Here is the easiest way to delete all of your unread emails in Gmail.
It doesn’t happen often, but sometimes you need to bite the bullet and do a big clean out of your Gmail, as all those unread emails can really pile up if you let them. It’s also important that you keep an eye on your email storage, as you don’t want to get to a point where you can’t receive any more messages.
Thankfully, it’s not too hard to delete all of your unread emails in Gmail, so keep reading if you want to know the best way to clear out your inbox.
What we used
- We used the Huawei MateBook X Pro (2022) running Windows 11
The Short Version
- Go into your inbox in your Gmail account
- Click the arrow next to the small box under the search bar
- Click Unread
- Select all Unread mail
- Click off the box
- Press the Delete button
Step
1Go into your inbox in your Gmail account
Log in to your own Gmail account and go into your inbox.
Step
2Click the arrow next to the small box under the search bar
Just below the search bar in Gmail, there is a small box that selects messages. Click on the arrow next to it to bring up a pop-up menu.
Step
3Click Unread
Out of the options on the menu, click the Unread option. This will select all of the unread messages on the current page.
Step
4Get back to your inbox
Once you have clicked the Unread option, click off the box and come back to your inbox. The selection box should be bold now since you have selected some emails to interact with.
Step
5Select all unread mail
If you want to choose all unread messages everywhere, you need to type ‘in:unread’ into the search bar. Then click the top checkbox to select all messages on that page. Then click the ‘Select all conversations that match this search’ link to select every unread message in Gmail.
Step
6Press Delete and you’re done
Once you are ready, click the delete button. It will look like a small rubbish bin and will only be visible if you have messages selected. It also sits on the same row as the selection box that you will have already interacted with.
FAQs
Yes, if you have the Gmail app on your mobile device you should be able to delete all of your unread messages in a similar fashion.
This method will allow you to delete up to 50 emails at once time, but you can alter this in the settings if you’re looking to delete hundreds or even thousands of emails.
Yes, you can. Use the search ‘in:unread in:<name of label>’ to find all unread messages in a specified label, and then use the advice above to remove the messages.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.