may require an app password instead of your regular password. Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo all support this. Go to your email provider's website, look for security settings or app passwords, and generate one. Then try adding the account again with that password.

If you still cannot verify, check that you chose the right provider in the Add Account screen. Choosing "Others" when your provider is listed separately can cause problems. Delete the account and start over, making sure to select your provider's name from the list.

Managing multiple accounts in the Mail app

Once you have added a second account, the Mail app shows both inboxes. Tap Mailboxes at the top left to see a list of all your accounts and folders. You can view each account separately or tap All Inboxes to see emails from both accounts in one list.

When you compose a new email, you can choose which account to send from by tapping the From field. Your iPhone remembers which account you used last and defaults to that one next time.

If you want to delete an account, go to Settings > Mail > Accounts, tap the account name, scroll to the bottom, and tap Delete Account. This removes it from your iPhone but does not affect the actual email account — you can add it back later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will adding another email account use more storage on my iPhone?

Yes, but usually not much. Your iPhone downloads recent emails to your phone, not your entire email history. You can control how far back to sync by going to Settings > Mail > Accounts > [account name] > Mail Days to Sync. Choosing 1 week instead of 1 month saves space.

Can I set a default account so emails always send from the same one?

No, but your iPhone remembers which account you used last and defaults to that one. If you use one account much more often, it will become the default over time. You can always tap the From field before sending to switch accounts.

What happens to emails on the server when I add an account to my iPhone?

Nothing. Your emails stay on the mail server. If you use IMAP, your iPhone syncs with the server, so deleting an email on your phone deletes it everywhere. If you use POP, your iPhone downloads emails and can remove them from the server, but this depends on your settings.

Can I add the same email account twice with different settings?

No. Your iPhone prevents you from adding the same email address twice. If you need different sync settings for the same account, you would have to delete it and add it again with new settings.

Why does my work email keep asking for my password?

Your company may have set up a security policy that requires re-authentication. This is normal for work accounts. If it happens every time you open Mail, contact your IT department — they may need to adjust your account settings or send you a new configuration profile.