How do you get Outlook to sync your folders for 2 of my 3 gmail accounts? It says it cannot connect to the server.

Question

my outlook account quit syncing 2 of my 3 Gmail accounts last night and I have contacted ISP and everything is working fine. They said has something to do with Outlook and GMail not working well together.

Answer 1

Hello, I’m Virginia a fellow Windows user.

Have you deleted those accounts & set them up again? If yes & the problem remains then you may need an app specific password which is used instead of the account password, this is usually created under the security settings of the Google account.

Answer 2

Two common issues can stop some Gmail accounts from syncing in classic Outlook: missing Google permissions and IMAP/folder settings. Use these steps on the two failing accounts.

1. Re‑grant Outlook access to Gmail

• In classic Outlook, when the error appears for the Gmail account, look for a Retry link in the error window.
• Select Retry to reopen the Google sign‑in page in the browser.
• Sign in to the affected Gmail account.
• On the permissions screen, make sure the option is checked for:
  • “Read, compose, send, and permanently delete all your email from Gmail.” (under Select what Microsoft apps & services can access).
• Complete the sign‑in and return to Outlook, then try Send/Receive again.

If the Retry option is not available or does not fix it, remove and re‑add the affected Gmail accounts in Outlook, ensuring that permission box is checked during Google sign‑in.

2. Verify IMAP and folder visibility in Gmail For each affected Gmail account:
3. In a browser, sign in at Gmail.com.
4. Go to Settings > See all settings.
5. Open the Labels tab.
6. Ensure Show in IMAP is selected for at least:
   • Inbox
   • Sent Mail
   • Trash
   • All Mail
7. Optionally enable Show in IMAP for any other labels that should appear as folders in Outlook.
8. Back in Outlook, refresh or run Send/Receive. It can take up to 15 minutes for folder syncing to update.
9. Check classic Outlook IMAP setup behavior If Outlook is not prompting for a password or seems stuck when adding/reconnecting the Gmail accounts:
10. In the account setup wizard, on the IMAP details page, make sure Require logon using Secure Password Authentication (SPA) is unchecked.
11. If still failing, set up the account via Control Panel:
    • Open Control Panel > Mail > Email Accounts….
    • On the Email tab, select New.
    • Enter name, Gmail address, and password in both Password fields, then select Next.
    • Follow the prompts; enter the password again if requested.
    • When setup completes, select Finish and test Send/Receive.

If one Gmail account continues to work while two fail, focus on re‑granting the Google permissions and confirming IMAP/labels for only the failing accounts.

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References:

• Unable to add a Gmail account to classic Outlook
• Troubleshoot Outlook email setup
• Fix problems connecting your Google account to the Microsoft Cloud