How to Sort Messages in Yahoo Mail

Organize your messages in the web and mobile versions of Yahoo Mail

What to Know

  • In the folder toolbar, select Sort by date. Choose a sort order: Unread Messages, Attachments, Starred, Sender, Subject.
  • Yahoo Mail Basic: Select the Sort By drop-down arrow, choose your desired sort criteria, then select Apply.
  • Filter messages: Select Settings > More Settings > Filters > Add new filters. Enter details and select Save.

By default, Yahoo Mail displays the messages in your mailbox sorted by date. However, it's also possible to view your messages sorted by sender, subject, or other criteria. We show you how using both the web version of Yahoo Mail and the mobile app for iOS and Android.

How to Sort Messages in Yahoo Mail

To sort a folder in Yahoo Mail:

  1. Go to the folder toolbar and select Sort by date.

    Date: Newest on Top options for email sorting
  2. Select the desired sort order:

    • Unread Messages: Unread emails appear at the top of the list. Unread and read emails are sorted by date.
    • Attachments: Messages that contain files appear above those that do not. The secondary sort order is by date.
    • Starred: Emails that are marked with a star are displayed at the top of the list. Starred and unstarred emails are sorted in descending order by date.
    • Sender: Messages are sorted by the name (then by the email address) in the From line.
    • Subject: Messages are sorted alphabetically (A-Z) by subject.
  3. Select Group by conversation to use the subject as a secondary sorting criterion. The Sender and Subject options are grayed out if this option is selected.

When sorting by subject, Yahoo Mail disregards Re, Fwd, and similar expressions found at the beginning of message subject lines.

How to Sort Messages in Yahoo Mail Basic

To sort emails in Yahoo Mail Basic:

  1. Select the Sort By drop-down arrow, then choose your desired sort criteria. It is set to Date by default.

    Sort by: Date menu in Yahoo Mail
  2. Choose Ascending Order for A-Z sorting, or choose Descending Order for Z-A sorting.

    Ascending Order
  3. Select Apply.

How to Filter Messages in Yahoo Mail

Another option is to create filters that automatically sort new messages to folders or the trash. You can create up to 500 filters in Yahoo Mail to organize your incoming emails.

  1. Select the Settings icon and choose More Settings.

    Settings > More Settings in Yahoo Mail
  2. Select Filters.

    Filters in Yahoo Mail
  3. Select Add new filters.

    Edit Filter pane
  4. Enter the filter name and set the filter rules. Then, choose a folder for the emails or create a new one.

  5. Select Save.

How to Find a Specific Message in Yahoo Mail

If you want to find a specific email, search for messages using a number of criteria, or have Yahoo Mail find all messages from a specific sender.

How to Sort Messages in the Yahoo Mail App

Although it's not possible to custom-sort emails within individual folders, there are other ways to sort your messages. Select Search to display a list of filters that you can use to see the messages you want to see.

Filters for Yahoo Mail on Android
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