How to read and send email messages in Apple Mail

Once you have added an email account and configured an outgoing server, you can start sending and receiving messages straight away.

Reading messages

1. Unread messages are marked with a blue dot in your inbox.
2. Click any message to open it. The content appears in the preview pane below, and the message is marked as read.

Replying to a message

1. With a message open, click Reply to respond to the sender.
2. Type your reply and click Send when ready.

Composing a new message

1. Click New Message to open a blank compose window.
2. Type the recipient's email address in the To field.
3. Enter a subject in the Subject field.
4. If you have more than one email account set up, choose the address you want to send from using the From dropdown.
5. Type your message in the body area.

Formatting text

1. Click the Fonts icon in the toolbar to open the formatting panel.
2. Highlight the text you want to change, then choose a font family, size, or colour.
3. Use the colour wheel to pick a custom text colour.

Attaching a file

1. Click the Attach icon (paperclip) in the toolbar.
2. Browse to the file you want to attach and click Choose File.

Sending your message

1. When you are happy with your message, click Send.
2. You can confirm the message was sent by checking the Sent folder in the sidebar.