an error occurred during authentication

Question

I want to add my email account to outlook app on android phone. I keep getting error message "an error occurred during authentication" how can i fix this?

Answer 1

Hi!

1. Is your email personal, corporate, or educational?
2. Is your email from your custom domain (@yourname.com, @companyname.com), Microsoft (@outlook.com or @hotmail.com), Google (@gmail.com), or a third-party domain?
3. Try logging in using your mobile browser to see if it's a device lock. Open Edge, Chrome, or Safari and go to https://outlook.live.com/mail/.

• This only works for Microsoft emails.

2. Also test on Windows to confirm if it's a problem with your account:

https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9nrx63209r7b?hl=en-US&gl=US

Answer 2

Use these steps and checks on the Android device to resolve the authentication error when adding the account to Outlook for Android:

1. Confirm the correct account type and server settings
   If the account is not a Microsoft 365/Outlook.com account (for example, it is from another provider), set it up as IMAP or POP and enter the server details manually:
   1. In Outlook for Android, go to Settings > Add Account > Add Email Account.
   2. Enter the email address and tap Continue.
   3. When prompted for provider, choose IMAP or POP3.
   4. Turn on Advanced settings and enter:
      • Email address
      • Password
      • Incoming and outgoing mail server names, ports, and security type
   5. Tap the checkmark to complete. If the server name or password is wrong, authentication will fail. If unsure of these values, contact the email provider or admin and use their documented settings.
2. Make sure a mail server address is entered
   If the message appears after tapping Done without a server address, Outlook cannot authenticate. Ensure the mail server address, email, and password are all filled in before finishing. If the organization requires a domain, enter that as well.
3. Check for IMAP Autodiscover issues
   If Outlook cannot automatically discover IMAP/SMTP settings, it may fail authentication. In that case, obtain the exact IMAP/SMTP server settings from the email service provider and retry using Advanced settings.
4. Verify the password and sign-in outside the app
   Sign in to the same email account in a web browser (for example, Outlook.com or the provider’s webmail). If sign-in fails there, reset the password with the provider and then try adding the account again in Outlook for Android.
5. Update Outlook for Android and retry
   Install the latest version of Outlook for Android from the Google Play Store, then try adding the account again. Updated security standards can cause repeated authentication prompts if the app is outdated.
6. Check device power-saving / background restrictions (for Microsoft 365 work or school)
   If this is a Microsoft 365 work or school account and the device uses Microsoft Authenticator or Company Portal:
   1. Turn off strict power-saving mode on the device.
   2. Allow Authenticator/Company Portal to auto-launch and run in the background (for example, on some Huawei devices: Phone Manager > Auto-launch > Secondary launch management > enable Authenticator/Company Portal).
   3. Open Authenticator/Company Portal once before opening Outlook, then try adding the account again.
7. If still failing, use in-app support
   If the error persists after verifying server settings, password, and app version, open Outlook for Android and go to Settings > Help & Feedback > Contact Support so the support team can review logs for that device and account type.

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References:

• Set up email in the Outlook for Android app
• I want to set up an IMAP or POP account for Outlook for Android.
• Why do I get the error "Please check your email, password, and server and try again"?
• Error: IMAP Autodiscover Failed
• Can't sign in to the Outlook mobile app
• Failed to add Microsoft 365 account or cannot sync new messages with your existing Microsoft 365 account?
• I see Error 403, or disallowed_useragent and a Google error. What's up?
• Cannot add Outlook email to Android Outlook app (but can add Gmail and Yahoo emails without issue) - Microsoft Q&A
• Cannot log in Outlook. - Microsoft Q&A
• Correlation Id: [Moderator note: personal info removed] Timestamp: 2025-11-06T00:32:06.000Z DPTI: [Moderator note: personal info removed] 7 Message: An unexpected error occurred. Tag: 4oggx Code: 1864098253 - Microsoft Q&A