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Apple Mail Not Updating on Mac? 11 Fixes (macOS 27)

Struggling with a Mac Mail inbox that won't refresh? From rebuilding your mailbox to fixing connection doctor errors, Canary Mail provides 10 proven ways to get your sync back on track for 2026 and ensure your professional workflow stays uninterrupted.

By:
Dev
Sanghani
Published:
January 1, 2024
Modified:
September 25, 2026

If Mac Mail is not updating your inbox, the messages are usually there. Mail on your Mac just isn't showing them yet. You might see new email on your iPhone or in webmail but not on the Mac, or it only appears after you click Get Mail. The fixes below are in the order to try them. Every menu path was checked against Mail in macOS 27, with notes where earlier versions differ.

Quick answer: The most common causes are new mail hidden by Mail Categories or a message filter, an account that Mail has taken offline, and a network or VPN problem. Try these first:

  1. Press Shift-Command-N (or click the Get Mail button) to check for new mail right now.
  2. Make sure you're looking at all your mail: switch from Primary to All Mail, and press Command-L if a message filter is on.
  3. Look for a lightning bolt or warning icon next to the account in the sidebar. If you see a lightning bolt, choose Mailbox > Take All Accounts Online.

If none of that helps, work through the fixes below. Rebuilding the mailbox and re-adding the account come later, because they take longer.

This guide is for mail that has reached your account but isn't showing up on your Mac. If the email never arrives anywhere, including webmail, see Mac Mail not receiving emails instead.

Mac Mail not updating: 11 fixes, in order

1. Check whether new mail is hidden

Apple lists this as the first thing to check, and it's the most common false alarm. Since macOS Sequoia 15.4, Mail can sort your inbox into four categories: Primary, Transactions, Updates and Promotions. New mail that lands in Updates or Promotions doesn't appear in Primary, so the inbox looks like it stopped updating.

  • Categories: Click All Mail at the top of the inbox to see every message. To turn categories off, choose View and deselect Show Mail Categories.
  • Message filter: If the filter is on, Mail only shows messages that match it (unread only, for example). Choose View > Filter > Disable Message Filter, or press Command-L.
  • Junk, rules and blocked senders: Check the Junk mailbox. Then look at Mail > Settings > Rules for a rule that moves messages out of the inbox, and at the Blocked list under Mail > Settings > Junk Mail.
  • Hidden accounts: Make sure the account's inbox appears in the sidebar under Mailboxes. If it's missing, the account may be turned off (see fix 7).

Apple's article If you can't see email messages in Mail on Mac covers these checks in more detail.

2. Look for a status icon and take accounts online

Mail shows a small icon next to an account's inbox in the sidebar when something is wrong. A lightning bolt means the account is offline: Mail isn't connecting to it, so nothing new comes in. A warning icon means Mail hit an error; click it to read what happened.

  • To reconnect every account, choose Mailbox > Take All Accounts Online.
  • To reconnect just one, use the Mailbox > Online Status menu, which lists each account and lets you take it online or offline.

If the account goes offline again straight away, Mail can't reach the server. Continue with fixes 3 and 5 to find out why.

3. Check your connection, VPN and webmail

Next, work out whether the problem is on your Mac or with your email provider.

  • Test webmail. Sign in to your account in a web browser (iCloud.com, Gmail, Outlook.com or your provider's site). If new messages appear there, the mail exists and the problem is on the Mac. If they don't, the problem is with the account or provider, and our guide to Mac Mail not receiving emails is the better place to start.
  • Check your internet connection. Make sure other websites load normally.
  • Turn off VPNs, firewalls and content filters for a moment. Apple notes that VPNs, firewall apps and some security software can block Mail's connections. If mail starts updating with them off, add an exception for Mail or change the VPN settings.
  • Check for an outage. For iCloud Mail, see Apple System Status. For Gmail, Outlook or another provider, check that provider's status page.

4. Quit and reopen Mail

Mail can get stuck on a background task and stop checking for mail. Choose Mail > Quit Mail (Command-Q), wait a few seconds, then open it again. If Mail doesn't respond, press Option-Command-Esc, select Mail and click Force Quit.

