A Gmail address can stop working properly in Outlook even though the Gmail account itself is still fine. You may notice that new messages are not arriving, emails remain in the Outbox, Outlook keeps asking for a password, or a Send/Receive error appears.
The first thing to find out is whether the problem belongs to Gmail or only to Outlook. This saves you from changing Outlook settings when the mailbox itself is having the problem.
Check Gmail in your web browser
Open Gmail in your browser and sign in to the same @gmail.com account.
Try sending yourself a small test email and check whether new messages are arriving normally.
If Gmail is also not working in the browser, the problem is not with Outlook. Check your Google account, internet connection, or any message Google is showing you before changing Outlook.
If Gmail works normally in the browser but not in Outlook, continue below.
Make sure Outlook is online
Open Outlook and look at the bottom of the window. If you see Working Offline or Disconnected, Outlook is not currently communicating with Gmail.
Go to the Send/Receive tab and make sure Work Offline is not selected. Then choose Send/Receive All Folders or press F9.
Give Outlook a short time to sync and check the Inbox and Outbox again.
Sign in to Gmail again
Google now expects current versions of Outlook to use the normal Google sign-in window rather than simply storing your Gmail password in old-style mail settings.
In Outlook, go to File > Account Settings > Account Settings and select your Gmail account. If Outlook is asking you to sign in again, follow the Google sign-in window and allow Outlook access to the account.
If you recently changed your Google password, Outlook may need to authenticate again before mail starts syncing normally.
For most current Outlook installations, choose Sign in with Google when it is offered. You normally do not need to manually turn IMAP on in a personal Gmail account.
Check for a message stuck in the Outbox
A large attachment or damaged outgoing message can sometimes hold up normal sending.
Open the Outbox and look for a message that has been sitting there for a long time. If there is one, move it to Drafts or delete it, then try sending a small plain email.
If the small message sends, the original message or attachment was probably the problem.
Restart and update Outlook
Close Outlook, restart the computer, and open Outlook again.
If the problem continues, update Microsoft Office. Open Outlook, Word, or Excel and go to File > Account > Update Options > Update Now.
Microsoft has fixed Gmail synchronization problems in Outlook through updates and service changes before, so keeping Outlook current is important.
Remove and add the Gmail account again
If Gmail works perfectly in the browser but Outlook still will not send or receive after the checks above, removing and adding the Gmail account again is often the cleanest fix.
Before doing this, make sure you know your Google password and can sign in to Gmail in a browser.
Remove the Gmail account from Outlook, restart Outlook, then use Add Account and enter the Gmail address again. Complete the Google sign-in window when it appears.
Once the account has finished syncing, send yourself another test email to confirm both sending and receiving are working.
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