In this tutorial, we will discuss the Difference between SMTP and POP3. To send and receive an E-mail between the mail servers, SMTP and POP3 are the message protocols that are responsible. SMTP act as a Message Transfer Agent and POP3 Message Access Agent. Both SMTP and POP3 are part of the Application Layer of the OSI Model and TCP/IP Model.
Let’s look at the difference between SMTP and POP3 in the following section:
Difference between SMTP and POP3
| SMTP | POP3 |
|---|---|
| SMTP stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. | POP3 stands for Post Office Protocol version 3. |
| SMTP used port number 25. | POP3 used port number 110. |
| SMTP is a Message Transfer Agent designed for sending messages. | POP3 is a Message Access Agent designed for accessing messages. |
| Also known as the PUSH protocol. | Also known as the POP protocol. |
| SMTP transfers the mail from the Senders mailbox to the receiver’s mail box present on the mail server over a TCP/IP network such i.e. Internet. | POP3 is used to retrieve e-mail from a receiver’s mail server to the receiver’s mailbox. |
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