Emails tend to accumulate, especially if you’ve had the same address for a long time. And once they reach a critical mass, you are likely to have a difficult time finding the ones you actually care about. Thankfully, Gmail allows you to use the three classic productivity tricks below to filter your messages and stay on top of what’s most important.
1. Add Dots to Your Email Address
With Gmail, adding periods or dots inside an email address doesn’t affect it. For example, if you have the address [email protected], and someone sends a message to [email protected] or [email protected], it will reach you all the same. You can use this fact to your advantage.
For example, you might tell your friends and family to send emails to the ‘johnsmith’ address, and you might tell business associates to send emails to the ‘john.smith’ address. Then, you can create a filter in Gmail to separate the two automatically when they arrive.
You have to set up filters if you want messages sent to one address to skip the inbox and go directly to another folder.
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Set up a filter with these steps:
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From the cog icon in the upper right side of Gmail’s dashboard, click See All Settings.
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Select Filters and Blocked Addresses from the top bar.
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Select Create a New Filter (it’s at the bottom of your Filters list).
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In the To field, enter the Gmail address with the periods.
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Choose Create Filter.
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On the next screen, select where you want the incoming messages to be directed. If you want incoming messages for that address to go directly into a designated folder, select two options: 1. Skip the Inbox, and 2. Apply the Label (choose the label you want or create a new one). You must apply both filters, or else the new mail will still end up in your inbox.
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Hit Create Filter to save your changes.
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Finally, if you’ve already received messages to this alias, you might want to add the option “Also apply filter to X matching conversations.” Doing so sweeps all the relevant mail to the new folder right away.
2. Filter Automated Messages With Plus Sign Aliases
The second trick is nearly the same as the first, but here, you use a plus sign and words before the @ symbol to make aliases. All these aliases work without you having to set up anything special in your settings:
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[email protected]
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[email protected]
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[email protected]
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[email protected]
This is a great strategy to use when you sign up for a new web account or app. If you make an account on, say, J.Crew’s website, you can use the address [email protected] as your login name. Once you create a filter for this address, as in the above step, Gmail automatically directs all J.Crew emails to a dedicated folder.
You can simply change your email address on existing accounts to add a plus sign alias. So, for example, you can easily filter all shopping-related emails into a single folder.
3. Customize Your Inbox With One Click
The last tip is to customize what goes into your inbox without creating a bunch of folders and filters, which is easy for just about anyone.
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(Credit: Google/PCMag)
Click the cog icon in the upper right side of your Gmail dashboard, and scroll down to the ‘Inbox Type’ section. A few options for customizing your inbox are available here:
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Default
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Important first
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Unread first
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Starred first
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Priority Inbox (combines aspects of Important, Unread, and Starred to try and put the most meaningful messages in front of you first)
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Multiple Inboxes
When you apply one of the options (other than default), Gmail reserves the top of the inbox for the message type you chose. You can fine-tune exactly how these options work by clicking on the ‘Customize’ button below them. It’s possible to adjust your Inbox unread count settings, change which tabs appear in your email, and more.
Do What Works for You
These Gmail features are particularly useful if you want to better manage your inbox without creating new email addresses. It is perfectly acceptable to simply create more email addresses and use them for different purposes, too. It’s more important to do what works for you than to follow some prescribed “right way.” As long as you choose a method that you can stick with, it’ll help you maintain some semblance of sanity with regard to your inbox.
About Our Experts
Experience
I’m an expert in software and work-related issues, and I have been contributing to PCMag since 2011. I launched the column Get Organized in 2012 and ran it through 2024, offering advice on how to manage all the devices, apps, digital photos, email, and other technology that can make you feel overwhelmed. That column turned into the book Get Organized: How to Clean Up Your Messy Digital Life. I was also the first product reviewer at PCMag to test fitness gadgets, including everything from early Fitbits to smart bras.
Currently, I’m passionate about the meaning of work and work culture, and I enjoy writing about how managers and employees can communicate better, with or without software. My most recent book is The Everything Guide to Remote Work. I also love a good workplace drama.
In addition to writing about work, I cover online education, focusing on learning for personal enrichment and skills development. I have a soft spot for really good language-learning software. Although I grew up speaking only English, some twists and turns in life led me to learn Spanish, Romanian, and a bit of American Sign Language. I’ve studied at the university level, as well as at the Foreign Service Institute, where US diplomats and ambassadors learn languages.
My writing has also appeared in WIRED, the BBC, Gloria, Refinery29, and Popular Science, among other publications.
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Ruben Circelli
Writer, Software
Experience
I’ve been writing about consumer technology and video games for over a decade at a variety of publications, including Destructoid, GamesRadar+, Lifewire, PCGamesN, Trusted Reviews, and What Hi-Fi?, among many others. At PCMag, I review AI and productivity software—everything from chatbots to to-do list apps. In my free time, I’m likely cooking something, playing a game, or tinkering with my computer.
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