In January, Google announced that they will stop fetching emails from third-party accounts into Gmail accounts using POP.

If that sounds like Greek to you, let me explain what it means and how can you tell if it will impact you.

Many website hosting companies offer a free professional email address (or addresses) at your domain name when you use them for hosting. So you’d build a website at yourdomain.com and you’d get a free yourname@yourdomain.com email address to go with it. And for a long time it’s been possible to take that free email address and “port” that email into a free gmail.com account, essentially linking your free professional email to a free gmail.com address.

When done, you’d be able to send and receive your professional emails with your free gmail.com inbox.

If that sounds vaguely familiar, but you’re still not sure if it applies to you, here’s how to check.

First, you’ll want to login to your gmail.com email address. Then click on the gear icon at the top right of your screen; when the pop up menu with settings appears, click on the “See all Settings” button.

Replacement options for Gmail’s POP System

I’ve recommended porting a free email address from Siteground into a free Gmail account regularly over the years, especially for trainers just getting started — often pointing folks to the Elegantthemes.com tutorial on how to set up, configure, and forward SiteGround email. If you didn’t need all of the features that come with a paid Google Workspace account or if pricing was a concern, it allowed you to look professional and take advantage of gmail’s features without having to pay Google for their services.

But with this option going away… what alternatives are there?

Use Your Host’s Email Service Directly

The first option is to just check your email directly, using the inbox and email service your host provides. For Siteground users, that means using their Webmail tool when checking email from your browser. If you haven’t done that before, they have an article on How to check Webmail via Site Tools. Webmail isn’t fancy; but it does allow you to check your email in it’s own inbox.

Most people, however, want a few more features than this option has to offer.

Sign up for Google Workspace

If you want to KEEP the Gmail interface exactly, another option is to start paying Google for their service (that’s an affiliate link). This allows you to take advantage of all the features that you did with a free Gmail account, plus makes them all branded! If you share a Google doc with your clients, using Google Workspace means that that google doc will come from your professional email instead of whatever email address you’d been using as your free gmail.com account.

As of 2026, a “Starter” level Google Workspace account costs $7/month per email address. For most who are just switching from a free email to a paid option, the starter level account is likely more than enough.

If you use Siteground, switching to Google Workspace is easy — they have a single-button option to set up your MX Records so that everything just works.

Use the Mobile Gmail App

If you don’t want to pay for Google Workspace and you’re primarily a phone or tablet user, the Gmail Mobile app should continue to allow you to check your free email address without any blips. The mobile app uses an IMAP connection, which is still supported and will still work.

If you use Siteground, they have a tutorial on adding your free email to the Gmail app — and I’d imagine the process is very similar even if you’re using someone other than Siteground for hosting.

Using a Computer-based App or Program (Mail, Outlook, etc)

But what do you do if you want to continue using a free email address, but need to use it from the computer?

Most computers these days come with a program or app specifically for checking email. On a Mac that program is Mail; on a PC it’s often Outlook. These programs will allow you to add multiple email addresses and will download your email from those accounts to your computer so that you can check them and respond from the app itself.

While these usually don’t come with all the bells and whistles we associate with Gmail (things like Google Drive, Google Docs, etc), if you were tying your email into a free Gmail account you likely didn’t have those services tied to your professional email anyway… and this is the solution that gives you the most features without costing you anything additional on an ongoing basis.

What Should You Do Next?

The good news is that you have options — and none of them require you to overhaul your entire system overnight. If you’re not sure whether this change affects you, start by checking your Gmail settings using the steps outlined above. If you are impacted, take a few minutes to think about how you primarily access your email and what features matter most to you.

Whatever you decide, don’t wait too long. The sooner you make the switch, the less likely you are to miss an important client email in the transition.

And if you’re a past or current client and you need help? Don’t be afraid to reach out and we’ll be happy to chat about what options might work best for you.