Experiencing Slow Email Sending? This May Help.

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3. Experiencing Slow Email Sending? This May Help.

 

Have you experienced slow email sending since the pandemic began? A port change may be an easy fix.

A few clients have mentioned that since the pandemic hit they've experienced occasional issues with sending email. The typical symptom is that the email will sit in the 'Outbox' for an extended period of time, up to several minutes, before finally being sent. After some research and testing, it appears this is being caused at the ISP level if you're using an outdated port setting.

Many web hosts and ISPs used to recommend email clients be set to send mail via port 25. However, port 25 is actually intended for communication from mail server to mail server, not from a client (i.e. your email application) to a mail server. Although this does still work, it is not currently the most recommended method.

When the receiving server is busy (which every server on the planet is at the moment with the vast majority of the world's workforce telecommuting) port 25 will be the first to bog down and cause delays. The preferred ports for sending email are either port 587 or port 465. If you're experiencing this issue, look at your email applications 'Outgoing Mail Server (SMTP)' setting and see if it needs updated. In the couple of clients we've assisted, this fixed their issues immediately.

If you have any questions regarging your email settings or preferences, please contact us!