Can’t Add Gmail To Outlook? Here’s How To Fix It

If you’re trying to add Gmail to Outlook, you’re likely to get back some error messages. Among them is “we couldn’t connect to the IMAP/SMTP server. The connection timed out” or related messages, but there are some steps you can take to resolve it.

Below are some troubleshooting steps you can take to fix the problem.

What to do when you can’t add Gmail to Outlook

Turn on two-factor authentication in Gmail

This is an extra protection layer for your account so whenever you sign in to Gmail or Google on new devices, you’ll get a prompt to enter a code. This is usually sent via an SMS to your verified number, and lets Google know you’re trying to access your data.

To do this:

• Open the two-factor authentication page in Google
• Click Get Started
• Enter the password and complete the process

Create an app password on the Gmail website

This is a different password from the one used to sign in to the site. To create a new one:

• Open Gmail and click Google apps icon
• Select My Account
• Select Signing in to Google from Sign-in & Security
• Check if two-step verification is ON under Password & Sign-in method. If it is, jump to the next method. If not continue with the steps here
• Enter your password and click sign in
• Click Mail and Windows Computer
• Select Generate
• You’ll see a password generated by Google, which you’ll use to add a new account to Outlook

Add Gmail to Outlook

• With the new password you’ve generated, click Retry>Next in Outlook
• If you’re asked for a password, enter the app password and click OK>Finish to use Outlook

Verify account settings

If you get SMTP/IMAP errors, not all of them are permanent. You can click Retry to go to the IMAP account settings page and verify settings such as port: 993, incoming mail server: imap.gmail.com, encryption method: SSL/TLS, outgoing mail server: smtp.gmail.com, port: 465 and click Next to finish setting up.

If you’re still getting an error after all the above steps, click Change Account Type>IMAP and try adding your Gmail account again.

Verify and enable IMAP access in Gmail

To do this:

• Open Gmail and click Settings>Settings
• Select Forwarding and POP/IMAP
• Go to IMAP Access and select Enable IMAP
• Save changes once done

Did you manage to add your Gmail account using the steps above? Share in ta comment below.