Yahoo Mail SMTP Settings
Yahoo's free consumer webmail, reached over IMAP or POP with a generated app password.
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Outgoing mail (SMTP)
SMTP server
smtp.mail.yahoo.com
Port. STARTTLS
587
Port. SSL/TLS
465
Security
SSL/TLS on 465 (recommended) or STARTTLS on 587.
Incoming mail (IMAP)
IMAP server
imap.mail.yahoo.com
Port. SSL/TLS
993
Incoming mail (POP3)
POP3 server
pop.mail.yahoo.com
Port. SSL/TLS
995
Sending limits & login
Daily send limit
About 500 emails per day.
Authentication
Requires an app password: Yahoo blocks your normal password over SMTP/IMAP/POP.
App password
Generate one at login.yahoo.com > Account Security > Generate app password.
Yahoo requires an app password for all third-party mail clients.
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Yahoo Mail SMTP, IMAP and POP3 settings
Yahoo Mail is the free consumer mailbox at yahoo.com, and it is stricter about outside apps than most. Your normal Yahoo password will not work in Outlook or Thunderbird, because Yahoo blocks older sign-in methods and expects a generated app password instead. Yahoo also refuses to publish its sending limits on purpose, so the only warning you get is a message telling you how long to wait.
For incoming mail, use the IMAP server imap.mail.yahoo.com on port 993, or POP3 at pop.mail.yahoo.com on port 995. Pick the exact values from the tool above and copy them straight into your mail client.
Checked against Yahoo Mail's own documentation: help.yahoo.com. Ports and limits change, so check there too if something will not connect.
Yahoo Mail settings at a glance
One card with every server and port on it. Right click to save it, or share the page and this is the preview people see.
What to enter as your Yahoo Mail username and password
Wrong credentials, not a wrong port, are the usual reason a Yahoo Mail connection fails. These are the exact values to type.
Your full Yahoo email address, for example name@yahoo.com
A Yahoo app password: the randomly generated code, not the password you use on yahoo.com
Get your app passwordHow to set up Yahoo Mail in a mail client
The exact path through Yahoo Mail's own settings, in order.
- 1
Generate a Yahoo app password
Sign in at https://login.yahoo.com/account/security, then under "External connections" click Create app password, type a name for the app and click Generate password.
- 2
Copy the code before you close the box
Yahoo shows the app password once. It stays valid even after you change your main Yahoo password, so the only way to cancel it later is to delete it on the same page.
- 3
Set incoming mail to imap.mail.yahoo.com
Port 993 with SSL required. If your app only speaks POP, use pop.mail.yahoo.com on port 995 with SSL instead.
- 4
Set outgoing mail to smtp.mail.yahoo.com
Port 465 or 587, SSL required, and turn on the setting that says the outgoing server requires authentication.
- 5
Enter your full address and paste the app password
The username is the whole address, name@yahoo.com, and the password field takes the generated code rather than the password you type on yahoo.com.
- 6
Send yourself a test message
If it fails, sign in at mail.yahoo.com in a browser first, clear any prompts Yahoo shows you there, then try the app again.
What Yahoo Mail looks like filled in
Every mail client asks for the same handful of fields. Here they are with Yahoo Mail's values already in place.
Account settings: Yahoo Mail
Server
smtp.mail.yahoo.comPort
465Encryption
SSL/TLSAuthentication
RequiredUsername
Your full Yahoo email address, for example name@yahoo.comPassword
A Yahoo app password: the randomly generated code, not the password you use on yahoo.comServer
imap.mail.yahoo.comPort
993Encryption
SSL/TLSAn illustration of the fields, not a screenshot of any one app. Field names differ slightly between Outlook, Apple Mail and Thunderbird; the values do not.
Yahoo Mail SMTP settings in Thunderbird
The outgoing server dialog with Yahoo Mail's details entered. Outlook and Apple Mail ask for the same four things under slightly different names.
Which port should you use for Yahoo Mail?
SSL/TLS on 465 (recommended) or STARTTLS on 587.
STARTTLS
Starts as a plain connection, then upgrades to an encrypted one. The modern standard for sending.
SSL/TLS
Encrypted from the first byte. Widely supported and a good choice when 587 is blocked.
Plain SMTP
Meant for server-to-server relay. Home networks and cloud hosts block it, so do not use it to send from a client.
Why your Yahoo Mail connection is failing
The failures people actually hit with Yahoo Mail, and what fixes each one.
Yahoo disables outdated sign-in methods by default and returns these two errors when an app uses one. Generate an app password on the Yahoo Account Security page and paste that in place of your account password.
