How-ToAdministration

How to Set Up Email in Business Central

Configure email accounts, assign scenarios, and test your email connection in Business Central using SMTP or the Microsoft 365 connector.

Stein Sæstad
7 min read

Business Central sends emails for a range of business processes, sales invoices, reminders, purchase orders, approval notifications, and more. Before any of that works, you need to connect at least one email account and assign it to the relevant scenarios.

The Email module introduced in Business Central 2021 wave 1 replaced the older SMTP Mail setup. It supports multiple accounts, scenario-based routing, and email logging.

Step 1: Open Email Accounts

  1. Search for Email Accounts using Alt + Q.
  2. You will see a list of configured accounts. On a fresh system, this will be empty.

Step 2: Add an Email Account

Business Central supports two main connectors: Microsoft 365 and SMTP. For most cloud deployments, the Microsoft 365 connector is the recommended option.

Option A: Microsoft 365 Connector

  1. On the Email Accounts page, select New > Add an email account.
  2. Choose Microsoft 365 and select Next.
  3. Sign in with the Microsoft account you want to send from. This is typically a shared mailbox or a service account.
  4. Grant the requested permissions when prompted.
  5. Once authenticated, the account appears in the list.

Option B: SMTP

  1. Select New > Add an email account.
  2. Choose SMTP and select Next.
  3. Fill in:
    • Server Address, your SMTP host (e.g. smtp.office365.com)
    • Server Port, typically 587 for TLS
    • Authentication, set to Basic or OAuth2 depending on your mail server
    • User Name and Password
  4. Select Next and complete the setup.

Step 3: Set a Default Sender

If you have more than one email account, you can designate one as the default.

  1. On the Email Accounts page, open the account you want to use as default.
  2. Enable the Default toggle on the account card.

The default account is used whenever no specific scenario assignment applies.

Step 4: Test the Email Connection

After adding an account, send a test email to confirm it is working.

  1. On the Email Accounts page, select the account.
  2. Choose Send Test Email from the action bar.
  3. Enter a recipient address and select Send.
  4. Check the recipient inbox to confirm delivery.

If the test fails, Business Central will display an error message. Common issues include incorrect SMTP credentials, blocked ports, or missing OAuth consent.

Step 5: Configure Email Scenarios

Email scenarios let you route specific types of email through specific accounts. For example, you might send sales invoices from a sales@ address and reminders from a finance@ address.

  1. Search for Email Scenarios using Alt + Q.
  2. Select Assign Scenarios to open the assignment view.
  3. For each scenario, such as Sales Invoice, Reminder, Purchase Order, Approval Request, select which email account should handle it.
  4. Save the assignments.

If a scenario has no assigned account, Business Central falls back to the default account.

Step 6: Set Up Email Logging (Optional)

Email logging records outbound emails in the Sent Emails list, which can be useful for audit purposes or tracking customer communication.

  1. Search for Email Logging Setup using Alt + Q.
  2. Enable Email Logging.
  3. Optionally configure which scenarios should be logged.

To view logged emails, search for Sent Emails using Alt + Q. Each entry shows the recipient, subject, timestamp, and which account sent the message.

Step 7: Manage Email Rate Limits and Sending Quotas

If you are using the Microsoft 365 connector with a shared mailbox, be aware of Exchange Online sending limits. For high-volume scenarios such as batch invoice sending, consider a dedicated service account with higher quotas, or review your Microsoft 365 license tier.

Business Central does not enforce its own rate limits, but failed sends are logged in the Email Outbox and can be retried from there.

  1. Search for Email Outbox using Alt + Q to review any failed or queued messages.
  2. Select a failed entry and choose Retry to attempt resending.

To control which users can access email setup and manage accounts, see How to Configure Security Groups in Business Central.