Hosting Reviews · Web Hosting
How to Set Up a Professional Business Email With Bluehost
Beginner Guide • Business Email • Bluehost
An address like you@yourbusiness.com looks more trustworthy than a free webmail address, and it stays yours if you change email apps. If your website is on Bluehost, you can set one up in the same account.
This guide explains the business email options Bluehost sells today, what each costs, and how to create your first mailbox step by step. It is based on Bluehost’s plan pages, pricing pages and help center, checked on November 13, 2026.
If you have not picked a domain yet, start with our Bluehost free domain guide, since your email address depends on it.
Disclosure: this article contains affiliate links. If you buy Bluehost hosting through them, TechCognate may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices and features were checked against Bluehost’s official pages on November 13, 2026, and we have not hands-on tested the service. Bluehost changes plans and promotions often, so confirm current pricing before you buy.
Quick answer: To set up a Bluehost business email, buy a hosting plan with a domain, activate the free one-month Professional Email trial, then create a mailbox in the Email tab of the Bluehost Portal. After the trial, Professional Email renews automatically; Bluehost lists the Standard plan at $2.99 a month per user. If your team already lives in Gmail and Google Docs, Bluehost also sells Google Workspace.
- Professional Email: Bluehost’s own mailbox service, with Standard, Plus and Ultra tiers.
- Google Workspace: Gmail on your domain plus Drive, Meet and Docs, sold per user.
- cPanel email: described by Bluehost as included with legacy hosting plans.
- If your DNS is managed elsewhere, you may need to update MX and TXT records.
Each block is one section, sized by how long it is. The orange block is the longest: Bluehost Business Email Options Compared (about 2 min). Tap a block to jump.
What You Need Before You Start
- A domain name. Your address will be name@yourdomain. Bluehost hosting on a 12-month or 36-month term includes a free domain for the first year.
- A Bluehost account. The Professional Email trial is offered with new Shared, WordPress or eCommerce hosting plans, and Bluehost says it is not available with domain-only purchases.
- A list of addresses. Decide who needs a mailbox and which shared addresses, such as hello@ or support@, can be aliases instead of paid users.
- Access to your DNS. If the domain is registered or managed outside Bluehost, you will need to edit its records.
Bluehost Business Email Options Compared
Bluehost’s Professional Email page names three tiers: Professional Email (Standard), Plus and Ultra. Its add-on renewal price list gives prices for the first two, and its Google Workspace pricing page lists three Workspace plans. Microsoft 365 is no longer sold; Bluehost’s price list says it is kept only for existing accounts.
| Option | Listed price (per user) | Storage | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Professional Email Standard | $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year (renewal) | Not stated per mailbox | Solo owners and small teams who just need email |
| Professional Email Plus | $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year (renewal) | Not stated per mailbox | Users who want send later, read receipts and aliases |
| Professional Email Ultra | Not confirmed | Not stated per mailbox | Users who want email campaigns, AI tools and email backup |
| Google Workspace Business Starter | $3.50 a month intro, then $7.00 (12-month term) | 30 GB | Teams that want Gmail, Calendar, Drive and Meet |
| Google Workspace Business Standard | $7.00 a month intro, then $14.00 (12-month term) | 2 TB | Teams that share large files or record meetings |
| Google Workspace Business Plus | $11.00 a month intro, then $22.00 (12-month term) | 5 TB | Businesses that need Vault archiving |
Sources: Bluehost add-ons renewal price list (updated October 22, 2026), Professional Email page and Google Workspace pricing page, checked November 13, 2026. Prices exclude tax.
Two price notes. First, Bluehost’s own pages do not fully agree: the WordPress hosting terms list the Professional Email trial renewing at $2.99 a month, while a footnote on the shared hosting page says $2.50 a month. Second, the Google Workspace pricing table shows the renewal rates above, but the FAQ on the same page and the add-on list give higher per-user renewal rates (for example $8.40 a month for Business Starter). The Workspace promo is limited to the first year, annual billing and up to five seats. Confirm the price in your cart.
Which Bluehost email option fits?
A quick path from how you work to a starting choice.
Plan facts from Bluehost’s Professional Email and Google Workspace pages, checked November 13, 2026.
