How do I open my email on my laptop?

Visit our student technology resource guide for additional details on technology resources and services available to you. Refer to the University’s COVID-19 website for the most up-to-date campus policies and procedures.

Table of Contents Show

Frequently Asked Questions
1. Change It Back
4. Add Third-Party Email Accounts to Gmail
5. Check Which Apps Have Access to Gmail
About Eric Griffith
How do I access my emails on my laptop?
Where is the email icon on my computer?
How do I access Outlook email on my laptop?

If you have recently claimed your NetID and cannot access your university email account, please note that it can take up to 2 hours before your email inbox is ready.

All undergraduate students starting AFTER November 2018, graduate/professional students, faculty, and staff receive an Exchange (Outlook Online) email inbox. Use the Outlook App to connect email to a mobile device.

Email (students starting before 2018)

Undergraduates who claimed their NetID BEFORE November 2018 received a University Gmail account. Use the Gmail App to connect email to a mobile device

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I log into Zoom?

NOTE: YOU MUST CLICK “SSO”. USING YOUR EMAIL AND PASSWORD ON THE SIGN IN SCREEN WILL NOT WORK.

Download and Launch the Zoom desktop or mobile client
Select “SSO” on Desktop or “Sign In with SSO” on Mobile
Enter “illinois” for the company domain (illinois.zoom.us)
Enter your NetID and Password

Visit our Zoom essentials guide for additional assistance signing in and other Zoom features.

How do I connect to Wi-Fi?

For laptops and mobile devices, look for “IllinoisNet” in your wireless network list. Use your NetID and password to sign in.

If you are trying to connect a gaming, streaming, or voice device, you will need to complete a registration process. Please note that you will need to know the MAC Address for your device.

The official Gmail app brings the best of Gmail to your Android phone or tablet with robust security, real-time notifications, multiple account support, and search that works across all your mail.

With the Gmail app you can:
• Automatically block more than 99.9 percent of spam, phishing, malware, and dangerous links from ever reaching your inbox
• Undo send, to prevent embarrassing mistakes
• Turn on Google Chat to connect, create and collaborate with others
• Get more done as a group in Spaces - a dedicated place for organizing people, topics, and projects
• Enjoy high quality video calling with Google Meet
• Respond to emails quickly with Smart Reply suggestions
• Switch between multiple accounts
• Get notified of new mail fast, with notification center, badge, and lock screen options
• Search your mail faster with instant results, predictions as you type, and spelling suggestions
• Organize your mail by labeling, starring, deleting, and reporting spam
• Swipe to archive/delete, to quickly clear out your inbox
• Read your mail with threaded conversations
• Auto-complete contact names as you type from your Google contacts or your phone
• Respond to Google Calendar invites right from the app

Gmail is part of Google Workspace, allowing you and your team to easily connect, create, and collaborate. You can:
• Connect with coworkers via Google Meet or Google Chat, send an invite in Calendar, add an action to your task list, and more without leaving Gmail
• Use suggested actions — like Smart Reply, Smart Compose, grammar suggestions, and nudges — to help you stay on top of work and take care of simple tasks, so you can be more efficient with your time
• Stay safe. Our machine learning models block more than 99.9% of spam, phishing, and malware from reaching our users

Learn more about Google Workspace: https://workspace.google.com/products/gmail/

Follow us for more:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/googleworkspace
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/googleworkspace
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/googleworkspace/

As a web app, Gmail is a constant work in progress, but the amount of under-the-hood power is astounding. Sure, there are plenty of browser add-ons and extensions that can enhance Gmail specifically, far beyond its original parameters. However, not every bit of power-user tech in Gmail requires special accessories. Plenty is possible without ever installing something extra.

Mastering even a few settings will help you take full advantage of what Gmail has to offer beyond the basics. Let's get started.

1. Change It Back

If you're a Google super fan and have multiple Google/Gmail accounts (even a Google Workspace account from work), there's no need to sign in and out constantly. On the desktop (using Chrome, Firefox, or Edge), you can sign into multiple accounts at once. Each can occupy a tab and stay signed in. Click on your account avatar on the top right and select Add another account. Then, to switch between accounts, click your avatar again, and click the desired account; no password entry required. The default account is the one you signed in with first.

You can also put the Chrome browser to work to keep your multiple accounts (or accounts for other people who use the computer) separate but usable(Opens in a new window) using Chrome Profiles. Click the profile icon at the upper right of your browser window, click the Pencil icon to give that Profile a name, then click Add at the bottom. You'll get a new Chrome Profile sign-in page to use here.

4. Add Third-Party Email Accounts to Gmail

Do you love the Gmail interface, but don't want to give up your Yahoo, iCloud, or Outlook email address? Not a problem. Google lets you add third-party email accounts to the Gmail mobile app, which brings Google features like spam filtering and a tabbed inbox to those accounts.

You need to have at least one Gmail account first for it to work. To set it up on mobile, tap your avatar in the Gmail app and select Add another account. Pick the type of account you wish to add and enter the credentials. You can then access one inbox at a time, or see all your email in one unified inbox on your phone or tablet. Go back to the avatar and select Manage accounts on this device to deactivate or delete an account later.

On the desktop, tap the gear icon and select See all settings > Accounts and Import > Check mail from other accounts > Add a mail account. In the pop-up window, type in the email address you want to link, click Next, and select Link account with Gmail.

5. Check Which Apps Have Access to Gmail

Usually, if you want to show someone an email you got, you'd just forward it. Simple. But that doesn't always work, and sometimes you might want to send a bunch of messages. Now you can. Check the box next to multiple messages, click the three-dot menu in the toolbar above, and select Forward as attachment. The compose window that pops up will have each individual message you checked off, attached as an EML file that the recipient can open in their own email client.

Have you got too many Gmail accounts? Check out the video below for how to merge them.

How to Merge Gmail Accounts

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About Eric Griffith

Features Editor

I've been writing about computers, the internet, and technology professionally for 30 years, more than half of that time with PCMag. I run several special projects including the Readers' Choice and Business Choice surveys, and yearly coverage of the Fastest ISPs and Best Gaming ISPs. I work from my home, and did it long before pandemics made it cool.

How do I access my emails on my laptop?

Add a new email account.

Select Start , enter Mail, and choose the app from the results..

If this is the first time you've opened the Mail app, you'll see a Welcome page. ... .

Select Add account..

Choose the type of the account you want to add. ... .

Enter the required information and select Sign in. ... .

Select Done..

Where is the email icon on my computer?

To restore the Mail icon to the Task Bar, right click Mail app in Start Menu to choose More > Pin to Task Bar. To add a shortcut to the Desktop, close all Windows and open Start Menu, drag the Mail icon from Start menu list to the desktop.