// BT INTERNET EMAIL SETUP
Why your BT Internet email won’t add to the new Outlook
You’ve typed in your btinternet.com address, entered the password you always use, and the new Outlook just won’t have it — ‘something went wrong’, or the password is rejected on a loop. It’s one of the most common email jobs we see, especially on a brand-new PC. Here’s exactly why it happens, the correct BT settings to use, and the honest catch that trips most people up. Rated 4.9 on Google.
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/01 — THE QUICK ANSWER
The correct BT Internet settings for the new Outlook
If your btinternet.com email won’t add to the new Outlook, the fix is almost always to set the account up by hand as an IMAP account using BT’s own server details — rather than letting Outlook try to detect them. The moment you force the correct settings, the account usually drops straight in.
Here are the settings BT publishes, and the ones we use every week:
- Incoming mail (IMAP): mail.btinternet.com — port 993, SSL/TLS on
- Outgoing mail (SMTP): mail.btinternet.com — port 465, SSL/TLS on, with outgoing authentication switched on
- Username: your full email address (include the …@btinternet.com or @btopenworld.com part)
- Password: for most accounts, your ordinary BT email password — unless you’ve turned on BT’s two-step verification, in which case you generate an app-specific password in your BT account settings and use that instead
Some email apps also accept port 587 with STARTTLS for sending, but 465 with SSL/TLS is what BT recommends and what we’d reach for first. If the account adds but then won’t send, that’s a slightly different problem — our guide to BT Internet email that won’t send in new Outlook covers the outgoing side in detail.
At a glance
| Most common cause | The new Outlook auto-detects the wrong settings — adding the account manually as IMAP usually fixes it. |
|---|---|
| Settings to use | mail.btinternet.com for both servers — port 993 incoming, 465 outgoing, SSL/TLS on. |
| Which password? | Your normal BT email password — unless two-step verification is on, when BT has you generate an app-specific one. |
| Left BT broadband? | Your mailbox may have dropped to Basic (webmail only); BT’s Premium Mail, around £7.50 a month, restores app access. |
| Will I lose my emails? | No — IMAP keeps your mail on BT’s servers, so re-adding the account deletes nothing. |
| Can it be fixed remotely? | Yes — most BT email setups are done remotely, usually the same day, and it’s no fix, no fee. |
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/02 — MANUAL SETUP
Adding it by hand in the new Outlook
The trap with the new Outlook is that it wants to add your address for you. You type btinternet.com, it phones home to work out the servers, and if it guesses wrong it either loops on the password or throws a vague ‘something went wrong’. The cure is to steer it into a manual IMAP setup instead.
Open Settings → Accounts → Email accounts → Add account (or use the ‘Add account’ prompt on first run). Type your full btinternet.com address, then look for Advanced setup or the option to choose the account type yourself, and pick IMAP. The new Outlook will usually try auto-config first; if it can’t connect, it shows the IMAP and SMTP boxes for you to fill in with the details above.
Enter mail.btinternet.com for both servers, ports 993 (in) and 465 (out), SSL/TLS on for each, your full address as the username and your BT email password. Let it test the connection. Follow the numbered steps further down if you’d like to go through it click by click.
/03 — PASSWORD REJECTED
Why the password keeps getting rejected
Nine times out of ten, a ‘rejected’ password isn’t actually wrong — it’s a misunderstanding about which password Outlook wants. A few things to rule out:
- Which password — and whether two-step verification is on. For most BT mailboxes your normal BT email password is the one to type, and there’s nothing extra to generate. The exception is if you’ve switched on BT’s two-step verification: an email app can’t answer the security prompt, so BT has you generate an app-specific password in your BT account’s security settings to use in Outlook instead.
- BT ID vs email password. The password for your wider My BT / BT ID login isn’t always the same as your email mailbox password. Outlook needs the one for the email address itself.
- Test it in webmail first. Sign in at BT’s webmail in a browser with the exact password. If it fails there too, the password — not Outlook — is the problem, and you can reset it on BT’s site.
- Recent change or security prompt. If you’ve just changed the password, or BT is asking you to confirm a sign-in, settle that on BT’s side before you try Outlook again.
If Outlook keeps popping the password box even after all that, our page on Outlook that keeps asking for a password walks through the deeper causes.
/04 — LEFT BT BROADBAND?
Have you left BT broadband? Check your mailbox first
This is the one almost everyone misses. If you’ve switched away from BT broadband to another provider, BT changes the status of your btinternet.com mailbox — and that quietly breaks email apps.
When your BT broadband stops, BT gives you a short window (they quote 60 days) to move your email onto their paid Premium Mail. If you don’t, the mailbox is downgraded to Basic, which is webmail only — you can read your email in a browser, but it can no longer be added to Outlook or any other app over IMAP. So the account looks perfectly fine online yet refuses to connect in Outlook, no matter how carefully you type the password.
BT currently charges around £7.50 a month for Premium Mail, which restores app access. Whether that’s worth paying is a fair question — if you’d rather not stay tied to it, we can help you move to an email address you fully own and control and bring your old messages across. Either way, confirming whether your mailbox is Basic or Premium is the first thing to check if you’ve recently left BT.
/05 — NEW VS CLASSIC
New Outlook or classic Outlook?
