Create an email without a phone number on Android in 2026

Yes, for most providers. Google's sign-up calls the phone number optional, and Microsoft accepts an email address instead. The Android-specific catch comes after sign-up: by default, Android verifies your phone's number and adds it to every Google Account signed in on the device, including new ones.

Short answer: you can create an email account on Android without a phone number. Gmail lets you skip the number unless its spam check appears, and Outlook lets you verify with another email address. But turn off Android's phone number verification first, or your phone's number can end up on the new Google Account anyway. Yahoo says a mobile number is required.

Below is what each provider's help pages say as of October 28, 2026, the Settings path for adding a Google Account, and the order to do things in.

What each provider asks for on Android

Provider	Phone number at sign-up	What the help page says
Gmail / Google Account	Optional, sometimes required	"Optional: Add and verify a phone number," but "sometimes phone verification is required"
Outlook or Hotmail	Not required	The verification contact can be "an email address or phone number"
Yahoo Mail	Required	"You'll just need to provide a password, date of birth, and a mobile number"

The device setting is separate from all of these. It only affects Google Accounts, and it acts after the account exists.

The Android setting that adds your number for you

This is the part most guides skip. Google's Android help page on phone number verification says:

"On your device, phone number verification is turned on by default. We verify the phone number and add them to all Google Accounts that are signed in on the device. This applies to both current and future accounts and phone numbers."

It then gives an example: "if you add a new Google Account, it links to all numbers on the device." So you can skip the phone step carefully at sign-up, add the account to your phone, and the number gets attached anyway. Google adds that "Google and your carrier will try to periodically reverify them," and that turning verification on also turns on a feature called Better sharing on Google.

Google says you can only change this in device settings:

Open your phone's Settings app.
Select Google, then All services.
Under "Privacy & security," select Phone number verification.
Choose whether to verify your phone number.

Do this before you add the new account. Google's page doesn't say whether turning it off removes a number that was already added, so check the account afterward (Google Account, Personal info, Phone) and delete the number there if it shows up. Our Gmail guide covers how to keep a number for recovery only if you decide to leave one on.

How to add a new Google Account in Android settings

Google's page on adding an account on Android gives this path, with a note that "some of these steps only work on Android 14 and up":

Open your device's Settings app.
Tap Passwords & accounts. If you don't see it, Google lists the other names it goes by: Users & accounts; Passwords, passkeys & autofill; Password, passkeys & accounts; or Manage accounts.
Under "Accounts," tap Add account.
Tap Google, then follow the on-screen instructions.

The sign-in screen you get is where Google's Create a Google Account steps begin: tap Create account, pick personal use, choose a Gmail address, add your birthday and gender, and set a password. Then comes the line that matters: "Optional: Add and verify a phone number for your account." If the screen lets you go on without one, do.

You may be asked for your phone's PIN, pattern or password to add the account. That unlocks the device; it doesn't put a number on your account.

When Google insists on a number

Google's Verify your account page says phone verification is "sometimes" required "to confirm you're a real person," and doesn't say what triggers it. If you hit that screen:

Choose a call, not a text, and use a landline. "If you choose the call option, you can also use your home phone number."
Don't pick "sign up with a phone number" as a shortcut. In some countries Google offers it, but the username is "in the format username@id.gle. This is not an email address."

The two error messages Google shows when a number has been used too often, and what each limit means, are in our guide to creating a Gmail without a phone number.

Setting up a new Android phone without a phone number

A new phone asks you to sign in to a Google Account during setup. Google's Android steps have a route for people who don't want to do that yet.

On the screen "Choose how you'll sign in," Google says you can tap Skip for now, then:

Complete the setup for your new phone.
Once you reach the home screen, open the notification tray.
Tap Finish setting up my phone.

That gives you a window to turn off phone number verification, as above, before any Google Account is on the device.

A Google Account on an email you already have

If what you need is the Play Store, YouTube or Drive rather than a Gmail inbox, Google says "You don't need to have a Gmail address to create a Google Account." Its Android steps:

On your Android phone, open Google Chrome or the Play Store app.
Tap Sign in, then Create Account.
Enter your basic info.
On "Choose how you'll sign in," tap Use your email address.
Enter the address. Google sends a verification code there.
Open that inbox in a separate browser window, copy the code, and tap Verify.

