Articles on: Integrations & auth

Connect Gmail or Outlook

Connect a Gmail or Outlook account to Lido so workflows can send emails (Send Gmail / Send Outlook nodes), trigger on incoming emails (Outlook Trigger), and use email-related formulas (SENDGMAIL, SENDOUTLOOK, FORWARDOUTLOOK, MOVEOUTLOOKMESSAGE).



When to connect Gmail vs. Outlook


You use…

Connect…

Gmail / Google Workspace

Gmail

Microsoft 365 / Office 365 / Outlook.com

Outlook

A personal email service (iCloud, Yahoo, ProtonMail, etc.)

Neither — use the Lido Mailbox instead, or SENDEMAIL (no credential required)


You can connect both Gmail and Outlook in the same workspace if different teams use different providers.



Before you start


You need:


  • The Gmail or Microsoft account you want to send from / receive to.
  • For work accounts: admin approval may be required in your tenant.
  • Admin rights to add integrations to your Lido workspace.



Step-by-step: connect Gmail


  1. Open workspace settings → Integrations.
  2. Click Add Integration → Gmail.
  3. Sign in to the Google account, review the requested scopes (Lido needs send + read for incoming triggers), and approve.
  4. The Gmail credential appears in workspace settings and is selectable in Send Gmail nodes and SENDGMAIL formulas.



Step-by-step: connect Outlook


  1. Open workspace settings → Integrations.
  2. Click Add Integration → Outlook.
  3. Sign in to the Microsoft account, review scopes, and approve. (Microsoft 365 work accounts may require tenant admin approval.)
  4. The Outlook credential appears and is selectable in Send Outlook, Outlook Trigger, and Outlook formulas (SENDOUTLOOK, FORWARDOUTLOOK, MOVEOUTLOOKMESSAGE).



Sending emails: workflow node vs. formula


Where the work happens

Use…

Inside a workflow

Send Gmail or Send Outlook node

Inside a spreadsheet (per-row, on demand or on schedule)

=SENDGMAIL(...) or =SENDOUTLOOK(...) formula

One-off, no credential available

=SENDEMAIL(...) (built-in service, no credential required)


The node and the formula take the same parameters. Pick based on where the rest of your work lives. See Send extracted data to email or Slack for usage patterns.



Receiving emails: trigger options


You want to…

Use…

Trigger when emails arrive in your real Outlook inbox

Outlook Trigger

Trigger when emails arrive at a Lido-hosted address (no Outlook needed)

Lido Mailbox Trigger

Trigger when emails arrive in Gmail

Use Lido Mailbox Trigger with email forwarding from Gmail


Note: Gmail-direct triggering is not currently a built-in node. The standard workaround is to forward Gmail incoming mail (or a filtered subset) to a Lido Mailbox address.



What goes in the Send node parameters


Parameter

What to put in it

credential

The Gmail or Outlook credential ID (auto-filled when you pick the credential)

recipient

One or more email addresses; use expressions like {{$item.data.email}} for per-item recipients

subject

Subject line; supports expressions

body

Body text; supports HTML and expressions

cc / bcc

Optional carbon copy / blind carbon copy recipients

file_url

URL of a file to attach (e.g., {{$item.data.file.url}})

attachment_files

Multiple files to attach

status_ref

Cell reference to write send status (formulas only)

signature_id

Email signature to use

in_reply_to

Message ID to reply to (for threading)

reply_to

Reply-to address



Tips


  • Send to yourself first before sending to customers. Confirm formatting, attachments, and that expressions resolved correctly.
  • Use HTML for tables and links. Plain text is fine for simple notifications.
  • Use signatures. Connect your email signature in workspace settings; reference it via signature_id so all sent mail looks consistent.
  • Watch your provider's daily send limits. Gmail and Outlook both throttle. For high-volume sending, use a transactional email API (like SendGrid) via the API Request node.
  • For replies: set in_reply_to to the original message ID so the email threads correctly in the recipient's client.



Common mistakes


  • Sending from a personal account at production volume. Hits limits, lands in spam.
  • Forgetting to handle the Send node's error output. A failed email is much worse than an obvious one.
  • Hardcoding recipients. Use a column or workspace setting so you can change recipients without editing the workflow.
  • HTML body with raw {{$item.data...}} because the parameter is in literal mode. Toggle to expression mode.
  • No status_ref on bulk sends. You won't know which sends succeeded until you have a complaint.
  • Tenant admin hasn't approved Lido for Outlook. OAuth fails partway through; talk to IT.



Disconnecting


Open workspace settings → Integrations → find the Gmail/Outlook credential → Remove. Workflows and formulas using the credential will fail until you reconnect or point them elsewhere.




  • Send extracted data to email or Slack
  • Triggers: how workflows start (Outlook Trigger, Lido Mailbox Trigger)
  • Lido Mailbox (Wave 2)
  • Build your first workflow
  • Actions: how spreadsheet automation works

Updated on: 16/04/2026

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