The ‘new’ Outlook — the app Windows 11 now nudges everyone towards — is still catching up on adding third-party IMAP accounts like btinternet.com. We regularly see it refuse an account that classic Outlook takes without a murmur. If you’re stuck, it’s well worth trying the classic app.
You can usually switch by toggling ‘New Outlook’ off (top-right), or by opening the classic Outlook that comes with your Microsoft 365 apps. In classic Outlook, choose manual setup, pick IMAP, and enter the same BT server details. Many people find the account adds cleanly there and then, and you can carry on using classic Outlook for as long as Microsoft supports it.
If the new Outlook throws a specific ‘couldn’t add your account’ message, see new Outlook won’t add an account; if you’d simply prefer the familiar layout, going back to classic Outlook is straightforward.
/06 — GET OUR HELP
When to let us sort it for you
Email settings shouldn’t eat your afternoon. If you’ve tried the IMAP details above and btinternet.com still won’t add — or you’re on a new PC and just want it working — we’ll take it off your hands.
We’re 365 Techies, a family-run team in Kinson, Bournemouth, going since 1995. Most BT email jobs we do remotely, usually the same day: we connect securely, add the account with the right settings, test sending and receiving, and set it up on your phone too if you like. If you’d rather we came to you, we do home visits and collection across Bournemouth, Poole, Christchurch and the wider Dorset area.
It’s no fix, no fee — if we can’t get your BT email working, you don’t pay for the attempt. Call us on 01202 775566, text 07520 615332, or see how our email support works. We’ll get you back into your inbox.
FAMILY-RUN SINCE 1995 · ★ 4.9 ON GOOGLE · 200+ COMPUTERS UNDER OUR CARE · NO FIX, NO FEE · SAME-DAY REMOTE SUPPORT
// GOOD QUESTIONS
Frequently asked
What are the correct BT Internet settings for Outlook?
For incoming mail use IMAP server mail.btinternet.com on port 993 with SSL/TLS. For outgoing mail use SMTP mail.btinternet.com on port 465 with SSL/TLS and authentication switched on (some apps also accept 587 with STARTTLS). Your username is your full btinternet.com address, and the password is your normal BT email password — not a separate app password.
Do I need an app password for btinternet.com?
Usually not. For a standard BT mailbox, your ordinary BT email password is all Outlook needs and there’s nothing extra to generate. The one exception is if you’ve turned on two-step verification for your BT account: an email app can’t answer the two-step prompt, so BT asks you to generate an app-specific password in your BT account’s security settings and use that in Outlook instead. If your normal password is rejected and you don’t use two-step verification, confirm or reset it in BT webmail rather than hunting for an app password.
Why does the new Outlook say ‘something went wrong’ when I add my BT email?
Usually because Outlook tried to detect the settings automatically and picked the wrong ones, or couldn’t reach BT’s servers. The reliable fix is to add the account manually: choose Advanced setup, select IMAP, and type BT’s server details yourself (mail.btinternet.com, ports 993 and 465, SSL/TLS). If it still fails, trying classic Outlook instead often works first time.
My BT email works in a browser but not in Outlook — why?
Two common reasons. First, the mailbox may have been downgraded to BT Basic (webmail only) after you left BT broadband, which blocks all email apps — only BT Premium Mail restores app access. Second, the password that works in webmail may not have been entered correctly in Outlook, or Outlook is still holding an old one. Check the mailbox status, then re-enter the password.
Should I use the new Outlook or classic Outlook for BT email?
Either can work, but classic Outlook is currently more reliable at adding btinternet.com accounts. The new Outlook is still maturing on third-party IMAP mail and sometimes refuses accounts that classic adds without fuss. If the new Outlook won’t cooperate, switch it off with the top-right toggle, or open classic Outlook and set the account up manually with BT’s IMAP details.
I’ve left BT broadband — can I still use my btinternet address in Outlook?
Only if your mailbox is on BT Premium Mail. BT gives you a window (they quote 60 days) after leaving to upgrade; otherwise the address drops to Basic, which is webmail only and can’t be added to Outlook. BT currently charges around £7.50 a month for Premium Mail. If you’d rather not pay to stay tied to BT, we can help you move to your own email address and bring old mail across.
Can you just set this up for me?
Gladly. Most BT email setups we do remotely and usually the same day — we connect securely, add the account with the correct settings, test it end to end, and set it up on your phone as well if you want. We’re family-run in Bournemouth, and it’s no fix, no fee. Call 01202 775566 or text 07520 615332 and we’ll get you sorted.
Is there anything you can’t fix with BT email?
We can’t override BT’s own account rules. If your mailbox has been downgraded to Basic because you left BT broadband, only BT can restore app access through Premium Mail, and we can’t waive their charge. What we can do is get every setting right, rule out anything at your end, and — if BT’s terms don’t suit you — help you move to an email address you fully control.
Will I lose my old emails if I add the account again?
No. btinternet.com uses IMAP, which keeps your mail on BT’s servers and simply mirrors it to Outlook. Removing and re-adding the account, or adding it on a new PC, doesn’t delete anything — your messages and folders reappear once it connects. The only real risk to old email is the mailbox being downgraded or deleted by BT after you leave their broadband, which is separate from Outlook.
Still won’t add? We’ll get you back in.
Family-run in Kinson, Bournemouth since 1995. Usually same-day remote help across Dorset — and no fix, no fee.
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