Google adds that "an email address can only be used as the primary email address for one Google Account," so an address you've used before won't work twice. If you don't want a Google Account at all, see how to make an email without Google.

Outlook on Android: use an email address instead

Microsoft's sign-up asks for a way to verify the account, and its help page for that screen says a phone isn't required. On "Help us secure your account," Microsoft says: "We will ask for an email address or phone number that we can send a verification code to," and that it "doesn't have to be your email or phone number," as long as you can open it.

So in your phone's browser, go to outlook.com, select Create free account, and when Microsoft asks how to protect the account, type an email address. If sign-up keeps failing on your phone, Microsoft's account creation page suggests trying "an alternate device," such as a computer, and then signing in on Android.

You can then add the account in Settings under Add account, where Google lists Exchange, Personal (IMAP) and Personal (POP3) for accounts that aren't Google. The full Outlook walkthrough, including Microsoft's fixes for failed security checks, is in how to create an Outlook account without a phone number.

Yahoo on Android: a mobile number is required

Yahoo's sign-up help page says that whether you make a new Yahoo address or use an existing one, "you'll just need to provide a password, date of birth, and a mobile number," then "follow the onscreen prompts to verify your mobile phone number." Even the "My Email" option, for people who don't want a new Yahoo address, still sits behind that step.

Nothing on the page makes an exception for Android. If you go ahead with Yahoo, our guide to creating a Yahoo account without a phone number covers the WhatsApp code option and how to make the number matter less.

The order that asks the least of you

New phone? Tap Skip for now at "Choose how you'll sign in."
Turn off phone number verification in Settings > Google > All services > Privacy & security.
Create the account. Gmail through Settings > Add account > Google, or Outlook in the browser with an email for verification.
Skip the optional number. If Google insists, take the call option on a landline.
Check the account afterward. Look under Personal info > Phone in your Google Account, and remove any number you didn't mean to add.
Set up recovery today. A recovery email, backup codes or a passkey do the phone's job when you're locked out. See how to recover an email account without a phone number.

For the general steps on every provider, see how to create a new email account.

What not to do

Don't use "receive SMS online" sites. Anyone can read the codes sent to those numbers. If one ends up on your account, so do the strangers who use it.
Don't put a friend's SIM in your phone to verify. With verification on by default, Android adds the device's numbers to every Google Account on it, so their number could end up on all of yours.
Don't remove your only Google Account to start over without a backup. Google says removing an account deletes "everything associated with that account from your device," including email, contacts and settings.
Don't verify Outlook with an inbox you might lose. That email becomes your way back in.

An inbox that never asks for your number

If you'd rather not deal with phone screens or device settings at all, use a provider that doesn't ask. Secria Mail is free, and sign-up asks for a name, the address you want and a password. No phone number and no card. To get back in, you use a 12-word recovery phrase instead of an SMS code.

Every plan, the free one included, uses hybrid post-quantum encryption (ML-KEM-1024 with X25519), mail is kept in zero-access storage, and there are no ads. Tracking pixels are removed automatically and senders never see your IP address.

On Android, Secria Mail is on Google Play. If you'd rather not use Google Play, you can get the Android APK and check its fingerprint on our download page. Sign up here, or read our page on email without a phone number to compare what each big provider asks for.

On an iPhone instead? See how to create an email without a phone number on iPhone.

Frequently asked questions

Can I add a Google Account on Android without a phone number?

Yes. Google's create-account steps mark the phone number as optional, and Android's Add account menu leads to the same sign-up. Turn off phone number verification first, because Google says it adds the device's numbers to every Google Account signed in on the phone, including new ones.

How do I stop Android adding my number to my Google Account?

Open Settings, select Google, then All services, and under "Privacy & security" select Phone number verification. Google says this setting can only be managed in device settings.

Can I set up a new Android phone without a Google Account or number?

Google's steps let you tap Skip for now at "Choose how you'll sign in," finish setup, and add an account later from the notification tray with Finish setting up my phone.

How do I create a Hotmail account on Android without a phone number?

Go to outlook.com in your phone's browser, select Create free account, and give an email address when Microsoft asks how to verify the account. Microsoft says it "doesn't have to be your email or phone number."

Does Yahoo Mail on Android need a phone number?

Yes. Yahoo's sign-up page lists a mobile number with your password and date of birth, and asks you to verify it.

Whichever provider you pick, check which numbers are on the account once it's set up. On Android, that check matters more than the sign-up screen.