mailpitcher

Connect Gmail with an app password, step by step

Turn on Google's 2-Step Verification, create an app password and add your Gmail or Google Workspace mailbox to Mailpitcher. Every click shown.

Updated · 3 min read · 8 steps

Gmail connects to Mailpitcher with an app password: a 16-character code Google makes for one app. It is not your normal Google password. This takes about five minutes.

  1. Turn on 2-Step VerificationAt Google. Skip if it's already on.
  2. Create an app passwordAt Google. You get a 16-character code.
  3. Add mailboxIn Mailpitcher. Pick Gmail and paste the code.
  4. Test, then connectMailpitcher checks it can read and send.
Connecting Gmail takes four steps: two at Google, two in Mailpitcher.

Before you start

You need three things:

  • A paid Mailpitcher plan. The Free plan can only use the demo mailbox.
  • Two-step sign-in on in Mailpitcher. Mailpitcher asks for it before you connect a real mailbox. See Two-step sign-in. If it’s off, you’ll see the window below.
  • Your phone, for Google’s own 2-Step Verification.
This window appears if you try to send, run a campaign or connect a real mailbox before two-step sign-in is on.
  1. Opens Settings, at Security

Work or school account (Google Workspace)? Your admin may have turned app passwords off. If you can’t find them in step 3, ask your admin.

Part 1: at Google

Open your Google Account’s security page

On a computer, go to myaccount.google.com/security. Sign in to the Google account you want to connect, if Google asks.

Turn on 2-Step Verification

Look under How you sign in to Google. Find 2-Step Verification.

  • If it says On, go to step 3.
  • If it says Off, click it and choose Turn on. Follow Google’s prompts. Google usually asks for your phone number or sends a prompt to your phone.

Use your phone or an authenticator app, not only a security key. Google hides app passwords for accounts that use security keys alone.

Google Account, Security page (simplified drawing). Look for 2-Step Verification under “How you sign in to Google”.
  1. Turn on 2-Step Verification

Open App passwords

Go to myaccount.google.com/apppasswords. Google may ask for your password again.

If you see “The setting you are looking for is not available for your account”, read Questions at the end of this page.

Create the app password

  1. In the name box, type Mailpitcher. The name is only for you, so you know what the password is for later.
  2. Click Create.
  3. Google shows a 16-character code. Copy it now. Google shows it only once.
Google's App passwords page (simplified drawing) and the code it shows you once.
  1. Type a name, for example Mailpitcher
  2. Click Create
  3. Copy the 16-character code

Keep the window open until you have pasted the code into Mailpitcher. If you lose it, delete it and make a new one. That is fine.

Part 2: in Mailpitcher

Open Add a mailbox

In Mailpitcher, click Add mailbox at the bottom of the sidebar. The Add a mailbox window opens.

Fill in the form

  1. Provider: choose Gmail. It is at the top, under Popular.
  2. Email address: your full Gmail address, for example anna@gmail.com, or your Google Workspace address.
  3. App password: paste the 16-character code from step 4. Type it without spaces if you type it by hand.
  4. Name on sent mail (optional): the name people see, for example Anna Weber. You can change it later.

You don’t need to touch Server settings. Mailpitcher fills them in from Google’s published settings.

The Add a mailbox window with Gmail chosen. Gmail's server settings are filled in for you.
  1. Provider: Gmail
  2. Your full Gmail address
  3. The app password, not your Google password
  4. Test connection
  5. Connect mailbox

Test the connection

Click Test connection. Mailpitcher checks two things:

  • Reading mail (IMAP): it can see your mail.
  • Sending mail (SMTP): it can send from your address.

Both should say works. If one says failed, read the message under it. The most common one is “Google rejected the password”. It means you pasted your Google password, or the code was mistyped. Go back to step 4 and make a new app password.

The two results Test connection can show: both checks passed, or Google refused the password (usually because it isn't an app password).

Connect the mailbox

Click Connect mailbox. Mailpitcher tests again and saves the mailbox. It appears in the sidebar, and your newest mail starts arriving within a few minutes.

After Connect mailbox: the new mailbox appears in the sidebar, and its newest mail starts arriving.
  1. Your new mailbox and its folders
  2. Set the name people see, and your signature

Click Set name & signature in the message at the bottom, or the cog next to the mailbox, to add your signature.

Good to know

  • Server settings, if you ever need them: incoming imap.gmail.com, port 993, SSL/TLS. Outgoing smtp.gmail.com, port 465 (SSL/TLS) or 587 (STARTTLS). Username: your full Gmail address.
  • Sending limits. A new mailbox sends at most 50 campaign emails a day for its first 3 days, then 100 a day. You can change this in the mailbox’s settings. See Mailbox pools, daily caps and pacing.
  • Google calls app passwords “not recommended” and prefers “Sign in with Google”. Mailpitcher doesn’t offer Sign in with Google for mailboxes yet, so an app password is the way to connect today.
  • Changing your Google password removes your app passwords. Gmail then stops syncing in Mailpitcher. Make a new app password and reconnect: see Mail not arriving.

Questions

Why don't I see App passwords in my Google Account?

Google hides the option, or shows "The setting you are looking for is not available for your account", in three cases: 2-Step Verification is off or uses only security keys, the account is a work, school or other organization account, or Advanced Protection is on. Turn on 2-Step Verification with a phone or authenticator app, or ask your Google Workspace admin.

Do I need to turn on IMAP in Gmail?

No. Since January 2025 IMAP is always on in Gmail, and the Enable IMAP setting is gone. There is nothing to switch on.

Is an app password the same as my Google password?

No. It is a separate 16-character code that only works for the app you made it for. Your Google password stays private, and Google won't accept it in Mailpitcher.

What happens if I change my Google password?

Google revokes all your app passwords. Create a new app password, then disconnect the mailbox in Mailpitcher and add it again with the new code.

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