Email Setup
Manually Adding a Hosted Mailbox to Outlook With the Right IMAP and SMTP Settings
When Outlook's automatic setup doesn't find a hosted mailbox on its own, the manual IMAP and SMTP settings get it connected in a few minutes.
993
Standard IMAP port with SSL for incoming mail
465
Standard SMTP port with SSL for outgoing mail
IMAP
Recommended over POP3 to keep mail synced across devices
24/7
Human support if manual settings won't connect
In short
To set up email in Outlook manually, choose IMAP over POP3 so mail stays synced across every device, then enter the incoming server as mail.yourdomain.com on port 993 with SSL enabled, and the outgoing server as mail.yourdomain.com on port 465 with SSL enabled. The username is the full email address and the password is the mailbox password created in cPanel's Email Accounts tool.
If Outlook's automatic account setup fails to detect these settings on its own, switching to manual (advanced) setup is where these exact values get entered directly.
Outlook usually tries automatic setup first, and for large webmail providers that works fine. A hosted mailbox on a domain's own server, though, often needs its settings entered manually, since Outlook has no built-in profile for every possible hosting provider's mail server. That's not a sign anything's broken — it's just the point where the exact server name, port, and encryption setting need to be typed in rather than guessed by Outlook.
The good news is there are really only two protocols to choose between and two servers to configure, and the settings themselves are standard enough that once they're entered correctly, they rarely need touching again.
IMAP vs POP3: Pick the Right Protocol First
IMAP keeps mail synced on the actual mail server, so reading, deleting, or organizing a message on one device shows the same change everywhere else — a phone, a laptop, and webmail all reflect the same inbox. POP3, by contrast, typically downloads mail to one device and can remove it from the server, which causes exactly the kind of mismatched inbox problem people run into when they check mail from more than one place.
For any mailbox checked from more than a single device, IMAP is the setting worth choosing in Outlook's protocol dropdown. POP3 still exists for specific cases — an archive-only setup, or extremely limited server storage — but it's the exception rather than the default choice today.
How to Set Up Email in Outlook Manually — The Exact Settings
Incoming mail server (IMAP): mail.yourdomain.com, port 993, with SSL/TLS encryption enabled. Outgoing mail server (SMTP): mail.yourdomain.com, port 465, also with SSL/TLS enabled. Replace yourdomain.com with the actual domain the mailbox belongs to — the mail. prefix is the standard convention cPanel-based hosting uses for mail server access.
The username field takes the full email address, not just the part before the @, and the password is the exact one set when the mailbox was created in cPanel's Email Accounts tool. Outlook may also ask to confirm the outgoing server 'requires authentication using the same settings as the incoming mail server' — that box should be checked, since most hosted mail setups require it.
Step-by-Step: Adding the Account in Outlook
In Outlook, go to File > Add Account, enter the email address, and if automatic setup fails or offers an option for advanced setup, choose to configure the account manually rather than letting Outlook keep retrying detection. Select IMAP as the account type when prompted.
Fill in the incoming and outgoing server details exactly as above, confirm the ports and SSL settings match, then enter the username and password. Outlook will test the connection before finishing setup — a successful test moves straight into the inbox; a failed one means one of the settings, most commonly the port or SSL toggle, needs a second check.
Troubleshooting: When Outlook Won't Connect
If Outlook reports it can't connect, the most common cause is a mismatched port and SSL combination — port 993 and 465 both specifically expect SSL/TLS turned on, and leaving that toggle off with the SSL-specific port set is a frequent, easy-to-miss mistake. Double-check the server address too; a typo in mail.yourdomain.com, or using the bare domain without the mail. prefix, both fail to connect.
If settings all look correct and it still won't connect, confirm the mailbox itself was created successfully in cPanel and that the password being entered in Outlook matches exactly, since a copy-pasted password with a trailing space is a surprisingly common culprit. If none of that resolves it, 24/7 human support can check the mail server side of the connection directly.
Mail Server Settings That Actually Match
Manual Outlook setup only works if the incoming and outgoing server settings genuinely match what the hosting's mail server expects — a mismatch on either end is the most common reason it fails.
Hosting Cheap's cPanel-style panel shows the exact IMAP and SMTP server, port and SSL settings for every mailbox, with free auto-renewing SSL keeping those encrypted connections valid without manual renewal.
- Exact IMAP and SMTP settings shown per mailbox in the hosting panel
- Free auto-renewing SSL keeps encrypted mail connections valid
- 24/7 human support if Outlook still won't connect after checking settings
- Webmail available as a fallback while a mail client is being configured
Why Hosting Cheap
What you get
Exact mail server settings provided
IMAP and SMTP servers, ports and SSL requirements are shown per mailbox in the hosting panel.
Free auto-renewing SSL
Encrypted IMAP and SMTP connections stay valid without a certificate expiring unexpectedly.
Built-in webmail fallback
Check mail through a browser while working through a mail client configuration issue.
cPanel Email Accounts tool
Confirm the mailbox password and existence directly if Outlook reports a login failure.
Daily backups
Mailbox content stays protected regardless of which mail client is used to access it.
24/7 human support
Get direct help checking server-side settings when Outlook still won't connect.
How It Works
Get set up in a few steps
Choose IMAP and gather the mailbox password
Confirm the exact password set in cPanel's Email Accounts tool before starting Outlook setup.
Enter the manual IMAP and SMTP settings
Set mail.yourdomain.com on port 993 (IMAP) and 465 (SMTP), both with SSL enabled.
Test the connection and troubleshoot if it fails
Recheck the port, SSL toggle, server address and password if Outlook can't connect.
Included
Everything you need, on every plan
- IMAP chosen instead of POP3 for a mailbox used across multiple devices
- Incoming server set to mail.yourdomain.com on port 993 with SSL enabled
- Outgoing server set to mail.yourdomain.com on port 465 with SSL enabled
- Full email address entered as the username, not just the local part
- Password matched exactly to the one set in cPanel's Email Accounts tool
- 'Outgoing server requires authentication' option checked in Outlook
- Connection test in Outlook completed successfully before finishing setup
- Webmail login checked as a fallback if Outlook setup needs troubleshooting
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How do I set up email in Outlook manually?
Choose manual (advanced) setup, select IMAP, and enter mail.yourdomain.com as the incoming server on port 993 with SSL, and the same address as the outgoing server on port 465 with SSL. Use the full email address as the username and the mailbox's cPanel password.
What port does Outlook use for IMAP and SMTP?
Port 993 with SSL is standard for IMAP incoming mail, and port 465 with SSL is standard for SMTP outgoing mail on most hosted mailboxes. Both require SSL/TLS enabled to work on these ports.
Should I use IMAP or POP3 in Outlook?
IMAP is recommended for almost everyone, since it keeps mail synced across every device checking the same mailbox. POP3 downloads mail locally and can leave inboxes out of sync between devices.
Why won't Outlook connect to my hosted email account?
The most common causes are a port and SSL mismatch (both 993 and 465 require SSL enabled), a typo in the mail.yourdomain.com server address, or an incorrect password. Checking each of these in order resolves most connection failures.
Do I need to check 'outgoing server requires authentication' in Outlook?
Yes, for most hosted mailboxes this needs to be checked and set to use the same settings as the incoming server, since the mail server requires a login for outgoing mail too, not just incoming.
Can I check my mail in a browser if Outlook setup isn't working yet?
Yes, webmail access works independently of any mail client setup, so it's a reliable fallback for checking mail while troubleshooting Outlook's IMAP and SMTP settings.
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