Search, Don't Sort?
Maybe you, like me, are good at collecting emails. The Archive button in Gmail is really good for that.
Fortunately, most of these archived emails are never to be seen or searched again. But others we need to get back to later.
Of course, you have discovered and tested the big Search Mail field that runs across Gmail's top border. Usually, it works. Sometimes, however, the number of emails returned is just too large. Maybe add a further term or the name of the sender?
Yes, but do it smartly. Using a number of clever search operators, you can narrow your search significantly and precisely. You can search in the Subject line only, for example, or combine that with a date range, a particular sender, and exclude all messages with attachments.
Search Mail in Gmail
To find messages in Gmail:
- Type search terms in the Search Mail field.
- You can go to Search Mail quickly by pressing /.
Use the following operators:
- subject: - Search the Subject line.
Example: "subject:bahamas" finds all messages with "bahamas" in the Subject. - from: - Search for sender name and email address. Partial addresses are okay.
Example: "from:heinz" finds all messages from "heinz@about.com", but also all messages from "your.heinz@tqn.com". - to: - Search the To line for names and addresses.
Example: "to:quertyuiop@gmail.com" finds all messages sent directly (not via Cc: or Bcc:) to quertyuiop@gmail.com. - cc: - Search recipients in the Cc field.
Example: "cc:quertyuiop@gmail.com" finds all messages that were sent to quertyuiop@gmail.com as a carbon copy. - bcc: - Search for addresses and names in the Bcc field. Note this only works with emails you sent to Bcc recipients from Gmail.
Example: "bcc:heinz" finds all messages that you sent with, for example, "hein@example.com" in the Bcc field. - label: - Search for messages assigned a label. (Replace whitespace characters in label names with hyphens.)
Example: "label:toodoo-doll" finds all messages labeled "toodoo doll". - is:starred - Search for messages that are starred.
- With Superstars enabled:
- has:yellow-star - Search for messages with a yellow star.
- has:red-star - Search for messages with a red star.
- has:orange-star - Search for messages with an orange star.
- has:green-star - Search for messages with a green star.
- has:blue-star - Search for messages with a blue star.
- has:purple-star - Search for messages with a purple star.
- has:yellow-bang - Search for messages with a yellow exclamation mark.
- has:red-bang - Search for messages with a red exclamation mark.
- has:purple-question - Search for messages with a purple question mark.
- has:orange-guillemet - Search for messages with two orange forward arrows.
- has:blue-info - Search for messages with a blue i.
- is:unread - Search for new and unread messages.
- is:read - Search for messages that have already been opened.
- has:attachment - Search for messages that have files attached to them.
- filename: - Search within file names of attachments. You can also search for file name extensions to restrict your search to certain file types.
Example: "filename:.doc" finds all messages with word processing attachments. - lang: - Search for messages in a particular language. (Specify the language in English; "Chinese" works, but "中文", "Putonghua" or "Mandarin" do not, for example.)
Example: "lang:French" returns all emails that contain at least un peu de Français. - in: - Search in a standard "folder". You can search in Drafts, Inbox, Chats, Sent, Spam, Trash and anywhere (for everything, including Spam and Trash).
Example: "in:drafts" finds all messages in your Drafts folder. - after: - Search for messages sent after a date. The date must given in YYYY/MM/DD format.
Example: "after:2005/05/05" finds all messages sent or received after (and not including) May 5, 2005. - before: - Search for messages sent before a date.
Example: "before:2005/05/05" finds all messages sent or received on May 4, 2005 and earlier.
Operators and search terms can be combined with the following modifiers:
- By default, terms are combined with (an invisible) "AND".
Example: "shepherd macaroni" finds all messages that contain both "shepherd" and "macaroni". - "" - Search for a phrase. Case is disregarded.
Examples: "shepherd's macaroni" finds all messages containing the phrase "shepherd's macaroni"; 'subject:"shepherd's macaroni' finds all messages that have "shepherd's macaroni" in the Subject field. - OR - Search for messages containing at least one of two terms or expressions.
Examples: "shepherd or macaroni" finds messages that contain either "shepherd" or "macaroni" or both; "from:heinz or label:toodoo-doll" finds messages that either come from a sender that contains "email.guide" or appear under the label "toodoo doll". - - - Search for messages that do not contain a term or expression.
Examples: "-macaroni" finds all messages that do not contain the word "macaroni"; "shepherd -macaroni" finds all messages that contain the word "shepherd" but not "macaroni"; 'subject:"shepherd's macaroni" -from:heinz' finds all messages with "shepherd's macaroni" in the subject that were not sent from an email address or name containing "heinz". - () - Group search terms or expressions.
Examples: "subject:(shepherd macaroni)" finds messages that have both "shepherd" and "macaroni" somewhere in the Subject line (but not necessarily as a phrase); "from:heinz (subject:(shepherd OR macaroni) OR label:toodoo-doll)" finds all messages from a sender who has "email.guide" in their name that either have "shepherd" or "macaroni" (or both) in the Subject line or appear under the label "toodoo doll".
Saved Searches
You can also bookmark Gmail searches easily for later repetition.
