How to Remove an Email Account on an iPhone

By Steve Gregory

In iOS 8.3, the option to remove an email account from your iPhone is not in the native Mail app, but through the Mail, Contacts, Calendars section of your iPhone's Settings menu. The deletion process only stops your iPhone from exchanging messages with your email account; it does not affect your account's original settings and options.

Warning

If you use another email client app to access your email account, such as Microsoft Outlook for iPhone, CloudMagic or Boxer, you have to use that app's Settings menu to remove the account.

Removing your account also deletes all associated account information, such as calendar and contact information
Image Credit: Image courtesy of Apple

Step 1

Open the Settings screen by clicking the Settings icon on your iPhone's Home screen.

Tip

If the Settings icon is not on the Home screen, use the Spotlight search feature to find the icon. Swipe down from the center of the Home screen and type Settings in the Spotlight search bar.

IPhone Home screen
Image Credit: Image courtesy of Apple

Step 2

Scroll down the Settings screen and then select Mail, Contacts, Calendars to open the Mail, Contacts, Calendars screen.

Both the Contacts and Calendar app settings are also available from the Mail, Contacts, Calendars screen
Image Credit: Image courtesy of Apple

Step 3

Select the account you want to delete in the Accounts section of the screen.

Tip

In addition to the iCloud Settings screen, you can also sign out of your iCloud account through the Mail, Contacts, Calendars screen. Open the Mail, Contacts, Calendars screen, tap iCloud in the Accounts section, scroll down the screen and then tap Sign Out.

Tap Add Account to add a new email account to your iPhone
Image Credit: Image courtesy of Apple

Step 4

Tap Delete Account at the bottom of the screen.

Tip

Instead of deleting your email account, slide the account's Mail switch to the Off position to stop the Mail app from accessing your email messages.

Manage your email account's associated data from this screen
Image Credit: Image courtesy of Apple

Step 5

Tap Delete From My iPhone on the pop-up box to remove the email account.

If you change your mind, you can always re-enter your email account at a later date
Image Credit: Image courtesy of Apple

Tip

If you are inundated with email notifications from your other email accounts, disable the Mail app's notifications from the Notifications section of the Settings menu. Open the Settings screen, select Notifications, tap Mail and then slide the Allow Notifications switch to the Off position.

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