IMAP settings · gmx.net · gmx.de · gmx.com · gmx.at · gmx.ch
GMX IMAP settings
GMX is the mail service of the German provider 1&1, and it has one quirk almost everyone trips over: POP3 and IMAP access is switched off until you enable it inside the mailbox itself. The client does not say "access denied", it says "could not connect", so people go and re-check the host and the port — which were fine all along.
IMAP connection
- Server
- imap.gmx.net
- Port
- 993
- Encryption
- SSL/TLS
- Username
- full address
- Password
- the mailbox password
Sending, SMTP
- Server
- mail.gmx.net
- Port
- 465
- Encryption
- SSL/TLS
Checked against the service's own autoconfiguration file on 2026-09-15 — the same source Thunderbird reads when it fills the settings in for you. Source: autoconfig.thunderbird.net, support.gmx.com
What breaks here.
- POP3 and IMAP access is off by default. Turn it on in the web interface: Settings → POP3 & IMAP → allow access from external programs.
- The host depends on your domain: gmx.net, gmx.de, gmx.at and gmx.ch use imap.gmx.net, while gmx.com uses imap.gmx.com. The wrong one fails as an authentication error rather than a connection error, which sends the search in the wrong direction.
- Old TLS versions are disabled. A client that only speaks TLS 1.0 or 1.1 will never connect — update the program, not the settings.
- The username is the full address including the domain.
Questions
The short answers
Where is IMAP enabled in GMX?
In the web interface: Settings (Einstellungen) → POP3 & IMAP → tick the box that allows access from external programs and save. It takes effect immediately.
Does the normal mailbox password work?
Yes. GMX accepts the regular password over IMAP — no separate app password is needed here. You only have to enable the access itself.
imap.gmx.net or imap.gmx.com?
It follows your address: a gmx.com mailbox connects to imap.gmx.com, while gmx.net, gmx.de, gmx.at and gmx.ch mailboxes use imap.gmx.net. Either way the port is 993 over SSL/TLS.
How do I migrate mail out of GMX?
Enable IMAP access, use imap.gmx.net (or imap.gmx.com) as the source, point the destination at the new mailbox and start the transfer. Nothing leaves GMX: the default mode only copies.
Find out how big your mailbox is. It costs nothing.
Connect two servers, look at the size and decide. Or take the client and keep everything on your side.
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