Is sending emails from your website just not working? This problem can be solved by setting up SMTP in WordPress. Let me show you how to do it.
WordPress sends emails using php code. However, some hostings do not have this feature configured or they completely disabled it. In this case, your mail is not delivered. In this article, we’ll discuss how to easily solve such a problem by setting up SMTP in WordPress.
Table of Contents
What is SMTP?
SMTP is a simple mail transfer protocol that allows the transfer of email between stations.
WP Mail SMTP plugin
First of all, you need to install the WP Mail SMTP plugin. To install this plugin, go to the Plugins> Add New in site administration. For more detailed instructions, see the post What is the WordPress plugin? How to install it? Once installed, a new menu item appears in the administration menu.
Creating email address via cPanel
To send emails from a website, you can create a new email address with your domain name. The procedure is simple:
First, you create an email account. I’ll show you how to create it on cPanel. If your hosting provider uses a different account management system, create one on another hosting service. The process of creation should be very similar.
Sign into your account on the hosting service. Then look for the E-mail> E-mail Accounts in the menu.
You will see a form on the screen where you will fill in all necessary data. If you want your email address to include your domain name, make sure to replace it in your default hosting settings.
Before you start using the new address to send messages in WordPress, look for the data in the hosting provider’s menu:
- Host for new email
- Login port
If you fail to find them, contact hosting support.
Setting up of SMTP in WordPress
For setting up, click WP Mail SMTP> Settings in your website administration. You will enter all necessary data here.
Sender Email – The email address from which messages are sent. This will appear as the sender’s email to the recipient of the message.
Sender Name – set the sender’s name to be displayed to the recipients of the message.
There is a Force From Email line next to the sender’s name and email. If you check the box in this line, the Sender Email or Sender Name setting will be applied to all emails and it will ignore the values set by other plugins.
Data settings:
Return Path – The return path indicates where to send notifications that a message has not been delivered. Tick it to set up your email address.
Mailer – choose whether to send e-mails via SMTP or via PHP. In the example, we chose Other SMTP.
SMTP provider – fill in the host server. There are well-known services like Gmail, Mailgun and SendGrid. There is also the possibility to choose another provider.
Encryption – There are three options to choose from. For most servers, TLS encryption is recommended. Some servers use both TLS and SSL. In this case, it is better to enter TLS. Contact your hosting provider to determine what encryption your server uses.
SMTP Port – 465 is normally used. This number is also entered for a Google provider.
Auto TLS – this button is switched on automatically. Turn it off only if the server is configured incorrectly, causing problems.
Authentication – if you deactivate this button, the user and password fields will not be displayed.
User – set the user to log in to the SMTP server. You can use your email address.
Password — password to log in to the SMTP server. I recommend using a strong password.
Make sure to click the Save Settings button after entering all the data.
Sending of test e-mail
At the end, you can test your settings by sending a test email. Scroll to the top of the page. In the plugin menu you will find the option Email Test. Click on it to see this page:
Sent To — set the address to which the test email should be sent.
HTML — here you choose whether the message will be sent as plain text or in HTML format.
Click Send Email to send the email.
Advantages of WP Mail SMTP Pro
In addition to the basic version, the Pro version also provides following useful features:
- White Glove Set Up service – installing and configuring the WP Mail SMTP plugin by experts instead of you.
- Email Log – a list of all emails sent from your website. Especially useful for websites where many automated messages such as forums, e-shops, etc. are sent. This way you can easily check the operation of the website in one place.
- Notification Management – allows you to control which notifications the website sends.
- Amazon SES integration, Gmail / G Suite, Mailgun, Office 365, Outlook.com, SendGrid…
Troubleshooting
The most common problems encountered in setting up SMTP in WordPress are entering the wrong host, encryption, or port. Contact your hosting provider for this information. If the setting does not work, make sure you enter it correctly.
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