Google is sunsetting two core features—Gmailify and web-based POP mail retrieval—by January 2027, cutting off the continuous flow of external messages into primary inboxes for users who fail to update their settings, according to reporting by Jiří Pacovský on Mobify.cz. While existing messages will remain safe and a one-time import tool stays active, millions of people who set up external account aggregation years ago face interrupted mail delivery unless they manually reconfigure their accounts.
What Google Is Shutting Down and Why
The upcoming changes target two distinct features that allowed Gmail to pull in external correspondence from services like Yahoo, Outlook, and AOL. According to Mobify.cz, Gmailify acted as an advanced integration layer that dressed external accounts in Gmail’s native design—adding spam filtering, prioritized categories, advanced search operators, and enhanced mobile notifications. Meanwhile, the “Check mail from other accounts” feature relied on the POP protocol to periodically copy new messages straight into the main inbox without applying Gmail’s extra filters. Google disabled both features for new users after the first quarter of 2026, and existing connections will stop working completely by January 2027. Industry analysts note that this shift aligns with Google’s broader strategy to phase out older, less secure authentication methods in favor of modern OAuth protocols and direct app connections.
How to Check If Your Account Is Affected
Checking for active external integrations takes less than a minute on a desktop computer, as outlined by Mobify.cz. Users must open Gmail, click the gear icon in the upper-right corner, select “See all settings,” and navigate to the “Accounts and Import” tab. Within the “Check mail from other accounts” section, any listed external email address indicates an impacted setup. If an address displays the “Gmailify” label, the account relies on advanced integration features that will soon disappear. Inboxes with empty fields in this section require no further action.
Pro Tip: Users running legacy collection inboxes for Seznam, custom domains, or corporate Outlook accounts face the highest risk of sudden mail outages because these background syncs were often configured years ago and easily forgotten.
Official Replacements: Forwarding and IMAP
To prevent incoming messages from stopping in January 2027, Google points users toward two official alternatives. The first option involves enabling automatic forwarding directly within the settings of the original email provider, such as navigating to Settings > Mail > Forwarding on Outlook.com. Google recommends pairing this step by adding the external address to Gmail’s “Send mail as” feature to prevent forwarded messages from landing in the spam folder. The second option connects the external account as an independent IMAP stream inside the mobile Gmail app. While IMAP synchronizes changes across devices, it keeps the external inbox separate and omits Gmail’s custom spam filters and category tabs, according to Mobify.cz.
Did You Know? For Czech users utilizing Seznam’s Email.cz, IMAP connections are officially supported, though automatic forwarding availability on free Seznam accounts must be verified directly through individual account settings or customer support.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I lose my old emails when Gmailify and POP shut down?
No. According to Google’s official documentation cited by Mobify.cz, all previously synchronized messages will remain safely in your Gmail inbox.
Can I still use one-time imports after 2027?
Yes. While ongoing POP retrieval and Gmailify are ending, the one-time web import tool for historical mail and contacts remains available.
Is the “Send mail as” feature being removed?
No. Google confirms that the “Send mail as” function remains active and is actively recommended alongside forwarding setups.