# How to read and send email messages in Apple Mail

> A quick walkthrough of reading, replying to, and composing email messages in Apple Mail.

Source: https://www.kualo.com/knowledgebase/email-apple/how-to-read-and-send-e-mail-messages-in-apple-mail
Updated: 2026-06-09

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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.
   ![Unread message indicator](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/c3/d6/c3d6d79c1984ff8a5b7743634b15d1069330b848.png)
2. Click any message to open it. The content appears in the preview pane below, and the message is marked as read.
   ![Message preview pane](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/5c/8d/5c8dec7c7e0f1501ab1fbe7508329d31b7c77fe9.png)

## 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.
   ![New message window](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/5c/8d/5c8dec7c7e0f1501ab1fbe7508329d31b7c77fe9.png)
2. Type the recipient's email address in the **To** field.
   ![To field](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/1d/d3/1dd35ac769edf9aea181ee2e86ebda68e14fa836.png)
3. Enter a subject in the **Subject** field.
   ![Subject field](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/db/a2/dba28eeb6254621c5cdf3ea2ef1e3dad5edf4a84.png)
4. If you have more than one email account set up, choose the address you want to send from using the **From** dropdown.
   ![From dropdown](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/74/fe/74fede3ca31c65fba9c246b2c2dfc59a9debfcde.png)
5. Type your message in the body area.
   ![Message body](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/da/91/da9127cbf3907acf5b393fc3fa3aa17ad71f7d5b.png)

## Formatting text

1. Click the **Fonts** icon in the toolbar to open the formatting panel.
   ![Fonts icon](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/95/fc/95fcd4f9ba0cc4d6949dcb075e14da39789ce07f.png)
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.
   ![Colour wheel](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/cb/90/cb9012d03a15f8a92032ade3d69c15c5015c1656.png)

## Attaching a file

1. Click the **Attach** icon (paperclip) in the toolbar.
   ![Attach icon](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/58/db/58dbc9ad4ab70b45a76c08d1766b1a967bbfabd8.png)
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**.
   ![Send button](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/35/86/35869498f38b6d1fb28ff969b5c386bb64770ec7.png)
2. You can confirm the message was sent by checking the **Sent** folder in the sidebar.
   ![Sent folder](https://kb-cdn.kualo.com/df/61/df610fbb52d3198e4a09073db418b2366e00f4fc.png)

:::info
If a message appears to be stuck, check your **Outbox** folder. Messages held there usually indicate a problem with your outgoing (SMTP) server settings.
:::

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_Source: Kualo Knowledgebase — https://www.kualo.com/knowledgebase/email-apple/how-to-read-and-send-e-mail-messages-in-apple-mail · © Kualo Ltd._