My WordPress Outbound Email Is Stuck
A WordPress blog can send email to you or other users through plugins like Contact Form 7 or WP Email, or send password reset information using its native code. Under some circumstances, that outbound email may not arrive at its expected destination, or it might get "stuck" and arrive later than expected. This can happen for a number of reasons, but systematic troubleshooting can reveal the cause.
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How WordPress Sends Mail
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The WordPress software contains code to send messages such as the "Welcome" email you receive when you install a new blog or a password reset message. This code uses a feature in the PHP language known as PHPmailer, which in turn uses software called sendmail or postfix installed by most Web hosting providers. These systems only send outbound mail and don't include a mailbox for receiving messages. Certain plugins enable you to use an external SMTP mail server, affording more control and security for outbound email.
Narrow the Problem
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First determine whether the problem occurs with all outbound email or just email sent using specific plugins. Disable all plugins, log out of your WordPress blog, then try to reset your password using the "Lost your password" link. If you don't receive the password reset message, your Web host may not have installed sendmail or postfix. Contact your host and ask whether they allow sending mail using these methods. Some, like Yahoo!, only allow WordPress to send administrative emails to the addresses using the domain of the WordPress site. If you do receive the reset message, WordPress' internal email system is working properly and you can start troubleshooting your plugins.
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Plugin Issues
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Enable your plugins one at a time and test sending yourself a password-reset email. If you don't receive the message after enabling a specific plugin, disable the plugin and contact its developer. If the password-reset email works with all of your plugins enabled, try sending an email from elsewhere on your site, such as a contact form. If a message doesn't go through using a specific plugin feature, that plugin may require an update, or you may need to find a replacement. Sometimes one plugin can interfere with another, so you should try disabling all but the "problem" plugin and see if you can send email.
Use SMTP
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If your host doesn't allow sendmail or postfix, or you're having other server-related mail issues such as "lag" between sending and receiving messages, you can install a plugin to use SMTP, allowing you to send mail through an external server. SMTP plugins for WordPress include WP Mail SMTP and Configure SMTP. You'll need the address and login credentials for an SMTP server, such as that of your domain's email server or a Gmail account.
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