2020-09-25T17:06:00Z
  • To change the default email app on your iPhone, you'll need to upgrade to iOS 14 and make sure you have a compatible app installed.
  • You can change the default app by heading to your iPhone's Settings, tapping the app's name, and selecting "Default Mail App."
  • You can change your default email app back to the original Mail app at any time.

Since the very first iPhone, Apple has never allowed users to change their default email app. It's always been Mail — the plain white envelope icon that comes pre-installed on every phone.

Starting with iOS 14, though, that has changed. You can now set a variety of third-party email apps as your default, including Gmail and Outlook.

This means that if you change your default, and perform a task that requires an email, your iPhone will open the new app you've set as your default. 

Currently, iOS 14 supports the apps Gmail, Outlook, Spark, Hey, Airmail, Boomerang, DecoMailer, and Twobird. More should be added in the future.

Here's how to change the default mail app on your iPhone. 

How to change the default email app on an iPhone

1. Start the Settings app. 

2. Scroll down to the list of your apps, and find the third-party mail app (like Gmail or Outlook) you want to set as the default. Tap it.

Find an email app you've installed, like Gmail or Outlook, and tap it. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

3. On that mail app's settings page, tap "Default Mail App."

You can set the default mail app from any supported email app's settings page. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

4. You should see a list of all the mail apps installed on your iPhone that Apple currently supports as default email apps. If you've installed an app but it doesn't appear in this list, it's not supported yet. Tap the app you want to use as your default app.

You can choose any compatible third-party email app you've installed on your iPhone. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

That app is now your default mail app. If you later want to change back to Mail, just return to this mail app's page in Settings and choose Mail instead. 

If you can't change your default email app

In order for this feature to work, your iPhone needs to be running iOS 14. 

Check your iOS version by starting the Settings app and tapping "General," then "Software Update." If your phone doesn't indicate it's running iOS 14 or higher, update your phone. 

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spanDave Johnson is a technology journalist who writes about consumer tech and how the industry is transforming the speculative world of science fiction into modern-day real life. Dave grew up in New Jersey before entering the Air Force to operate satellites, teach space operations, and do space launch planning. He then spent eight years as a content lead on the Windows team at Microsoft. As a photographer, Dave has photographed wolves in their natural environment; he's also a scuba instructor and co-host of several podcasts. Dave is the author of more than two dozen books and has contributed to many sites and publications including CNET, Forbes, PC World, How To Geek, and Insider./span Dave Johnson Freelance Writer Dave Johnson is a technology journalist who writes about consumer tech and how the industry is transforming the speculative world of science fiction into modern-day real life. Dave grew up in New Jersey before entering the Air Force to operate satellites, teach space operations, and do space launch planning. He then spent eight years as a content lead on the Windows team at Microsoft. As a photographer, Dave has photographed wolves in their natural environment; he's also a scuba instructor and co-host of several podcasts. Dave is the author of more than two dozen books and has contributed to many sites and publications including CNET, Forbes, PC World, How To Geek, and Insider. Read more Read less

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