How to Set Up Gmail in Windows 10

September 8, 2021 / By

This guide will take you each step of the way through setting up your Gmail email address in the Windows 10 Mail app.

The process is actually quite straight forward, but we’ll make sure you get it right the first time :)

2021 Update: Theoretically, the Mail app in Windows 10 doesn’t require you to enable IMAP or POP within Gmail itself. However, there have been incidents of Mail reporting the error code: 0x80070490 – and the solution was to enable IMAP within Gmail. If you’re one of the few people who receive the error 0x80070490, we’ve provided instructions on how to enable IMAP within Gmail at the end of this guide.

  1. Click the Windows 10 Start Button and select All apps

    2. the windows 10 start menu with all apps highlighted

  2. Scroll down the list a bit, and in the M section, select Mail

    3. the mail app in the list of windows 10 apps

  3. Welcome to the Welcome screen. Click Get started to, you guessed it, get started.

    4. the windows 10 mail app welcome screen

  4. Click/tap the + Add account button

    5. adding a gmail account to windows 10

  5. From the Choose an account screen, select Google

    6. the list of mail options with google highlighted

  6. The “Connecting to a service” window will appear, and display a Google login window. Enter your gmail address in the space provided, and then click Next

    7. connecting to the google mail service from the windows 10 mail app
    click to enlarge

  7. Now enter your gmail (Google) password, and select Sign in

    8. entering a password for gmail in the windows 10 mail app
    click to enlarge



  8. Tap/click Allow

    9. the confirmation message for adding an email account to Windows 10
    click to enlarge

  9. Yep, that’s it. Click Done

    10. the finish screen for adding a new mail account in the windows 10 mail app

  10. Back at the initial Mail window, there will be a new button labelled Ready to go – click it.

    11. the ready to go message in the windows 10 mail app setup wizard

  11. Ta-da! Your Gmail is now is all set up in Window 10.

    12. the windows 10 mail app with a gmail account added
    click to enlarge

  12. You can access Mail the same way as you did in steps #1 and #2, or you can click the mail “Tile” and it will open your Gmail.

    13. the windows 10 Mail tile in the start menu

  13. Another option is to click-and-drag either the Mail ‘Tile” or the Mail entry in the All apps list, to your Desktop. That will create a shortcut on your Desktop that you can use to launch Mail, if that’s your preference.

    14. the windows 10 mail app in the start menu list of apps

  14. If you have any questions, by all means leave a comment.

Enable IMAP in Gmail

If you find yourself on the receiving end of the error 0x80070490, you probably just need to enable IMAP in Gmail, which is super easy.

  1. Open Gmail in a web browser and sign into your account. Click the Settings button (the “cog” looking icon in the upper-right corner) and select See all settings

  2. Click the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab

  3. Finally, select the Enable IMAP option in the IMAP access: section. Click the Save Changes button to make sure the change gets applied.

  4. Back in the Mail app try to check your Gmail again – it should all work just fine now.

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