By Manish, who makes LocalInbox · Facts checked November 2026
Apple's app for iCloud Mail on iPhone is Mail: turn on Mail for iCloud in Settings and your iCloud mailboxes appear there. LocalInbox is another app for iCloud Mail on iPhone and iPad, on the App Store. It connects with an app-specific password, puts iCloud beside Gmail, Yahoo and any IMAP account, and adds a To Reply mailbox, Ask your mailbox with sources, Today and Remind me if no reply, with Apple Intelligence on the device. Both apps can use the same account at once.
iCloud Mail on an iPhone today
Apple's guide sets iCloud Mail up in the Mail app: in Settings, tap your name, then iCloud, then Mail, and turn it on for the device. The iCloud mailboxes then show in Mail. On the web it's at icloud.com/mail.
Other mail apps connect with the IMAP and SMTP settings Apple publishes and an app-specific password made in your Apple Account. That's how LocalInbox connects.
How LocalInbox works with iCloud Mail on iPhone
- It connects with an app-specific password, which looks like abcd-efgh-ijkl-mnop. icloud.com, me.com and mac.com addresses all work.
- Search on Server asks iCloud for older mail that isn't on your iPhone yet.
- It adds what Mail doesn't have: a To Reply mailbox, Ask your mailbox with cited sources, Today with the trips and deadlines in your mail, and a nudge when nobody replies.
- Summaries, suggested replies, Draft with AI, Rewrite and Ask your mailbox are written by Apple Intelligence on the iPhone or iPad itself (iOS 26 on a supported device). There's no AI cloud, and no LocalInbox server.
- The password is kept in the iOS Keychain and sent only to the mail server.
Set up iCloud Mail on iPhone
- Make an app-specific password for LocalInbox on Apple Account. One you made for your Mac works too.
- Open LocalInbox on your iPhone or iPad. With no account yet, it opens on Add Account; later, it's in Settings › Accounts.
- Choose iCloud Mail and enter your address.
- Paste the app-specific password, and tap Add. LocalInbox fills in the server settings itself and starts syncing.
- Already have the account in LocalInbox on your Mac? Choose From your Mac in Add Account instead, and scan the code in the Mac's Settings › Accounts › Set Up iPhone…. There's nothing to paste.
Server settings and what to do if it doesn't connect: iCloud Mail IMAP and SMTP settings and app-specific password.
Sources
Facts about iCloud Mail's own apps were checked in November 2026 and can change. Facts about LocalInbox come from its own documentation.
Questions
Isn't Apple Mail the iCloud Mail app?
Yes: Mail comes with iOS, is free, and is where Apple sets up iCloud Mail. LocalInbox is for people who want more than it does, and both can use the same iCloud account at once.
Why an app-specific password?
Apple requires one for any mail app other than its own. Make it in your Apple Account under Sign-In and Security, and revoke it there at any time.
Do I have to sign in again if I use LocalInbox on my Mac?
No. On the Mac, open Settings › Accounts › Set Up iPhone…. On the iPhone or iPad, Add Account › From your Mac scans the code. Check that both show the same four digits and allow it on the Mac, and your accounts come over your Wi-Fi with their passwords, encrypted, never through the internet. Proton Mail stays on the Mac. https://localinbox.app/features/set-up-iphone-from-mac
How much does LocalInbox for iPhone cost?
The app is a free download with a 7-day trial with every feature, started with a tap. Then one purchase unlocks it for good: $29.99, in the app or on localinbox.app. No subscription.
Do I pay again for the iPhone if I have LocalInbox on my Mac?
No. Bought LocalInbox for Mac? Your licence key unlocks it here too. It's one licence for the Mac, iPhone and iPad, on up to 3 devices. Buying in the iPhone app instead costs the same and gets you a licence key for your Mac in Settings › Unlock LocalInbox.