How to Use AOL Mail Through an Email Client

Make sure you input the proper server settings

By
Heinz Tschabitscher
Heinz Tschabitscher
Heinz Tschabitscher
Writer
  • University of Vienna
A former freelance contributor who has reviewed hundreds of email programs and services since 1997.
lifewire's editorial guidelines
Updated on October 14, 2022

What to Know

  • To send AOL Mail, input the AOL SMTP settings information in the program or app you use.
  • Enter smtp.aol.com, your AOL screen name and password, port 587, and select Yes for TLS/SSL required.
  • To receive AOL Mail, enter the POP or IMAP server settings in the program or app.

This article explains how to send AOL Mail through an email client program or app. And, you'll learn a few downsides to using other mail apps for AOL mail.

AOL Mail SMTP Settings

To send mail from an email client through your AOL Mail account, give the program instructions to access the AOL Mail Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) server. AOL Mail uses this server to send mail from your account.

The Post Office Protocol (POP) or Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) settings download email to the mail client, and the SMTP server settings send mail through AOL Mail.

The AOL Mail SMTP server settings are the same no matter what program or device you use. Enter these SMTP server settings to send mail from your AOL Mail account using your preferred method:

  • SMTP server address: smtp.aol.com
  • SMTP username: Your AOL Mail screen name, which comes before "@aol.com" in the email address. For example, if your address is me@aol.com, me is the corresponding screen name.
  • Password: Your AOL Mail password
  • Port using SSL/TLS: 587
  • TLS/SSL required: yes (enable SSL encryption for incoming and outgoing email)

SMTP sends email messages. To receive email messages, provide the email program with the appropriate POP or IMAP server settings.

Troubleshoot Your Settings

If the email client doesn't send mail properly, the password may have been entered incorrectly, or there is a misconfigured setting. Confirm that the settings are correct. If you still have trouble, delete the email account, exit the email client, and restart the program—as long as you know your password. Or, restart the device and try again.

The Downside of Using Other Mail Apps for AOL Mail

Some of the features of AOL Mail aren't available when email messages are accessed from an email client. For example, if the client uses POP and is set up to delete email from the AOL Mail server after messages are downloaded, then the same emails won't be available to a client using IMAP (since IMAP depends solely on mail located on the server).

Here are other features that are affected by some email servers:

  • No Report Spam button: If you want to report an email as spam, move it to the Spam or Junk folder.
  • Deleted messages might be missing: Deleted email may appear in the original folder with a mark for deletion, or you may not be able to see deleted mail. This depends on the email server.
  • Messages read on one device might not be marked as "read" on another device: The same is true for emails that are marked as unread, emails that are marked as important, and messages that are starred in one client. These messages may not be marked the same way in another client.
  • Can't check the status of a sent message: Since POP doesn't store sent messages on the email server, another email client won't display messages that were sent from a POP-configured client.
Sugar cubes in envelope shape
DUEL / Getty Images
Was this page helpful?