Unable to add outlook.com email account to Apple Mail on Mac

For me the solution on my apple mail on MacBook Air Tahoe 26.0.1 turned out to be deleting all VPN configurations then use a manual SMTP port - in my case 587, use TSL, authentication password & then reselecting Automatically manage connections. After restarting my mail was working again for all 5 accounts

Thanks! I also have a new MacBook Pro. I did a clean install of MacOS Tahoe and then used the migration assistant to import my data from my old Mac. Then I couldn't successfully log in to my Hotmail account using Apple Mail anymore.

Following your advice, I selected the iPhone as the wifi network and logging in to my Hotmail account was successful right away.

After all the messages were downloaded, I reconnected to the network via my home router and the connection still works!

It's probably a stronger authentication required when creating an account, after which the connection works as before. Maybe there's some kind of protection on my home router that prevented authentication.

What fixed the problem for me on my Macbook Air '13 (2025) is adding multiple accounts before adding Microsoft Exchange, such as Yahoo, Google etc. After that I tried it again, and worked without “failed authentication or unverified account” problems.

If it's a Outlook or Hotmail address use the Outlook.app on the app store. Until Apple can put in the security features in Mail, I doubt that we ever be able to access Outlook or Hotmail in Mail. It has been like this for a year since we went through this with Sequoia last year.

Also having this issue, and I just spent an hour on the phone with Apple Support. I believe this is a coding issue between Microsoft and Apple. The senior advisor I spoke with is elevating it and looking into it more. Might have to wait for next update to fix.

Yes, I have this same issue. The issue persists on Sequoia 15.7.1, and on the latest version of Tahoe.

On macOS where I already had the account added, it continue to works. However, if I remove the account, and then try to add it back, that is when I noticed the issue.

Additionally, I just purchased a Mac Mini M4 with Sequoia, from Apple directly. Same thing, "Authentication failed" trying to add my Outlook Dot Com email account. To add, after upgrading to Tahoe, as per the hour plus conversation with Apple support, same issue.

Honestly, I wouldn't be as bothered, if I just used Outlook Dot Com for email. But, I want my Calendar and Contacts on macOS. Thus, the likes of iMessage will show who messages are from, versus just a phone number.

The tips about using a different SMTP, does not work for Outlook Dot Com accounts...

You can try this but there is no guarantees that it will work.

Click the '+' button to add a new account.

Choose 'Other Mail Account...' and click 'Continue.'

Enter your email address and name, then click 'Continue.'

Select 'IMAP' or 'Exchange' based on your Outlook account type.

For Exchange, choose 'Microsoft Exchange' and enter your email and password.

For IMAP, use incoming server: outlook.office365.com and outgoing server: smtp.office365.com.

Click 'Sign In' or 'Continue' to authenticate your account.

If connection issues arise, remove and re-add your Outlook account.

Use the automatic setup feature by selecting 'Microsoft

Exchange' and entering your email.

Ensure correct email address and password to avoid setup problems.

Consider using the Outlook app for Mac if issues persist.

See my TIP@ TIP: You Can Now Add Your Outlook and Hot… - Apple Community

I'm currently encountering the same issue. Adding outlook.com mailbox to the mail app on Mac is not working.

I feel this might due to an insufficient support macOS currently have on Microsoft authentication methods over outlook.com accounts. My student account works when adding through the Microsoft exchange option but my personal email just doesn't work.

Hope they are providing available solutions soon or I'll have no ways to access all my mailbox easily.

I am having the exact same issue. It was working fine originally. I started getting some odd virus notifications within my email (I believe my program was flagging files innacurately), so I decided to try deleting my mail account and re-adding it. First it says "authentication failed". When I try to input my credentials manually, it states that "a personal account is not supported for this application unless explicitly invited to an organization. Try signing out and signing back in with an organizational account". I've tried contacting Geek Squad, and they told me it was a problem with Microsoft and I needed to contact them. I've been trying, but the wait time has been ridiculous.

I have the exact same issue and have tried every troubleshooting step I could find. Something has changed with one of the recent updates, causing this to break. I don’t use my Mail app a ton on my Mac, but I know my Microsoft email account was functioning correctly with the Mail App around a month ago or so.

It was resolved yesterday but I ran into a problem with Apple Mail and the Outlook.app this morning and until I figure what going on on Microsoft servers I'll just use the Outlook.app and keep my Outlook and Hotmail email addresses off of Apple Mail.

I am having the same issue and have been trying the recommendation few times without success. But, the account works well on iPhone, only on Mac after Tahoe 26.0.1. With 26.0 had no issues.