Claude IMAP connector — link any mailbox to Claude

Claude only natively supports Gmail and Outlook. MailMCP is the universal IMAP connector for Claude — bridge your OVH, LWS, Infomaniak, Ionos, Orange, Free, Yahoo or self-hosted mailbox via the MCP standard.

Connect Claude to my IMAP Claude setup guide

Claude is missing an IMAP connector — MailMCP is it

Anthropic ships two native email connectors for Claude: Gmail and Outlook. If your professional mailbox lives on OVH, LWS, Infomaniak, your own dedicated server or any IMAP provider, you have no path to AI — until MailMCP exposes a standard IMAP connector via MCP.

Without an IMAP connector

Claude only reads Gmail and Outlook out of the box
Your @ovh, @lws, @infomaniak mailbox is invisible to Claude
Copy-pasting emails into Claude is slow and breaks context
No way for Claude to actually send or reply on your behalf

With the MailMCP IMAP connector

Claude reads, searches, sends and schedules emails on any IMAP
Works with Claude.ai web and Claude Desktop (macOS/Windows)
OAuth2 + PKCE — revoke Claude access in one click
15 email tools exposed to Claude via MCP — no custom code

Connect Claude to your IMAP mailbox in 3 steps

From signup to Claude reading your inbox — under 3 minutes.

Sign up for MailMCP (free)

Create your free account on MailMCP.io — email + password, no credit card. The free plan covers 1 mailbox and 20 MCP calls per day, which is enough to validate that Claude can read and send via your IMAP.

Add your IMAP/SMTP mailbox

In the MailMCP dashboard, click "Add mailbox" and enter your IMAP and SMTP server addresses. MailMCP auto-detects settings for OVH, LWS, Infomaniak, Ionos, Hostinger, Orange, Free.fr, Outlook, Yahoo and more. The connection is tested live.

IMAP ssl0.ovh.net:993 OK

SMTP ssl0.ovh.net:465 OK

Plug the MCP URL into Claude

Toggle MCP on for your mailbox, copy the server URL and add it to Claude. On Claude.ai web: Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector. On Claude Desktop: paste the entry in claude_desktop_config.json. Authorize once via OAuth2 — done.

Your MCP server URL:

https://mailmcp.io/mcp/abc123-def456

What Claude can do on your IMAP

Once the connector is plugged in, Claude has access to 15 email tools — the same coverage as a full email client, but driven by natural language.

Send and reply

send_email · draft_email · schedule_email

Read inbox

list_emails · read_email · search_emails

Organize

move_email · delete_email · flag_email

Status

mark_read · mark_unread

Folders

list_mailboxes · create_folder

Schedule

list_scheduled · cancel_scheduled

IMAP providers Claude can now reach

All of these work with the MailMCP Claude connector. Auto-detected — just type your email address.

Provider	IMAP server	IMAP port	SMTP server	SMTP port
OVH	ssl0.ovh.net	993	ssl0.ovh.net	465
LWS	mail.lwspanel.com	993	mail.lwspanel.com	465
Infomaniak	mail.infomaniak.com	993	mail.infomaniak.com	465
Ionos	imap.ionos.fr	993	imap.ionos.fr	465
Orange	imap.orange.fr	993	imap.orange.fr	465
Free.fr	imap.free.fr	993	imap.free.fr	465
Outlook / Microsoft 365	outlook.office365.com	993	smtp.office365.com	587
Yahoo	imap.mail.yahoo.com	993	smtp.mail.yahoo.com	465
Self-hosted (any IMAP)	mail.yourdomain.com	993	mail.yourdomain.com	465

Any standard IMAP/SMTP server works with the Claude connector. See the full provider list in IMAP email + AI.

Frequently asked questions

Does Claude have a native IMAP connector?

No. Claude.ai natively supports only Gmail and Outlook via dedicated OAuth connectors. There is no built-in IMAP connector. MailMCP fills this gap with a universal IMAP connector exposed to Claude through the standard MCP (Model Context Protocol) — it works with any IMAP/SMTP mailbox.

How do I link Claude to an IMAP mailbox?

Create a free MailMCP account, add your IMAP/SMTP mailbox in the dashboard, enable MCP for that mailbox, copy the MCP server URL, then add it to Claude (Claude.ai → Settings → Connectors, or Claude Desktop config). Authorize via OAuth2 and Claude can use 15 email tools on that mailbox.

Which mail providers work with the MailMCP Claude connector?

Any provider that exposes standard IMAP and SMTP works: OVH, LWS, Infomaniak, Ionos, Hostinger, O2switch, PlanetHoster, Orange, Free.fr, SFR, Outlook, Yahoo, Zoho, FastMail, Protonmail (via Bridge), self-hosted mail servers... and Gmail too if you prefer IMAP over Google API.

Does the connector work with Claude.ai web and Claude Desktop?

Yes both. Claude.ai web: paste the MCP URL in Settings → Connectors (remote MCP). Claude Desktop on macOS/Windows: add the server in claude_desktop_config.json. Same MailMCP account, same mailbox — switch between them freely.

Does Claude store my email content via MailMCP?

MailMCP never persists your email bodies. Each Claude request hits your IMAP/SMTP server in real time, the response is returned to Claude. The Anthropic retention policy applies to the chat transcript, but the underlying emails stay on your mail server. You can revoke MCP access from MailMCP at any time.

How much does the MailMCP Claude IMAP connector cost?

Free plan: 1 mailbox, 20 MCP calls per day — enough to test with Claude. Pro plan: 1.99 EUR/month (monthly) or 1.49 EUR/month (annual), unlimited mailboxes, 500 MCP calls per day. No setup fee, no commitment.

Plug Claude into your real mailbox

Free MailMCP account, 3-minute setup. Claude reads, sends and replies on any IMAP mailbox you own — no Gmail or Outlook required.

Start for free See pricing