AWS: Activate Gmail for Google Workspace

Why do I need to do this?

For your company to use Gmail with Google Workspace, you need to direct people's incoming messages to Google's mail servers. You do this by changing your domain's MX records  at your domain registrar.

Change MX records at your domain registrar to direct your company's emails to Gmail. Explain this more

Before you begin

Make sure now is a good time to make this change. It can take time for the rest of the internet to learn about your new MX records. You might keep receiving mail with your old email provider during this time.

To complete this task, open two separate tabs in your web browser, like this:

Tab 1: Get ready to sign in to AWS

Before you get started, make sure you have the account ID and password you need to sign in to Amazon Web Services. If you have trouble signing in to this account, find out how to reset your AWS console password.

Tab 2: Open the Google Workspace setup tool 

You get instructions and complete this task using the setup tool. You also use the tool to add any remaining email accounts—every existing address in your company must be associated with a Google Workspace account. You must use the setup tool to complete this task.

If you don't already have the setup tool open in another tab, click below to open it.

Open the setup tool

I'm stuck and need help

I get an error when I click the blue button

The setup tool is for Google Workspace and Cloud Identity administrators only. It doesn't work with any other Google product.

Make sure you're signing in with an admin account.

It says Gmail is activated for my domain

Your MX records are already set up.

If you're reading this article because your company is having trouble receiving email:

• Check these troubleshooting steps.
• Review some additional problems that can interrupt email delivery.

My email address ends in @gmail.com

Oh no! You've ended up in the wrong place. Click here for help with @gmail.com issues.

Follow these instructions to activate Gmail

Work across the two tabs you opened above, as follows:

	Find your DNS records (a) Sign in to the Route 53 dashboard at AWS. (b) Under DNS management, click Hosted zone. (c) Click the domain you're setting up today. I'm stuck and need help If you can't sign in to your AWS account, you can recover your AWS password. If you're having trouble with the Route 53 dashboard, contact AWS supportfor help.
	Set up the MX records for Google Workspace (a) Check your list of DNS records. If you see existing MX records, delete all of them. (b) Click the Create record button, and then fill out the form. Select MX for the Record type. Enter 1 smtp.google.com in the Value field.  Click 1h to set TTL to 3600 seconds. Don't change any other settings. I'm stuck and need help Where do I copy the Google MX records? You should have the Google Workspace setup tool open in another tab. You can reopen the tool if you closed it. AWS wants me to choose a routing policy Click Switch to quick create for an easier way to create DNS records. (c) Click Create records. The Google MX records are saved and will soon be visible to other computers on the internet.
	Tell Google Workspace to activate Gmail (a) Return to the browser tab where you have the Google Workspace setup tool open. (You can reopen the tool if you closed it.) (b) Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Activate Gmail. Important! Some registrars may require additional time to publish your MX records. If the Google Workspace setup tool can't find your new records, wait an hour before you try again. If you need additional help with your DNS settings, please contact your registrar. They are experts in managing your domain and are eager to help you.

You might have to wait and try again

Some registrars take longer than others to let the world know that you have a new email provider:

• If Google Workspace can't find your new MX records, come back in a couple of hours and click the Activate button again.
• After you activate Gmail, updates can take up to 48 hours. Until the rest of the internet notices your new MX records, you'll still get email messages in your old email client.