If you’ve been using your Gmail address to manage or maybe mask other, potentially embarrassing email addresses, you’re going to lose that ability this January.
Google is ending the “Send as” feature for third-party email accounts for personal accounts. “Send as” lets you send emails from other services like Yahoo, Outlook, Hotmail (yes, there are some of us who still have our original email accounts alongside our Gmail ones), as well as from custom domains using a Gmail address.
Those who have Workspace accounts or who use the feature as an alias for other Gmail addresses will not be affected by this change.
Google is also discontinuing Gmailify, which allows you to use Gmail features like spam protection and inbox organization on your third-party email account. Examples include spam protection or inbox organization, as well as POP on the web, which fetch emails from third-party accounts into your Gmail account with POP.
Timeline for the change
The changes won’t happen overnight. Google provided a timeline for the implementation.
Google is currently alerting those using “Send as” about the end of the feature. Those not currently using the feature won’t be able to implement it. Then in January 2027, it will officially stop working for existing users.
Any messages already imported into Gmail will still be available. You can also receive and view new emails in the Gmail app for Android, iPhone, and iPad, though you will not be able to send or sync any from your Gmail.
For Gmailify and POP, new users will not be able to select these features. Existing users can still use them until January 2027.
Google does not recommend alternatives
Of course, ending “Send as” does not end access to your third-party accounts. You can continue to use them on the web or within their own apps.
Google cautions against using other services for “Send as” functionality, saying “they often require access to your email credentials or OAuth tokens. This can expose your account to security and privacy risks.”