Yahoo names an unverified extra sending address as the cause of a 553 from a third-party app. Open Yahoo Mail settings, then verify or delete the extra address listed there, and send again.
Point the incoming server at export.imap.mail.yahoo.com on port 993 with SSL. That is Yahoo's download-everything server, and a large mailbox can take days to finish.
Yahoo names ports 995, 465 and 587 as the ones firewalls, antivirus tools and ISPs commonly block. Check those three before changing any settings.
Yahoo only offers app passwords in a browser you have signed into for several days running, and never in a private or incognito window. Use your everyday browser, signed in normally, and note that Yahoo support cannot override this check.
Yahoo Mail sending limits
Yahoo states it does not disclose how many recipients or messages you can send at once, in order to enforce anti-spam rules; when you hit a limit the notice usually says how long to wait.
Max attachment
25 MB of attachments per message, applied to both incoming and outgoing mail
Yahoo Mail servers by region and plan
Yahoo Mail does not use one set of hostnames everywhere. Match the row to your account.
| Region or plan | SMTP | IMAP | POP3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-time download of an entire mailbox into a client | smtp.mail.yahoo.com (port 465 or 587, SSL) | export.imap.mail.yahoo.com (port 993, SSL) | Not applicable |
Yahoo Mail quirks by mail client
Apple Mail
Yahoo's fix for a broken account is to remove it and re-add it, choosing the Yahoo provider logo so the app uses Yahoo's own sign-in rather than a stored password.
Gmail app
Remove the account under Profile icon then Manage Accounts, re-add it and tap Yahoo in the provider list so the secure sign-in is triggered.
Outlook
Yahoo tells Outlook.com users to sign in with an app password the first time they connect the account.
Sending cold email through Yahoo Mail
About 500 emails per day. Requires an app password: Yahoo blocks your normal password over SMTP/IMAP/POP.
Those caps make single-mailbox sending fine for personal mail but a poor fit for cold outreach at volume. Emailchaser spreads sending across warmed inboxes and manages deliverability, so you can scale without burning Yahoo Mail accounts.
A new Yahoo Mail mailbox also starts with no sending history, and hitting the cap above on its first day is what gets it filtered. Warm the mailbox up first so its daily volume climbs gradually toward that limit rather than starting at it. Emailchaser includes that ramp on every plan.
Other consumer email providers
Setting up more than one mailbox? These sit in the same category as Yahoo Mail.
Common questions about Yahoo Mail SMTP settings
What are Yahoo Mail's SMTP settings?
Yahoo Mail's outgoing (SMTP) server is smtp.mail.yahoo.com. Use port 587 (STARTTLS) or 465 (SSL/TLS). SSL/TLS on 465 (recommended) or STARTTLS on 587. Sign in with your full email address and password (or app password).
What is Yahoo Mail's IMAP or POP3 server?
Yahoo Mail's incoming IMAP server is imap.mail.yahoo.com on port 993 (SSL/TLS). If you prefer POP3, use pop.mail.yahoo.com on port 995.
Which port should I use for Yahoo Mail?
Use port 587 with STARTTLS wherever it's offered, it's the modern standard for authenticated sending. Port 465 with SSL/TLS is a solid alternative. Avoid port 25, which most networks block for client sending. Yahoo Mail's recommended value is above.
Why won't my Yahoo Mail SMTP connection work?
Check authentication first: Requires an app password: Yahoo blocks your normal password over SMTP/IMAP/POP. Generate one at login.yahoo.com > Account Security > Generate app password. Then confirm the host, port and security method match exactly, a 587/SSL or 465/STARTTLS mismatch will fail to connect.
Can I send bulk or cold email through Yahoo Mail?
Not at scale. About 500 emails per day. Providers throttle bursts to fight spam, so pushing cold email through one mailbox hits limits and wrecks deliverability. High-volume outreach belongs on dedicated infrastructure that spreads sending across warmed inboxes, which is what Emailchaser does.
I changed my Yahoo password. Why does the old app password still work?
App passwords are separate credentials from your account password. Yahoo says they stay active even after you reset the main password. The only way to invalidate one is to delete it on the Yahoo Account Security page, under the list of app passwords.
Should I use port 465 or 587 for Yahoo's outgoing server?
Yahoo documents both for smtp.mail.yahoo.com. Port 465 wraps the whole session in SSL from the start, while 587 begins unencrypted and upgrades to TLS. Use whichever your app offers, and if one is blocked on your network, switch to the other.
How many emails can I send a day through Yahoo?
Yahoo will not say. It states outright that the number of recipients and messages is undisclosed so that spammers cannot work around it. If you are blocked, the message you get usually includes the wait time, and Yahoo points regular bulk senders at a dedicated bulk email service instead.
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