Guide: Gmail Tips & Tricks: 15 useful features worth using

Gmail is not just an application for sending and receiving emails. It has numerous features that can help you find messages faster, organise your inbox, automate certain actions and better protect your account.

In this guide you will find 15 useful Gmail Tips & Tricks for everyday use, both on computer and phone.

1. Quickly search any email

If you have hundreds or even thousands of messages in Gmail, there is no need to search them manually. Use the search bar at the top to quickly find the messages you want.

You can search by sender's name, email address, subject, words from the message or other information you remember.

For example, if you want to find messages received from a certain person, you can use:

from:nume@example.com

For messages sent to a certain address:

to:nume@example.com

For searching a certain subject:

subject:invoice

2. Only search messages containing attachments

If you know you received a document, a photograph or another file in an email, you can limit search results to messages containing attachments.

In the search bar you can use:

has:attachment

You can combine this command with other criteria to narrow down results.

For example:

from:nume@example.com has:attachment

3. Find emails older than a certain date

If you want to quickly find old messages, you can use date criteria.

For messages received before a certain date you can use:

before:2025/01/01

For messages received after a certain date:

after:2025/01/01

This method is useful when you are looking for invoices, contracts, documents or older conversations.

4. Use Gmail filters

If you receive a lot of emails, filters can help you automate the organisation of your inbox.

You can create a filter to identify messages by sender, subject, keywords, size or other available criteria.

Depending on the configuration chosen, messages matching the filter can be labelled, archived, flagged or managed automatically.

5. Organise your emails with labels

Gmail uses labels to organise messages. You can create categories such as:

• Clients
• Invoices
• Service
• Documents
• Personal
• Important
• Projects

Labels help you find messages more easily and can be used together with filters.

6. Archive messages you do not want to delete

If your inbox is cluttered, you do not have to delete old messages.

You can use the option Archive to remove the message from your inbox without deleting it from your account.

Archived messages can be found later using Gmail search or from the corresponding message area in your account.

7. Snooze an email for later

If you have received an email that you do not want to process right now, you can snooze it.

The feature Snooze allows you to choose a date and time for the message to reappear as to follow up.

It is useful for emails that require further action, but which you do not want to leave in your inbox at that particular time.

8. Schedule the sending of an email

You do not have to send all emails as soon as you write them.

Gmail allows you to schedule a message to be sent at a later date and time.

Once you have drafted the message, open the menu next to the button Send and look for the option Schedule send.

This feature can be useful if you work with people from other time zones or if you want a message to be sent at a specific time.

9. Undo send for an email

If you accidentally pressed the send button, Gmail offers a short period during which you can cancel sending the message.

After sending, watch the notification displayed at the bottom of the interface and press Undo if you want to return to the message.

You can check and modify the available period for undoing send in your Gmail settings.

10. Use auto-reply when you are away

If you will not be able to reply for a longer period, you can set up an automatic reply.

This can inform people who send you emails that you are unavailable and, if you wish, when you will return.

The feature is useful during holidays, periods when you are not working, or when you will not have regular access to email.

11. Use confidential mode for certain emails

For certain messages, you can use the confidential mode available in Gmail.

Depending on the available options, you can set an expiration period for the message and limit certain actions on the content.

This feature can be useful when you send information that should not remain accessible indefinitely.

12. Enable confirmation for important actions

If you use Gmail on your phone and frequently delete or archive messages by mistake, check the app settings and available options for confirming certain actions.

This is especially useful when quickly managing a large number of messages.

13. Use multiple Gmail accounts in the same app

If you have multiple Gmail addresses, you do not necessarily have to use a separate app for each account.

You can add multiple accounts to the Gmail app and switch between them.

This is useful if you have, for example, a personal account and one for professional activity.

14. Check account activity and security

Gmail account security is important because the email address can be used to recover other accounts.

Periodically check:

• the devices where the account is signed in;
• recent account activity;
• associated telephone numbers;
• recovery addresses;
• available authentication methods;
• applications and services that have access to the account.

If you notice any activity you do not recognise, check account security immediately and change your password if necessary.

15. Enable two-step verification

A password alone is not always enough to protect an important account.

Two-step verification adds an extra authentication method when you log in.

You can check this feature in your Google account settings, under the security section.

If it is available for your account, set up the verification method and keep your recovery options up to date.

Bonus: Use Gmail operators for more precise searches

Search operators can turn the Gmail search bar into a very efficient tool for finding messages.

A few useful examples:

• from: searches for messages from a specific sender;
• to: searches for messages sent to a specific address;
• subject: searches by subject;
• has:attachment finds messages with attachments;
• filename:pdf finds emails that have PDF attachments;
• is:unread displays unread messages;
• is:starred displays starred messages;
• before: search for messages before a certain date;
• after: search for messages after a certain date.

Examples of quick searches

To find unread emails containing attachments:

is:unread has:attachment

To find PDFs sent by a certain person:

from:nume@example.com filename:pdf

To find emails with a certain word in the subject:

subject:invoice

To find messages older than a certain date:

before:2025/01/01

Quick Gmail checklist

If you want to organise your Gmail account better, check the following:

• Have you set up the labels you need?
• Have you created filters for repetitive messages?
• Do you know how to quickly search for messages with attachments?
• Do you use archiving instead of needlessly deleting messages?
• Have you checked connected devices?
• Have you set up two-step verification?
• Have you updated your account recovery methods?
• Have you checked recent activity?

Frequently asked questions

How do I quickly find an old email in Gmail?

Use the search bar and combine operators such as from:, subject:, before:, after: and has:attachment.

Can I schedule an email in Gmail?

Yes. After drafting the message, open the menu associated with the send button and select the option to schedule sending.

Can I recover an email I have archived?

Yes. Archiving is not the same as deleting. The message can be found later through Gmail search.

Can I use multiple Gmail accounts?

Yes. You can add multiple accounts and switch between them, depending on the application or interface used.

Is two-step verification recommended?

Two-step verification adds an extra layer of security compared to using just a password.

Do you need help?

If you are having trouble setting up Gmail, adding the account to your phone or PC, syncing messages, configuring the email app, or sending and receiving settings, iTechServiceTM can help you.

View service Email configuration.

Related guides

• Guide: Google Maps Tips & Tricks: 15 useful features worth using
• Guide: WhatsApp Tips & Tricks 15 useful features worth using
• Guide: Tips&Tricks – 10 important settings on Android and iPhone worth checking

Do you need help?

Do you need help with the subject of this guide? Contact iTechServiceTM and describe your problem or objective.

Contact us