8 Best Fixes for Gmail Login Failed in Mail App on Mac

The Mail app lets you access your Gmail account on Mac. If your Gmail is not working on Chrome, you can log in and manage your email account using the default Mail app of macOS. Sometimes, users complain of being unable to access their Gmail account using the Mail app.

Some users fail to authenticate their Gmail account in the Mail app on Mac. If you are also facing the same, we bring some working solutions to fix the Gmail login failure in the Mail app on Mac.

1. Check Your Internet Connection

Starting with some basic solutions, we suggest running a speed test on your Mac to check the strength of your internet connection. If you have a dual-band Wi-Fi router, we suggest switching to a 5GHz frequency band and sitting closer to the router. Try logging in again to your Gmail account. If this doesn’t help, refer to the next solutions.

2. Check Email Address and Password

If you have multiple email accounts in the Mail app, sometimes you might use the wrong Gmail account. Also, check the password you are entering is correct.

3. Force Quit and Relaunch Mail App

The next basic solution is to force quit and restart the Mail app to give it a fresh start on your Mac. This should help solve the issue and make you log in to your Gmail account.

Step 1: Click the Apple logo in the top-left corner of the Menu bar.

Step 2: Select Force Quit.

Step 3: Select Mail from the list of options and click on Force Quit on the bottom-right side.

Step 4: Relaunch the Mail app and try logging in again.

4. Enable IMAP Access

IMAP or Internet Messaged Access Protocols lets you download mail to your computer from servers and access them on email clients like the Mail app on your Mac. So you should check if IMAP access has been enabled for Gmail.

Step 1: Open Gmail website in browser on your Mac.

Gmail Website

Step 2: Sign in to your account.

Step 3: Click the Settings icon in the top-right corner.

Step 4: Click on See All Settings.

Step 5: Click on Forwarding and POP/IMAP in the top Menu Bar.

Step 6: Scroll down and click on Enable IMAP.

Step 7: Scroll down to the bottom and click on Save Changes.

Step 8: Open the Mail app and check if the problem is solved.

5. Enable Access for Less Secure Apps

Your Google account suggests limiting email access for apps with less security. Your Google account may have considered the Mail app on your Mac to be a less secure one. Here’s how you can check and fix the same. Note that this option won’t be available for accounts with Two-Factor Authentication turned on.

Step 1: Open Google Account page in a browser on your Mac and sign in to your Google account.

Google Account

Step 2: On the Google Account page, click the profile icon in the top-right corner.

Step 3: Click on Manage Your Google Account.

Step 4: Click on Security from the left menu.

Step 5: Scroll down and click on Less Secure App Access.

Step 6: Turn on the toggle next to ‘Allow less secure apps’ to enable the feature, if disabled.

Step 7: Close the browser window and open the Mail app to check if the problem is solved.

6. Switch to Safari as Default Browser

Whenever you sign in to your email account using the Mail app, the authentication process takes place in your browser. If you are not using Safari as your default browser, you can try doing that to fix the Gmail login error in the Mail app. Here’s how.

Step 1: Press Command + Spacebar to open Spotlight Search, type System Settings, and press Return.

Step 2: Scroll down and click on Desktop and Dock.

Step 3: Scroll down and click the dropdown menu next to Default Browser.

Step 4: Select Safari.

Step 5: Close the window and check in the Mail app if the problem is solved.

7. Use Safe Mode

Safe Mode on Mac troubleshoots any issue related to system apps like the Mail app. Your Mac will prevent loading any third-party applications in Safe Mode to check if it is the whole system or a particular program that’s causing issues. You can read our post to learn about how to use Safe Mode on Mac.

8. Update the Mail App

Lastly, you can update the version of the Mail app by updating macOS. This should help by removing any bugs or glitches in the Mail app that are causing this Gmail login failure on your Mac.

Step 1: Press Command + Spacebar to open Spotlight Search, type Check For Software Updates, and press Return.

Step 2: If an update is available, download and install it.

Step 3: After your Mac reboots, launch the Mail app and check if the problem is solved.

Use Gmail on Mac

These solutions should resolve the Gmail login failure issue with the Mail app on Mac. You can also read our post if the Apple Mail search is not working on your Mac.