Gmail labels vs. folders at a glance
- Email programs such as Outlook keep email in folders. A folder is a container you put an email in, with each email in only one folder at a time.
- Gmail has labels and no folders. A label is a name you put on an email.
- One email can have several labels and be found by clicking any of them on the left side of Gmail.
- You can put a label inside another label, like a folder inside another folder.
- Gmail sorts your inbox into categories called Primary, Social, Promotions, Updates, and Forums. You can't create your own category, so a name of your own needs a label.
What each action does to an email
| Action | Still in the inbox afterward? | What else happens? |
|---|---|---|
| Add a label | Yes | The email also appears under the label. |
| Move the email to a label | No | Gmail adds the label and takes the email out of the inbox. |
| Archive it | No | The email isn't deleted and stays in All Mail. All Mail holds every email in your account. It returns to the inbox if someone replies. |
| Delete a label | Not affected | The label disappears from the list and its emails, but the emails stay in All Mail. |
| Delete the email | No | The email leaves every label and the inbox. It stays in Trash for 30 days, then is permanently deleted and can't be recovered. |
Add a label
- Still in the inbox afterward?
- Yes
- What else happens?
- The email also appears under the label.
Move the email to a label
- Still in the inbox afterward?
- No
- What else happens?
- Gmail adds the label and takes the email out of the inbox.
Archive it
- Still in the inbox afterward?
- No
- What else happens?
- The email isn't deleted and stays in All Mail. All Mail holds every email in your account. It returns to the inbox if someone replies.
Delete a label
- Still in the inbox afterward?
- Not affected
- What else happens?
- The label disappears from the list and its emails, but the emails stay in All Mail.
Delete the email
- Still in the inbox afterward?
- No
- What else happens?
- The email leaves every label and the inbox. It stays in Trash for 30 days, then is permanently deleted and can't be recovered.
Do you need a label for every email?
No, every email doesn't need a label. A label is worth creating when you want to see a group of emails together. For example, you might want all the email from one client together, or a group of receipts you'll need for taxes.
A study watched 345 people at work filing email into folders and looking for old messages, the same job you'd use labels for. Filing most of your email didn't improve the chances of finding a message compared with filing very little. Looking through a folder took about a minute on average, while a search took about 17 seconds.
For the email you don't need to see as a group, search when you need it. You can narrow a search to one label by typing "label:" followed by the label's name in Gmail's search box. For example, if your label is named "Receipts", enter "label:Receipts".
How to create a label in Gmail
To create a label on a computer, do the following:
Find Labels on the left side of Gmail.
Click Create new label to start a new label.
Enter the name you want for this group of emails.
Optionally, check Nest label under to put the new label inside another label.
If you're nesting the new label, choose the existing label that will contain the new label.
Click Create.
To create a label in the Gmail app on Android, do the following:
Tap Menu at the top left.
Find All labels in the menu.
Tap Create label to make a label on Android.
Enter the name you want to give the label.
Tap Save.
To create a label in the Gmail app on iPhone or iPad, do the following:
Tap Menu at the top left.
Find Labels in the menu.
Tap Create new to make a label on iPhone or iPad.
Enter the name you want to give the label.
Tap Save.
How to add a label to an email
To add a label to an email on a computer, do the following:
Check the box next to the email you want to label.
Click Labels at the top to choose a label for the selected email.
Select the label you want to add.
To add a label to an email in the Gmail app on Android, do the following:
Touch and hold the email you want to label.
Tap More at the top right.
Tap Label as to choose labels for the email.
Check the labels you want to add.
Tap OK.
To add a label to an email in the Gmail app on iPhone or iPad, do the following:
Touch and hold the email you want to label.
Tap More at the top right.
Tap Labels to choose labels for the email.
Check the labels you want to add.
Tap Done.
How to move an email out of your inbox and into a label
Gmail adds a label and archives the email when you move the email to that label, whether or not you've already added the label. If you've already labeled the email, you can simply archive it.
To move an email to a label on a computer, do the following:
Check the box next to the email you want to move.
Click Move to at the top to move the selected email.
