How to fix Mail not working on iPhone after iOS 17 update

If your iPhone Mail app is not working after iOS 17 update, there are plenty of different solutions you can try to fix the problem.

• If Mail is not working after iOS 17 update try refreshing, restarting, or reinstalling the Mail app.
• Ensure Background App Refresh is enabled and email addresses and passwords are correct.
• Check iOS Fetch, Mail and notification settings, and the outboxes of linked email accounts.

Apple Mail is a popular email client among iPhone, iPad, and Mac users since it comes pre-installed on these devices. But like any other software, it can sometimes run into problems. Fortunately, there are several troubleshooting solutions that you can try if Mail is not working after iOS 17 update.

Whether you’re having trouble sending or receiving emails, experiencing crashes, or encountering other problems with Apple Mail after updating to iOS 17, we’ve got you covered. Learn why Mail is not working after iOS 17 update and how to fix the problem.

Without further ado, here are the possible reasons why Mail is not working after iOS 17 update and a few solutions to fix it.

Check your internet connection

If you’re not getting emails on your iPhone after iOS 17 update, it could be that your phone is not connected to the internet, and you should make sure that it is.

Try testing other apps or websites to see if they work. You can do something as simple as launching Google and searching for anything. If this works, it means your internet is OK. Are other devices working? Check if you have any. If nothing else works, you might be off the grid.

Start by checking if Airplane Mode is on. Those using Wi-Fi or LAN should look at the router and see if it’s connected. Try restarting it. There’s usually a dedicated button, but you can also unplug the router and plug it back in.

If you’re using cellular data, you might want to see if your data connection is on.

1. Launch the Settings app.
2. Go into Cellular.
3. Make sure Cellular Data is toggled on.

Those using a VPN, try turning it off to see if that solves your problem. Go to Settings > General, VPN and Device Management > VPN. If VPN is connected, disconnect it.

Close and reopen Mail

This is a simple, yet very functional troubleshooting tip that works most of the time. Often, simply closing and reopening Mail might fix any local issues.

1. Unlock your iPhone and bring up the App Switcher.
2. On iPhone XR or newer, swipe up from the bottom of the screen.
3. On iPhone SE (second generation) or newer, press the **Home **button twice.
4. Find the Mail app’s card from the list of app cards in the App Switcher and swipe it up so it disappears.

Open the Mail app again — manually refresh it if you have to.

Manually refresh the Mail app

If you are not receiving emails after iOS 17 update, you can try manually refreshing the app to see if the emails will update.

1. Open the Mail app.
2. Drag your finger down on the screen and release it once the spinning wheel becomes full. You will know it’s time to release your finger when you feel your iPhone vibrate as you drag the finger down.
3. Wait for the Mail app to refresh.

Make sure Background App Refresh is enabled

Sometimes, it could be that the app is not refreshing its content in the background, making it seem as if Mail is not working. It’s best to check if you have enabled Background App Refresh.

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Tap General.
3. Tap Background App Refresh.
4. Check where it says Background App Refreshat the top. If it’s set to Off, tap the option.5. Choose how you want the content of apps to be updated in the background — tap either Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi & Mobile Data.

Check that your email address and password are entered correctly

One of the most common problems with email is that your password is incorrect — if you changed your password on another device, you’ll need to change it on your iPhone, too.

When the Mail application prompts you to re-enter your password, ensure that you’ve entered it correctly.

Delete and re-add email account

It could be that not all the email accounts attached to the Mail app are failing to update, except for one or two. You can try removing the problematic accounts and re-adding them to see if they start updating again.

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Tap Mail.
3. Tap Accounts.
4. Tap the troublesome account.
5. Tap Delete Account.
6. Tap Delete from My iPhone.
7. You will then be returned to the Accounts page. Tap Add Account and follow instructions to re-add the email account.

Check iOS Mail Fetch

Your phone’s default settings for fetching new emails are based on the settings available through your email provider. If your provider doesn’t support Push notifications (where emails are sent to your phone as they arrive, in real time), it will automatically enable Fetch (where your phone retrieves emails regularly at preset times).

These settings impact how your phone receives emails. To adjust them:

1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Go to Mail.
3. Tap Accounts.
4. Tap Fetch New Data.
5. Make sure the toggle for **Push **is turned on — if it has a gray background, tap it so it becomes green, meaning it’s turned on. You can also adjust how often data is "fetched" on this page.

Check your Mail settings

Check that Apple has the right account settings for your email server provider.

Note: Backing up your mail through iCloud or iTunes only backs up your email settings, not individual emails. If you edit or delete your email account settings, emails that were previously downloaded onto your phone may be removed.

Though Apple automatically sets the email account settings, you can check that they’re correct. To do this:

1. Launch the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Tap Mail.
3. Tap Accounts.
4. Tap your email account to select it.
5. Tap **Account **to see the email account’s settings.
6. Check the incoming and outgoing mail server settings, and make sure they match the recommended settings on Apple’s Mail Settings Lookup page.

Quick tip: To use the Mail Settings Lookup page on the Apple website, enter your email address in the text box and click Look up settings.

Check your notification settings

There’s a chance you might be receiving emails without being notified. To ensure that you’re receiving the email notifications you want, check your notification settings. To do this:

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Tap Notifications.
3. Tap Mail.
4. Tap Customize Notifications.
5. 1. Select the email account you want to customize notifications for.
6. Adjust alerts, sounds, and badges.

Check your outbox

If you’re not getting emails, you might not be able to send them either.

After you troubleshoot your email settings, check your Outbox, which stores unsent messages, to ensure that everything has been sent properly.

To do this:

1. Launch the Mail app.
2. Your email accounts will be listed under separate headings — the account’s name will be the heading. Find the Outbox folder of the email account you want and tap it to select it.
   **Important: **If there are no messages in your Outbox, your phone may not display an Outbox folder.
3. If you’re able to open your Outbox and see your unsent email, tap it to ensure that the recipient’s email address is correct.
4. Tap Send to try sending again.

If all else fails, contact your email provider or system administrator for additional troubleshooting assistance.

Uninstall and reinstall the Mail app

If all the above methods don’t work, try deleting the Mail app and then reinstalling it again.

1. Find the Mail app. Tap and hold onto it for a couple or few seconds.
2. Select Remove App.
3. Confirm by tapping on Delete App.
4. Go to the Apple App Store and reinstall Mail.

Restart your iPhone

It may sound silly, but this is seriously the most common troubleshooting tip, and it seems to work most times. Seriously, whenever you’re having problems with your tech, just restart it. It just may fix it.

1. If you’re using an iPhone XR or newer, simultaneously press and hold the Side buttonand either of the Volume buttons. On iPhone SE (second generation) or newer, press and hold down the Side buttononly. Do this until the power off slider appears
2. Drag the power off slider to the right to shut down the phone.
3. Press and hold the Side button to restart your iPhone.

Solve Your Apple Mail Issues

There’s no need to panic if Mail is not working after iOS 17 update. You can resolve the problems by trying the troubleshooting solutions we discussed.

Regardless of the issue you’re experiencing with Apple Mail, one or more of these fixes will help you get back on your email connections. And if none of them helped, you can always contact Apple Support for expert assistance.