Email & Gmail Integration with OpenClaw
Connect your inbox to OpenClaw and turn email from a daily chore into something your AI agent handles for you. Setup, workflows, and safety in one guide.
Your Inbox Is Where Your AI Agent Should Live
Most people spend 2-3 hours a day on email. Most of those emails are routine - status updates, confirmations, newsletters, replies that write themselves. Connecting OpenClaw to your inbox doesn't mean letting an AI take over your communication. It means letting it handle the boring 80% so you can focus on the 20% that actually matters.
This guide covers the full integration: connecting Gmail and other providers, what your agent can actually do once connected, how to set up safe workflows, and what to watch out for.
What Your Agent Can Do With Email Access
Once connected, OpenClaw can do everything you'd expect a good assistant to do with your inbox:
- Daily inbox summary
- Group by sender, project, urgency
- Extract action items
- Highlight what needs a response
- Draft responses for your approval
- Match your writing style
- Send approved replies
- Follow up on unanswered threads
- Auto-categorize with labels
- Archive newsletters
- Flag urgent threads
- Build searchable memory of important emails
- Send confirmations and receipts
- Log expenses from emailed invoices
- Schedule meetings from email threads
- Track project updates from regular senders
Three Ways to Connect Email to OpenClaw
Sign in with Google, pick scopes, grant access. Quick and secure. Best for personal Gmail accounts. See our Gmail connection guide for step-by-step.
Works with Gmail, Outlook, iCloud, ProtonMail Bridge, Fastmail, and any IMAP-capable inbox. You need an app-specific password from your provider. Full provider details further below.
For work email, OAuth is usually smoother but may need IT approval. IMAP works if OAuth is blocked. Personal Outlook accounts can use either.
Quick Gmail Setup (OAuth Path)
The fastest way to get going if you have a personal Gmail:
- In OpenClaw, open the channels or integrations config
- Choose Gmail and follow the OAuth flow
- Pick the scopes you want (read-only is safest to start)
- Test by asking your agent to summarize today's unread email
For IMAP/SMTP with an app password, the config block looks like this:
{
"integrations": {
"email": {
"provider": "gmail",
"imap": {
"host": "imap.gmail.com",
"port": 993,
"user": "you@gmail.com",
"appPassword": "your-app-password"
},
"smtp": {
"host": "smtp.gmail.com",
"port": 465
}
}
}
}For full provider configs (Outlook, iCloud, etc.), see OpenClaw Email Setup Guide.
Skip the OAuth setup entirely.
Ampere.sh handles email integration in the dashboard. Click connect, sign in to Gmail, and your agent has inbox access. No config files, no app passwords.
Email Workflows Worth Setting Up
Connection is just the start. The real value comes from workflows. Here are the ones that pay off fastest:
Every weekday at 8 AM, your agent reads overnight email, summarizes the urgent ones, archives newsletters, and sends you a clean digest. Saves 30+ minutes a day.
When emails need a response, your agent drafts the reply in your voice and queues it for your approval. You skim, edit if needed, and approve. Way faster than starting from scratch.
Your agent watches sent emails. If a reply doesn't come within X days, it reminds you or drafts a follow-up. No more important threads slipping through.
Receipts come into your inbox. Your agent extracts the amount, vendor, and date, then logs them to a spreadsheet, accounting tool, or sends a summary at month-end.
For businesses: incoming inquiries get parsed for company, role, intent. High-fit leads get tagged or routed to your CRM. Low-fit gets a polite auto-reply. Combine with business automation workflows for more.
Setting It Up Safely
Email is sensitive. Set up access the smart way:
- Start with read-only - let your agent observe before letting it act
- Require manual approval for sending - especially while you're testing
- Use app passwords, not main passwords - they can be revoked individually
- Limit scopes - if your agent only needs to read inbox, don't grant send or delete
- Test on a secondary inbox first - never start with your primary account
- Review what gets sent - check sent items for the first week to confirm behavior
- Set rate limits - prevent runaway loops from sending hundreds of messages
Common Setup Issues
| Problem | Likely Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| OAuth fails | App not approved, wrong scopes | Re-authorize with correct scopes |
| IMAP connection refused | Wrong port, app password not set | Use port 993 (IMAP) and 465 or 587 (SMTP), generate app password |
| Agent can't see new emails | Polling interval too long | Reduce polling interval in config |
| Replies not sending | SMTP auth failed or rate limited | Check SMTP credentials and provider sending limits |
| Wrong replies sent | Auto-send enabled too early | Switch back to approval-required mode |
For deeper debugging, see our bot not responding guide.
The Easiest Way: Use Ampere.sh
Setting up Gmail OAuth, generating app passwords, configuring IMAP ports, and tweaking SMTP is doable but tedious. Ampere.sh handles email integration in the dashboard - sign in to Gmail, pick scopes, done.
You also get pre-built email workflows (morning brief, draft replies, follow-up tracker) ready to enable, so you skip the prompt engineering too.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can OpenClaw read and reply to my email?
Is it safe to give an AI agent access to my email?
Does OpenClaw work with Gmail, Outlook, and other providers?
What can I actually do with email + OpenClaw?
How long does Gmail integration take to set up?
Will my agent send emails I didn't approve?
Can I use this with my work email?
Also Read
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