Hotmail: what it is, what it means and why it is now Outlook
From HoTMaiL to Outlook.com: the story of the webmail used by millions of people
Hotmail es el servicio de correo electrónico gratuito que se lanzó en 1996 y que hoy forma parte de Outlook.com, el correo web de Microsoft. Las direcciones @hotmail.com y @hotmail.es siguen funcionando, pero se gestionan desde Outlook.
It was one of the world’s first webmail services. For the first time, you could read your email from any computer with a browser.
What is Hotmail?
It is a webmail service: your messages are stored on Microsoft’s servers and you access them from your browser or the Outlook app.
It was created by Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith and launched on July 4, 1996. The date was no coincidence: US Independence Day fit the idea of freeing email from the home or office computer.
Microsoft bought it in December 1997 for around 400 million dollars. By then it already had more than 8.5 million users.
What does Hotmail mean?
The name is a play on letters. Its founders wrote it as HoTMaiL so that it spelled out HTML, the language used to build web pages.
The idea was to make it clear that this was email that worked on the web. Literally, “hot mail” just means mail that is hot, but that is not why the name was chosen.
Does Hotmail still exist?
Yes, although under a different name. The service went through several stages:
| Year | Name | What changed |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Hotmail | Launch as a free webmail service |
| 1997 | MSN Hotmail | Acquired by Microsoft and integrated into MSN |
| 2007 | Windows Live Hotmail | More storage and a new interface |
| 2011 | Hotmail | Goes back to its original name |
| 2013 | Outlook.com | All accounts move to Outlook |
Between July 2012 and May 2013, Microsoft moved all accounts to Outlook.com. No emails or addresses were lost.
Today, when you go to hotmail.com, you land in the Outlook inbox.
Has your list outgrown Hotmail?
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Does @hotmail.es exist?
Yes. @hotmail.es addresses created back then are still active. When you sign up for a new account, Microsoft usually offers @outlook.com or @hotmail.com.
What happened to Messenger?
MSN Messenger, the chat app many people used with that same account, shut down in 2013. Microsoft replaced it with Skype, which was also shut down in May 2025.
What features does Hotmail have today?
As part of Outlook.com, your account has the same features as any other Outlook account:
| Feature | What it offers |
|---|---|
| Storage | 15 GB of free email storage, separate from your OneDrive space |
| Access | Browser, Outlook app for mobile and desktop, IMAP and POP |
| Organization | Focused and Other inbox, folders, rules and search |
| Security | Spam filter, phishing warnings and two-step verification |
| Integration | Calendar, contacts, OneDrive and Microsoft 365 |
| Subscription | More storage and no ads with Microsoft 365 |
Attachments count toward the 15 GB limit. If you run out of space, you won’t be able to send or receive emails until you free up space or upgrade your plan.
Can I send bulk emails from Hotmail?
It’s not a good idea. Outlook.com limits how many emails you can send per day to prevent spam.
With a Microsoft 365 subscription, the maximum is 5,000 recipients per day and 500 per message. Free accounts have a lower limit that depends on the account’s history.
You also don’t get an unsubscribe link, statistics or a way to segment your list. And if you go over the limit, Microsoft may temporarily block your account.
We explain this in detail in our entry on sending limits.
What do Hotmail and Outlook require from campaign senders?
If you send newsletters, a good part of your list will have @hotmail, @outlook or @live addresses.
Since May 5, 2025, Microsoft requires the following from domains that send more than 5,000 emails a day to those addresses:
- Valid SPF for the sending domain.
- Signed and valid DKIM.
- Published DMARC, with at least a p=none policy, aligned with SPF or DKIM.
Emails that don’t comply are rejected with the error “550 5.7.515”. Microsoft also recommends a real sender that accepts replies, a visible unsubscribe link and cleaning your list of addresses that bounce (hard bounce).
These requirements are similar to those of Gmail and Yahoo Mail. You’ll find them all in our entry on bulk sender requirements.
This email service is also a classic marketing case study. At the bottom of every email its users sent there was a line: “P.S. I love you. Get your free email at Hotmail”.
Every message was an ad. Whoever received it clicked, opened their own account and kept the chain going: digital word of mouth.
That is how it gained millions of users in a few months, with almost no advertising spend.
The lesson still holds: a good email footer can work for you. And the postscript is one of the most-read parts of an email.
How Mailrelay helps you
Do your customers use Hotmail or Outlook? Mailrelay helps your campaigns reach their inbox:
- We guide you through setting up SPF, DKIM and DMARC on your domain.
- Every newsletter includes the unsubscribe link.
- Automatic list cleaning removes addresses that bounce.
- You see the opens, clicks and unsubscribes for every send.
And you can start for free: the free account includes up to 80,000 emails a month and 20,000 subscribers, with support on all plans.
Reach the Hotmail and Outlook inbox
Authenticate your domain, clean your list and measure every send from your free account.
Frequently Asked Questions
These are the most common questions about this email service.
What is Hotmail?
The free email service that was born in 1996 and that Microsoft integrated into Outlook.com in 2013. Old addresses still work.
What does Hotmail mean?
The name was written as HoTMaiL so that it spelled out the letters HTML, the language of web pages.
Are Hotmail and Outlook the same thing?
Yes. Since 2013, these accounts have run inside Outlook.com, with the same features and the same storage.
Can you still create a Hotmail account?
Yes. When you sign up for Outlook.com, you can choose an @hotmail.com or @outlook.com address.
How long has Hotmail been around?
Since July 4, 1996. Microsoft bought it a year and a half later, in December 1997.