After it reopens, choose Mailbox > Synchronize All Accounts to make Mail compare every mailbox with the server. If Mail keeps freezing, see Mac Mail not responding. If it won't open again, see Mac Mail not opening.

5. Run Connection Doctor and watch the Activity window

Mail has two tools that show what it's doing behind the scenes. Both are still in macOS 27, even though Apple's current help pages no longer describe Connection Doctor.

  • Connection Doctor: Choose Window > Connection Doctor. It tests each account's incoming and outgoing connection. Accounts with a problem show a red status and a short description, such as a password or server error. Click Show Detail to see the connection log, and Check Again after you change something.
  • Activity: Choose Window > Activity, or press Control-Command-0. It shows what Mail is doing right now, such as checking or downloading messages for each account. If the same task sits there without progress, or nothing happens when you press Shift-Command-N, Mail isn't reaching that account.

If Connection Doctor reports that Mail can't connect to the server, follow our guide to Mac Mail not connecting to the server. If the problem is outgoing mail stuck in the Outbox rather than incoming mail, see Mac Mail Outbox stuck.

6. Check how often Mail looks for new messages

If new mail only appears when you click Get Mail, Mail may be set to check manually.

  1. Choose Mail > Settings, then click General.
  2. Open the Check for new messages menu.
  3. Choose Automatically. You can also pick a fixed interval: every minute, every 5, 15 or 30 minutes, or every hour. Manually means Mail only checks when you ask it to.

If Automatically still feels slow for an account, try Every minute to see whether the delay is a timing issue.

7. Make sure the account is enabled and the password is current

A turned-off account or an expired sign-in stops mail from coming in, sometimes without an obvious error.

  • In Mail: Choose Mail > Settings > Accounts, select the account, and make sure Enable this account is selected.
  • In System Settings: Open System Settings > Internet Accounts, click the account, and make sure Mail is turned on.
  • Password: If Mail asks for your password again and again, or Connection Doctor shows a sign-in error, check your account in System Settings > Internet Accounts. Re-enter the password, or sign in again for Google and Microsoft accounts. Then confirm the password works in webmail.

Apple's article If Mail keeps asking for your password on Mac has more steps. If Mail can't verify the account at all, see Mac Mail not verifying account.

8. Rebuild the mailbox

If the account is online and connected but the inbox still shows old mail, the copy stored on your Mac may be out of step with the server. Rebuilding makes Mail download that mailbox again.

  1. Select the mailbox in the sidebar (for example, the account's Inbox).
  2. Choose Mailbox > Rebuild.
  3. Wait for it to finish. You can follow progress in Window > Activity.

For IMAP, iCloud and Exchange accounts, Mail discards the messages and attachments stored on your Mac for that mailbox and downloads them again from the server. The mailbox can look empty until the download finishes, which may take a while for a large mailbox. Nothing is lost, because the originals stay on the server. Rebuild works on one mailbox at a time, so repeat it for each mailbox that isn't updating.

Before you rebuild: mailboxes under On My Mac and POP accounts may exist only on your Mac. Back them up first.

A rebuild also helps when messages are there but search can't find them. See Mac Mail search not working for that case.

9. Check storage on your Mac and on the mail server

There are two places where running out of space can stop new mail.

  • Your Mac: Mail needs free disk space to download messages. Check System Settings > General > Storage, and free up space if the disk is nearly full.
  • Your mailbox on the server: Control-click the account's mailbox in the Mail sidebar and choose Get Account Info to see how much of your mailbox quota you're using. If your iCloud storage is full, you can't send or receive iCloud Mail until you free up space or upgrade. Google says that when your Google account storage is full, your ability to send and receive Gmail can be affected. Other providers set their own limits.

10. Update macOS and check Mail extensions

Apple fixes Mail bugs in macOS updates, so make sure you're up to date.

  • Choose Apple menu > System Settings > General > Software Update and install any available update.
  • Apple also releases smaller security fixes between macOS updates. Since macOS 26.1 these are called Background Security Improvements; they used to be called Rapid Security Responses.

