Can you keep your email address when you switch providers?
When you switch mobile providers, you simply take your phone number with you. The law makes sure of that. Many people expect the same for their email address. But there is no such rule here, and technically it isn’t possible either: an address like name@gmx.de always belongs to GMX. What you can do instead depends on what kind of address you have.
In short: You can’t take an address like @gmx.de, @gmail.com or @t-online.de to another provider. Your emails, on the other hand, can come with you: you move them into your new mailbox. You can only keep an address if you stay with the same provider. The only address you can take with you is one with your own domain. For everyone else: create a new address, move your emails and forward the old address for a few weeks.
Why you can’t take an email address with you
The part after the @ is the provider’s domain. When someone sends an email to name@gmx.de, their mail server asks which server is responsible for gmx.de, and that is always the GMX server. So another provider can’t accept emails for @gmx.de. And unlike with phone numbers, there is no law requiring providers to let you take your address with you.
What kind of address do you have?
| Type of address | Example | Can you take it with you? |
|---|---|---|
| Free email | @gmx.de, @web.de, @gmail.com, @outlook.de | No, but you keep it whatever happens to your internet contract |
| Address from your internet provider | @t-online.de, @vodafone.de, @arcor.de | No, and you risk losing it once you cancel |
| Address from work, school or university | @company.de | No, it usually ends with your contract or studies |
| Your own domain | @mueller-family.de | Yes, you take the domain to the new provider |
Addresses from your internet provider: what happens when you cancel
If you cancel your internet contract, you often lose the email address that came with it too. The rules are different at every provider. So take care of it before your cancellation date.
Telekom (t-online.de)
Telekom lets you keep your address: after your landline contract ends, you can keep using it as a free email address. According to Telekom, you have 180 days to do this, and during the first 150 days you switch it over yourself. If you miss the deadline, the mailbox is deleted. Check the current steps on Telekom’s help page (in German).
Vodafone, cable providers and O2
Here it varies. According to customer reports, some older addresses such as @arcor.de can still be used, while addresses from cable providers often can’t. Before you cancel, ask your provider, ideally in writing, whether and for how long your address will stay. To be on the safe side, move your emails beforehand.
1&1 and other DSL providers
Mailboxes that come with a DSL package usually end with the contract. If your package includes your own domain, you can usually move it to another provider. Here too: ask first and save your emails in good time.
Free email addresses: keep them rather than take them
Addresses at GMX, WEB.DE, Gmail or Outlook.com aren’t tied to your internet connection. If you switch internet providers, the address simply stays. In this case you’ll only want to switch if you no longer like the provider itself, for example because of ads, too little storage or because Gmail is ending fetching from other mailboxes.
One thing you should know: free email providers deactivate or delete accounts that haven’t been used for a long time. At Google this can happen after two years without signing in, and at some other providers sooner. So sign in to your old mailbox now and then for as long as you still need it.
The only address you can take with you: your own domain
If you never want to change your address again, you can use your own domain, for example firstname@lastname.de. The domain belongs to you and can be moved to any other provider. Many web hosts and email providers offer a mailbox for it, often for a few euros a month. If you switch later, you take the domain with you and only move the mailbox. Mailovo also works with mailboxes like these, for example at IONOS, Strato or mailbox.org.
How to switch anyway without losing anything
Your address stays behind, but your emails and contacts don’t. This order works best:
- Create a new address and protect it with a strong password and a second factor.
- Move your mailbox: copy all your emails, folders included. Three ways to do this are described in Moving your mailbox.
- Forward the old address: Forwarding in your old mailbox, or Mailovo’s forwarding, brings new emails into your new mailbox.
- Enter your new address everywhere: banks, insurers, authorities and online accounts first. Here is the list: where to change your email address.
- Tell your contacts: with our templates for announcing your new address.
- Close the old mailbox later: once nothing important has arrived there for a few weeks. See Closing your old mailbox.
Frequently asked questions
Can I transfer my email address to another provider?
No, unless you have your own domain. An address like name@web.de always stays with WEB.DE. But you can transfer all your emails and folders, and with forwarding, new emails to your old address keep reaching you too.
What happens to my emails if I cancel my internet contract?
If the mailbox is part of the contract, it is often deleted after the contract ends, along with all your emails. So move your emails to a new mailbox before your cancellation date, or download a backup.
How long should I keep my old address?
At least a few weeks, ideally a few months. During this time you’ll see who is still writing to your old address and can enter your new address there. Mailovo lists these senders for you in an address checklist.