Get Bluehost With an Email Trial →
What Professional Email Includes
Bluehost’s Professional Email page lists these features on every tier: webmail and iOS and Android apps, a built-in calendar and contacts, anti-spam and anti-virus filtering, a vacation responder, one-click import, multi-account support, an allowlist, sender blocking and undo send.
- Plus and Ultra add: read receipts, HTML in the composer, follow-up reminders, send later, priority inbox, contact groups and send as alias.
- Ultra adds: email campaigns, Email AI, a signature designer, calendar bookings, an email designer, advanced tracking, an invoice builder, email backup and AI summaries.
The page’s FAQ says plans offer “up to 100 GB of email storage” but does not say how much each tier gets. If storage matters, ask Bluehost before you buy.
Step 1: Get Hosting and a Domain
Choose a Bluehost plan. On a 36-month term, Starter is $3.99 a month (renews at $9.99), Business is $6.99 (renews at $13.99) and eCommerce Essentials is $14.99 (renews at $21.99), excluding tax. All three list “Pro Email, Free Trial” and a free domain for the first year. Our Bluehost deals guide explains how to keep the total low.
Step 2: Keep or Upgrade the Free Professional Email Trial
Bluehost’s help article on the free trial says it appears preselected when you add a new Shared, WordPress or eCommerce hosting plan to your cart. The trial is free for one month, covers one mailbox, and renews automatically unless you turn off auto-renewal in the Renewal Center. You can keep the free version or upgrade to a paid plan during setup, and add more paid users, with charges prorated to the trial term.
If you already know you will use it, decide on Standard or Plus now. If you are not sure, keep the trial and set a reminder before it renews.
Step 3: Create Your First Mailbox
Bluehost’s setup article (updated October 14, 2026) gives these steps:
- Log in to the Bluehost Portal and click the Email tab in the left-hand menu.
- Under Professional Email, click Setup next to the mailbox showing “Pending Setup”.
- Choose the domain, then enter the email ID, the user’s first and last name, and a password.
- Click Create Mailbox.
Passwords must be at least eight characters and include a number, a special character, an uppercase letter and a lowercase letter. Use a password manager rather than reusing a password.
Step 4: Add More Mailboxes
- Check that you have an available user. If not, buy an additional user first.
- In the Email tab, click Manage if more than one plan is listed, then open Email Accounts.
- Click Create new email account, enter the address and password, and confirm.
Each mailbox is a paid user. For shared addresses that one person reads, an alias may be cheaper; note that Bluehost lists “send as alias” on Plus and Ultra, not Standard.
Step 5: Check DNS if Your Domain Is Elsewhere
If your domain was registered with Bluehost and uses Bluehost’s DNS, the records are usually set for you. If your DNS is managed by another company, Bluehost says you may need to update your MX and TXT records before the mailbox can send and receive email. Follow Bluehost’s MX and TXT guide for the exact values, and copy them carefully.
While you are in DNS, ask Bluehost support which SPF, DKIM and DMARC records it recommends. These records help other mail servers trust messages from your domain, which matters if you send invoices or newsletters.
Step 6: Connect Your Phone and Desktop
From the Email Accounts screen, click Access webmail to open your inbox in a browser, or choose Get mobile app for Android or iOS. Send a test message to a personal address and reply to it to confirm both directions work.
Step 7: Bring Over Old Email (Optional)
Professional Email lists one-click import. If you would rather have Bluehost do it, its help center lists an email migration service at $99 per mailbox. It moves one mailbox per purchase into Bluehost Webmail, Professional Email or Google Workspace. Calendars and contacts may not be included, and autoresponders, mailing lists and filters are never moved. Bluehost also says to create the destination mailboxes before buying the migration.
Setting Up Google Workspace Through Bluehost
If you choose Google Workspace, buy the plan in your Bluehost account, then follow the on-screen steps to verify your domain and create users. Google Workspace’s promo pricing on Bluehost applies to the first year on annual billing, for up to five seats, and then renews at the regular rate. Google also sells Workspace directly, so compare that price before you decide; we did not check Google’s own pricing for this guide.
What About Free cPanel Email?
