Connecting your email to Claude takes about two minutes. You connect your existing inbox through Connect My Email, paste the connector URL into Claude's settings, and you're done. Claude can immediately read, search, and sweep your real inbox — no new mailbox to create, no command-line tools, no code.
The key word is real inbox. The value of connecting email to an AI assistant isn't just reading new messages. It's giving Claude access to years of actual context: receipts, client threads, travel records, old project conversations, and the emails you forgot existed until you suddenly need them. A fresh AI mailbox can't do that.
What Connect My Email actually is
Connect My Email is a hosted MCP (Model Context Protocol) connector. When you connect your inbox through CME, Claude gains tools for reading messages, searching by sender or keyword, running inbox sweeps, and (on paid plans) taking write actions like drafting replies or archiving in bulk. Nothing installs locally — the connection lives in Claude's connector settings.
Which email providers are supported
Connect My Email supports Gmail, Outlook, iCloud, Yahoo, Fastmail, ProtonMail, Zoho, AOL, and generic IMAP-style accounts.
Gmail and Outlook connect via OAuth — you authorize access through your provider's standard login flow. iCloud, Yahoo, Fastmail, ProtonMail, Zoho, and AOL typically use app-specific passwords. If your provider requires one, CME's setup flow will tell you exactly what to generate and where to paste it. IMAP accounts follow the same app-password pattern with your server host and port added.
The right order: read first, act later
The most common mistake with any email automation tool is enabling write actions before you've verified the tool understands your inbox. The better sequence is:
- Connect and verify the inbox is readable
- Run a sweep to see what's actually in there
- Review the categories and sender patterns
- Simulate any cleanup action before it executes
- Upgrade to write actions when you're confident in the results
Connect My Email's free plan covers steps 1–4: read access, search, inbox sweep, and cleanup simulation without touching a single email. The fastest way to trust a tool is to watch it explain what it would do before it does anything.
What you can do on the free plan
The free plan connects one inbox and gives you:
- Full read and search access
- Inbox sweep that classifies your mail into categories (human, newsletter, automated, notification, unknown)
- Sender ranking — who is sending you the most mail
- Cleanup simulation — Claude shows you exactly what a bulk action would do before any email moves
- Free sweep and report for inboxes up to 25,000 emails per scan
That last point matters: a sweep of a large inbox is free. You get a full diagnosis before deciding whether to clean anything up.
What's available on paid plans
Pro ($9/month) unlocks three inboxes, write actions (draft, reply, send, move, delete, flag), recurring inbox scans, and up to 25,000 cleanup actions per month.
Power ($25/month) supports up to 10 inboxes, 150,000 cleanup actions per month, and a priority processing queue.
If you want a one-time deep clean rather than an ongoing subscription, the One-Time Sweep is $19 and handles a single inbox with up to 250,000 emails.
Three prompts to try right away
Once your inbox is connected, these three prompts give you a fast sense of what Claude can do:
List my mailboxes.— confirms the connection is workingShow me my 10 most recent unread emails.— proves real inbox accessSweep my inbox and show me the biggest cleanup opportunities.— produces the full category and sender breakdown
From there you can ask Claude to find emails from a specific sender, locate a receipt from two years ago, or simulate archiving a whole category. The sweep report is usually the aha moment.
FAQ
Does this only work with Gmail?
No. Connect My Email supports Gmail, Outlook, iCloud, Yahoo, Fastmail, ProtonMail, Zoho, AOL, and generic IMAP accounts. If you use a less common provider, the IMAP path handles most standard configurations.
Can Claude send email on my behalf automatically?
Not without your explicit approval. Write actions — drafting, replying, sending, moving, deleting — are Pro features, and Claude proposes the action before executing it. You review what Claude intends to do and confirm before anything is sent or changed.
What should I try first?
Start with the inbox sweep. It's the fastest way to go from "I connected my inbox" to "I understand what's actually in here." The sweep classifies mail, ranks senders, and produces a cleanup preview — all without touching a single message.
Is my email data stored by Connect My Email?
Connect My Email connects to your inbox to run queries on your behalf. For accurate and current details on data handling, review the privacy policy at connectmyemail.com before connecting.
Can I use this with Google Workspace?
Gmail and Google Workspace accounts use the same OAuth path. Workspace accounts may have admin policies governing third-party app connections — check with your IT team before connecting a managed work account.
Ready to connect your real inbox? Start with the free plan — no credit card needed. Explore what Claude can do with your email at /tools, compare plans at /pricing, or run a free inbox scan at /free-email-cleaner.