Custom domain email in Gmail without Google Workspace, after January 2027

By SteadyTabs, the makers of CustomFrom · Checked October 11, 2026

The classic free setup was: forward you@yourdomain.com to a free Gmail account, then reply with Gmail's “Send mail as”. In January 2027 the receiving half keeps working and the sending half stops. This page lists every way we know to keep sending as your domain without paying for Google Workspace, with the free ones first. We make one of the options, CustomFrom, so read with that in mind; every claim about Google and other providers links to their own pages.

What Google is removing, in its own words

A custom domain on a free Gmail account counts as a third-party address. Google's “Send emails from a different address or alias” page says the same: “Starting January 2027, Gmail will no longer support the “Send as” feature for third-party email addresses”. If you haven't set up “Send mail as” yet, don't start now: Google says new configurations may already be restricted.

What keeps working

• Forwarding into Gmail. Google's FAQ on the same page: “Can I still receive email forwarded from a third-party account? Yes.” Free forwarders include Cloudflare Email Routing (free on all Cloudflare plans), ImprovMX (free plan: 1 domain, 25 aliases, no SMTP) and Forward Email (free plan forwards only).
• Mail you already imported stays in Gmail, according to the same FAQ.
• Third-party accounts in the Gmail mobile apps. Google: “Access through the Gmail mobile app for Android, iPhone, and iPad will not change.” This needs a real mailbox with IMAP or POP, not a forwarding-only address.
• Reading Gmail in other apps. Google: “Outlook, Thunderbird, or Apple Mail can still access your Gmail account through IMAP or POP.”

So for most people the job is narrow: keep the forwarding you have, and replace the place where you press Send.

Option 1: A desktop mail client with your provider's SMTP (free)

This is Google's own recommendation for businesses: “We recommend transitioning to a desktop mail client. This client should have IMAP/SMTP support.” Add your Gmail account to Thunderbird, Apple Mail or Outlook over IMAP, then add you@yourdomain.com as a sending identity that uses an outgoing SMTP server allowed to send for your domain. In Thunderbird that's Account Settings → Manage Identities, where each identity can pick its own outgoing server.

SMTP servers that can send as a domain you verify with them:

• Resend: SMTP on the free plan, 3,000 emails a month, 100 a day, 3 domains.
• Amazon SES: $0.10 per 1,000 emails, after a sandbox review. See our Amazon SES + Gmail guide.
• Forward Email: outbound SMTP from the $3/month Enhanced Protection plan.
• ImprovMX: SMTP from the $9/month Premium plan (12,000 sends a month).
• Cloudflare Email Service: sending to any recipient needs the Workers Paid plan (3,000 emails a month included, then $0.35 per 1,000), and its SMTP submission is in beta.

Better when: you want the free option Google itself recommends, with no extension in your browser, and you're happy to read mail outside Gmail's web interface. Trade-off: Gmail's web search, labels and add-ons are no longer where you work.

Option 2: Google Workspace

Workspace “Send as” is explicitly not affected. Business Starter is $7.00 per user per month on an annual plan or $8.40 on the Flexible plan, with a 14-day trial on the pricing page.

Better when: several people share the domain, or you want Google's supported path with mobile apps. Trade-off: it's a separate Google account, not your existing @gmail.com, and it's a yearly cost per person.

Option 3: Move the domain to a mail host

• Zoho Mail Forever Free: up to 5 users, 5 GB each, one domain, webmail and mobile app; “IMAP/ POP/ Active Sync not included”.
• Fastmail Individual: $5/month billed yearly ($60) or $6 monthly, custom domains included, trial up to 30 days.
• iCloud+ Custom Email Domain: up to five domains with up to 10 addresses each, if you already pay for iCloud+.

Better when: you want a proper mailbox on your domain that works everywhere, phone included. Trade-off: new inbox, new apps, and your Gmail history stays behind unless you migrate it.

Option 4: Two inboxes

Keep reading in Gmail and reply from your provider's own webmail, which is Google's first suggested path (“Use your provider’s native website or app”). This only works if your provider gives you a mailbox; forwarding-only services don't. Trade-off: it's easy to answer from the wrong place, and your replies don't sit in the Gmail thread.

Option 5: Keep Gmail on the web and send through an email API

A browser extension can take the draft you write in Gmail and send it through an email service such as Resend or Amazon SES, which sends as your verified domain. Google warns about this category on the same help page: “You may find third-party tools or browser extensions that offer to replicate “Send as” functionality. Exercise caution with these services, as they often require access to your email credentials or OAuth tokens.” It's a fair warning. Before you install one, check what it asks for and where your messages go.

CustomFrom is our extension of this kind. It doesn't ask for your Google password or a Google OAuth token. You paste an API key from your own email provider account (Resend, Amazon SES, Postmark or Mailgun); the key stays in your browser, and the message goes from your browser straight to that provider, as our privacy policy describes. It does read the draft you choose to send from the Gmail page, because that's how it sends it. Attachments, pasted images and threaded replies work, and a copy is BCC'd back to your Gmail.

Price: $15 once, after a 7-day trial that starts with your first message. The first 100 buyers pay $9 with code EARLY100. Your email provider's own pricing applies to sending; Resend's free plan covers typical personal use.

Trade-off: it works only in Gmail on desktop Chrome and Edge, not in the Gmail mobile apps. If you need to send as your domain from your phone, use options 1 to 3.

Side by side

Which one to pick

• You want free and don't mind leaving Gmail's web UI: option 1.
• You run a team or need to send from your phone: Workspace or a mail host.
• You live in Gmail on a desktop and want nothing else to change: option 5. The Cloudflare Email Routing + Resend guide sets it up in about 20 minutes.

Whichever you choose, set up the sending side before January 2027 and test a reply to a real thread. Background on the change: Gmail is ending “Send mail as”.

Sources

1. Google, Learn about changes to third-party email account support in Gmail: support.google.com/mail/answer/17101213
2. Google, Send emails from a different address or alias: support.google.com/mail/answer/22370
3. Google Workspace, Compare Flexible and Annual/Fixed-Term payment plans: knowledge.workspace.google.com
4. Cloudflare Email Routing: developers.cloudflare.com/email-routing; Email Service pricing: developers.cloudflare.com/email-service/platform/pricing
5. ImprovMX pricing: improvmx.com/pricing
6. Forward Email pricing: forwardemail.net/en/pricing
7. Resend pricing: resend.com/pricing
8. Amazon SES pricing: aws.amazon.com/ses/pricing
9. Zoho Mail pricing: zoho.com/mail/zohomail-pricing.html
10. Fastmail pricing: fastmail.com/pricing
11. Apple, Custom Email Domain with iCloud Mail: support.apple.com/en-us/102540

Prices and plans change. If something here is out of date, email support@steadytabs.com and we'll fix it.

More guides: “Send mail as” is endingCloudflare + Resend setupAmazon SES + Gmail