Then check Mail extensions. Old-style Mail plug-ins (Mail bundles) stopped working in macOS 14 Sonoma. Only Mail extensions remain, and they can still interfere with Mail. Choose Mail > Settings > Extensions, deselect each extension, and restart Mail. If mail starts updating, turn the extensions back on one at a time to find the one causing trouble.

11. Remove and re-add the account

Apple suggests this as the last step. It clears the account's setup and local data on your Mac and starts fresh.

  1. Before you start, copy any messages stored only on your Mac (On My Mac mailboxes or POP accounts) to another mailbox or back them up. They aren't on the server.
  2. Choose Mail > Settings > Accounts, select the account, and click the Remove button (minus sign).
  3. If other apps on your Mac use the account, such as Calendar or Contacts, Mail tells you to turn it off in Internet Accounts instead. Go to System Settings > Internet Accounts, click the account, and turn off Mail.
  4. Add the account again: choose Mail > Add Account, or turn Mail back on in Internet Accounts. Mail then downloads your mail from the server again.

Apple's article If you can't send or receive email on Mac covers the official checks in order.

Works on iPhone but not on Mac?

This is common, and it usually means the account is fine and the problem is on the Mac. Your iPhone and Mac each connect to the server separately and keep their own local copy of your mail. So one device can be up to date while the other is offline, has a stale mailbox, or is set to check less often.

On the Mac, check for a lightning bolt and take the account online (fix 2). Then check Settings > General > Check for new messages (fix 6) and rebuild the inbox (fix 8). Mail Categories are also set per device. If the iPhone shows every message and the Mac shows Primary only, new mail may be sitting in Updates or Promotions on the Mac (fix 1).

If Apple Mail keeps failing

If you've worked through all 11 fixes and Mail still falls behind, contact your email provider. They can check for server-side problems with your account. If you'd rather switch apps, we make Canary Mail, an email app for Mac, iPhone, iPad, Windows and Android that works with Gmail, Outlook, iCloud, Exchange and IMAP accounts. Our comparison of email clients for Mac covers other options too.

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FAQs

Why is Mail on my Mac not updating when my iPhone is?

Each device syncs with your mail server on its own, so the account is usually fine and the Mac is the problem. The most common causes are an account that's offline on the Mac (look for a lightning bolt), Mail Categories hiding new mail, a manual check setting, or a stale local mailbox. Take the account online, check All Mail, set Check for new messages to Automatically, and rebuild the inbox if needed.

How do I force Mail to refresh on a Mac?

Press Shift-Command-N or click the Get Mail button in the toolbar. To make Mail compare every mailbox with the server, choose Mailbox > Synchronize All Accounts. If a mailbox still looks wrong, select it and choose Mailbox > Rebuild.

Why is my Mac Mail account offline (lightning bolt)?

The lightning bolt means Mail isn't connected to that account, often after a network drop, a VPN change or a sign-in error. Choose Mailbox > Take All Accounts Online, or use Mailbox > Online Status for a single account. If it goes offline again, open Window > Connection Doctor to see which connection fails, and check the account's password.

Will I lose email if I rebuild a mailbox?

Not for IMAP, iCloud or Exchange accounts. Mail discards the copy on your Mac and downloads the messages again from the server, so the mailbox may look empty until it finishes. Mailboxes under On My Mac and POP accounts can exist only on your Mac, so back them up before you rebuild them.

How often does Mail check for new messages?

You choose in Mail > Settings > General > Check for new messages. The options are Automatically, every minute, every 5, 15 or 30 minutes, every hour, or Manually. Apple doesn't say how often Automatically checks. If mail seems slow, try Every minute.

Why are new emails missing from my inbox but in Promotions or Updates?

That's Mail Categories, added in macOS Sequoia 15.4. Mail sorts incoming messages into Primary, Transactions, Updates and Promotions, and only Primary shows by default when categories are on. Click All Mail to see everything, or choose View and deselect Show Mail Categories to turn them off.