Simplify Your Digital Life: Here’s How To Clean Up Your Gmail Inbox
Yes, taming a congested and disorganized Gmail inbox can be quite a daunting task, especially if you have to deal with thousands upon thousands of emails. So where do you begin? How can you turn an unruly inbox into something more manageable? We’ve outlined several actionable steps you can take to start decluttering your Gmail account and simplifying your digital life.
Archive emails in bulk
Archiving is for emails that you don’t want to see in your Inbox but also don’t wish to permanently delete if they hold some importance or may be needed for reference at a later time. By archiving, you essentially move the emails out of your Inbox and into the All Mail folder. Here’s how you can archive emails in bulk:
Should you want to view your archived emails, just go to the left-hand side panel and scroll down to All Mail.
Delete emails in bulk
Your deleted emails should now appear in your Trash folder but will be permanently removed after 30 days.
Manage emails with attachments
If you frequently get emails with attached PDFs, photos, and videos, sooner or later, you’ll likely find yourself exceeding Google’s free 15GB storage. This could spell disaster for you as this means you would no longer be able to receive emails (one of the mostcommon problems Gmail on Android users encounter), upload new files to Drive, or back up media to Google Photos. To prevent such incidents from happening and keep your Inbox free from eyesore emails with attachments, it’s best to remove this type of message from your account. Here’s how:
Sort your emails into labels
Labels organize your emails into personalized categories, effectively reducing the visual clutter in your Inbox and helping you find specific messages quickly. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to sort your emails into labels:
Hide unused categories
One thing to love about Gmail is how it automatically classifies emails into five distinct categories: Primary (your main inbox), Promotions (for promotional emails), Socials (emails from social media and similar platforms), Updates (such as receipts, confirmations, and statements), and Forums (messages from forums, online discussions, and mailing lists). If you don’t read emails from these categories and prefer them out of your sight, Gmail lets you hide them from view to keep your home page clean and minimal. To do so:
You’ll notice your Gmail home page will now only display emails from your Primary category, ridding you of unnecessary distractions. Also, while you’re at it, you can start trimming down the emails sorted into these categories and delete the ones you don’t need, especially those in the Promotions tab. They’re typically just marketing material with already expired discounts and sales.
Set filters for incoming emails
Unless you stop actively using your email address or completelydelete your Gmail account, your inbox will inevitably return to its cluttered state once new messages start trickling in. There is, however, a nifty strategy you can use to maintain the order of your mailbox even when you get flooded with emails again: filters. Gmail’s filters essentially apply certain action/s to incoming messages, making it easier to keep your inbox organized and clean. Available actions include:
To create a filter in Gmail, follow these steps:
Incoming emails will start using the actions you selected, so you won’t need to spend hours deep cleaning your inbox the next time around.
