There are a number of ways to add incoming emails to a HubSpot CRM Contact. Unfortunately none of the available solutions is truly automated (you cannot simply forward all incoming emails).

Let’s have a look at the options:

Filing Options

1. [hubspotID] @ forward.hubspot.com

  • Must be forwarded from within your email client
  • Looks for you as the sender
  • Looks for your contact within the forwarded messages

If the emails do not show up in HubSpot, make sure the forwarded message contains a similar snippet:

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: FROMNAME <from@example.com> Date: Wed, Feb 25, 2015 at 2:45 PM Subject: Easily add Incoming Emails to a HubSpot CRM Contact To: TONAME <to@example.com> Cc: CCNAME <cc@example>

This snippet is missing if you have your email server / Gmail simply forward the email to HubSpot.

2. [hubspotID] @ bcc.hubspot.com

  • Only works as BCC address
  • Looks for you as the sender
  • Looks for your contact as the recipient

3. Sidekick by HubSpot

Sidekick comes with a number of plugins that allow you to log emails from within the following clients:

  • Gmail / Google Apps
  • Microsoft Outlook
  • Mac OS X Mail.app

4. General [has not been implemented]

  • Automatically forward some / all incoming email
  • Looks for you as the recipient
  • Looks for your contact as the sender

Once HubSpot implements a general forwarding email address, we will be able to automatically file all incoming emails.

Set-Up forwarding in Google Apps

Note: Until HubSpot implements Option 4, we cannot take advantage of this feature.

Tip for Google Apps users: Since you cannot actually verify the HubSpot address, you need to add the email address trough the Google Admin console.

  1. Open your Google Admin Console
  2. Navigate to Users > USERNAME > Account > Email Routing
  3. ‘Add another destination’
  4. Enter the desired email as ‘Destination’
  5. Leave ‘Change SMTP envelope’ checked
  6. Save Changes

Google Admin Console: Email Routing

Gmail / Google Apps Email Sync

HubSpot is apparently also working on another treat for us:

[…] the ability to connect directly to your gmail inbox to pull messages and replies for the timeline.


We will update this article periodically.