Choose the label you want for the email.
To move an email to a label in the Gmail app on Android, do the following:
Touch and hold the email you want to move.
Tap More.
Tap Move to to move the email to a label.
Choose the label you want for the email.
To archive an email that already has its label on a computer, do the following:
Check the box next to the labeled email.
Click Archive at the top to take it out of the inbox.
To move an email to a label in the Gmail app on iPhone or iPad, add the label first and then do the following to archive the email:
Touch and hold the email you've labeled.
Tap Archive at the top to take the email out of the inbox.
How to send new email to a label automatically
A filter can label matching email as it arrives and keep it out of your inbox if you want. You create filters in Gmail on a computer. If you use Gmail on an Android phone or an iPhone, you'll need to set up the filter on a computer. If you need several filters, the Gmail filter generator builds them on one page and gives you one file to import into Gmail.
To create an automatic labeling filter on a computer, do the following:
Click Show search options in the search box at the top to start setting up a filter.
Enter what the emails have in common, such as the sender's email address.
Click Create filter at the bottom of the search window.
If you don't want these emails in the inbox, check Skip the Inbox (Archive it) to archive matching email automatically.
Check Apply the label to add a label to matching email.
Choose the label you want the filter to add.
Click Create filter.
The Gmail app on iPhone and iPad can add a label to new email from a sender. The email still arrives in your inbox because this setting isn't a filter. To set up automatic sender labeling in the Gmail app on iPhone or iPad, do the following:
Tap Menu at the top left.
Tap Settings.
Tap Inbox customizations.
Tap Labels.
Tap the name of the label you want to add automatically.
Tap Add to choose a sender whose new email gets this label.
Find From and type the sender's name or email address in the field.
Tap Save at the top right.
How to rename, color, or delete a label
Label colors are changed on a computer. To change a label in Gmail on a computer, do the following:
Point to the label's name on the left side of Gmail.
Click More.
Choose the change you want to make:
- To rename the label, change its name and save the change.
- To change its color, click Label color and pick a color.
- To delete the label, click Remove label.
To rename or delete a label in the Gmail app on Android, do the following:
Tap Menu at the top left.
Tap Settings.
Select the account whose label you want to change.
Tap Manage labels to manage the account's labels on Android.
Tap the label you want to change.
Choose the change you want to make:
- To rename it, tap Name, enter the new name, and tap Done.
- To delete it, tap Delete.
To rename or delete a label in the Gmail app on iPhone or iPad, do the following:
Tap Menu at the top left.
Tap Settings.
Tap Inbox customizations.
Tap Labels to manage labels on iPhone or iPad.
Tap the label you want to change.
Choose the change you want to make:
- To rename it, tap Name, enter the new name, and tap Done.
- To delete it, tap Delete.
If an email or a label goes missing
If an email you moved or archived is missing from your inbox on a computer, do the following:
Click More on the left side of Gmail.
Click All Mail to find email that's no longer in the inbox.
Alternatively, search for "in:archive" to find archived email.
If an email you moved or archived is missing from your inbox in the Gmail app on Android, iPhone, or iPad, do the following:
Tap Menu at the top left.
Tap All mail to find archived email in the app.
If an email is still missing, do the following:
Type "in:anywhere" followed by a word from the email in Gmail's search box to search all of Gmail, including Spam and Trash.
Run the search.
If a label is missing from the left side of Gmail, it may be hidden. To show the hidden label again in Gmail on a computer, do the following:
Click Settings at the top right.
Click See all settings.
Open Labels at the top.
Click Show next to the label to bring a hidden label back into view.
If you're switching from Outlook
The folders, rules, Junk, and Deleted Items you used in Outlook have different names in Gmail.
- Outlook folders are Gmail labels.
- Outlook rules are Gmail filters.
- Outlook Junk is Gmail Spam.
- Outlook Deleted Items is Gmail Trash.
On a computer, you can still drag an email onto a label as you would into an Outlook folder. If you'd prefer to keep using Outlook, you can add Gmail to Outlook and sync your messages and labels.
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