Issue: I want to use Gmail (or another mail application) as my default (e.g., when I click on a “mailto:” link on a web page) instead of the Apple Mail program that is the standard OS X default.

Solution:

Google Chrome for Mac (v5+): Select Window → Extensions to access the Chrome extensions web site. Download and install the “Send from Gmail (by Google)” extension. Not only will this set Gmail as your default mail application, but it also provides a button on the browser toolbar that will create a Gmail message when clicked, using the page title as the subject and any selected page text plus the link address as the message.

Firefox (v3.5+): Open the Preferences window under the Firefox menu and select the Applications tab. Scroll down to the entry for “mailto” and select “Use Gmail” from the pull-down menu. The menu also includes options for Yahoo! mail, “Use other”, and “Always ask”.

Safari (v4+): In order to change the default mail application in Safari, you have to change it in the Apple Mail application. Start the Mail application, open the Preferences menu, and select the desired application from the Default Email Reader pull-down menu on the General tab. Note that this method requires that you have already configured an email account with Mail, otherwise you cannot access the Preferences. This is annoying! Also, Mail requires an actual application (e.g., Outlook), so you cannot directly select Gmail (or another web-based email service) as the default mail application. However, you can select Safari → Safari Extensions... from the Safari menu, then select “Email” from the “Categories” navbar on the Safari Extensions web site. At least one extension (i.e., “Mailto:”) exists that will make Safari utilize other mail applications (including Gmail) to respond to “mailto:” links.

OS Version Compatibility: Lion, Snow Leopard, Leopard, Tiger

Update Status: 06 February 2012