Older Bluehost guides describe free email accounts created in cPanel. Bluehost’s current email management article describes cPanel Email as “included with legacy hosting plans and basic email needs”. It sets a 500 MB default per mailbox and says Starter and Basic plans are limited to 100 MB per mailbox. The current plan pages list the Professional Email trial instead, so do not assume a new plan includes free cPanel mailboxes. Check your plan in the portal under Hosting, then My Plans.
Business Email Setup Checklist
| Before you announce your new address… | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Mailbox created with a strong password | Email accounts are a common target for account takeover. |
| MX and TXT records checked | Wrong records mean lost or bounced mail. |
| Test messages sent both ways | Confirms sending and receiving before customers rely on it. |
| Trial renewal date noted | The trial renews automatically after one month. |
| Signature and phone app set up | A consistent signature looks professional on every device. |
Common Mistakes
- Forgetting the trial renews automatically, or letting it lapse and losing mail.
- Paying for a mailbox per role when an alias would do.
- Changing DNS before the new mailboxes exist.
- Using a business mailbox for bulk newsletters; use an email marketing tool for that.
- Assuming storage limits without checking them.
For newsletters and marketing campaigns, a dedicated platform is usually a better fit than a mailbox. See our best email marketing software guide.
Bluehost Business Email: Pros and Cons
Pros
- Email, domain and website in one account and one bill.
- A free one-month Professional Email trial with new hosting plans.
- Low listed per-user price on Professional Email Standard.
- Google Workspace available for teams that want Google’s apps.
Cons
- Bluehost’s pages give conflicting renewal prices for both the trial and Google Workspace.
- Per-mailbox storage is not published for Professional Email.
- Ultra pricing was not shown in the page text we checked.
- Microsoft 365 is no longer offered to new customers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Bluehost include free business email?
New hosting plans include a one-month free Professional Email trial with one mailbox. After that it renews as a paid plan unless you turn off auto-renewal.
How much is Bluehost Professional Email?
Bluehost’s add-on price list shows Standard at $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year per user, and Plus at $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year. A footnote on the shared hosting page lists the trial renewal at $2.50 a month, so check your cart.
Can I use Gmail with my Bluehost domain?
Yes, through Google Workspace, which Bluehost resells. Business Starter is listed at $3.50 a month per user for the first year on a 12-month term.
Does Bluehost still sell Microsoft 365?
No. Bluehost’s price list says it no longer provides Microsoft 365 and that its prices apply only to existing accounts.
Do I need to change DNS records?
Only if your domain’s DNS is managed outside Bluehost. In that case, update the MX and TXT records Bluehost gives you.
Can I create email without hosting?
Bluehost says the free trial is not available with domain-only purchases. Check the Professional Email page for standalone options.
How do I check my email on my phone?
Open Email Accounts in the portal and choose Get mobile app for Android or iOS, or use webmail in your phone’s browser.
Can Bluehost move my old emails?
Yes. Professional Email lists one-click import, and Bluehost offers a paid migration at $99 per mailbox.
What happens if I cancel my hosting?
Email bought as an add-on is billed separately, so check its status in the Renewal Center before you cancel anything, and export any mail you want to keep.
Final Verdict
Setting up a business email with Bluehost is straightforward: get a plan and a domain, use the free Professional Email trial, create your mailbox in the Email tab and check your DNS. Professional Email Standard is the low-cost choice for people who just need email, and Google Workspace suits teams that work in Gmail and Google Docs. Watch the automatic trial renewal and confirm the exact per-user price in your cart, since Bluehost’s pages do not all agree. Building the site too? Our guide to building a website with Bluehost covers the rest.
Sources
- Bluehost Professional Email
- Bluehost: how to set up Professional Email
- Bluehost: free Professional Email trial
- Bluehost Google Workspace pricing
- Bluehost add-ons renewal price list
- Bluehost email account management (cPanel Email)
- Bluehost website and email migration services
Jaykishan Panchal
Founder & CEO, TechCognate · SEO Strategist & WordPress Expert
Jaykishan Panchal is the founder of TechCognate and an SEO strategist with 15+ years of hands-on experience driving organic growth for businesses worldwide. He specialises in technical SEO, content strategy and GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation), helping brands stay visible in both traditional search and AI-driven discovery.
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