- To create folders in Gmail, go to the Labels section in Settings.
- Click on Settings > Labels > Create New Label > Save.
- Gmail uses labels instead of folders to organize emails, but labels function similarly to folders.
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Folders are a must for keeping your email inbox organized. Gmail uses labels in addition to folders, but they're effectively the same thing and oftentimes you'll hear the terms used interchangeably. But unlike folders, you can apply more than one label to an email in Gmail.
Folders and labels should not be confused with Google's built-in Categories, which are similar to the Spam folder and include Promotions, Social, Updates, and Forums. These can be toggled, but are not fully customizable like labels.
To use a label as a "folder," use the "Move to" option to move an email or thread out of your inbox and into a label, which you can access in the left panel of your inbox.
All work-related emails for a specific client, for example, can be put into one folder, and wedding planning related emails can be stored in another. You can even nest labels under other labels, which act like subfolders.
Here's how to do it all.
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How to create a folder in Gmail on desktop
1. Go to the Gmail website. Log in to your account if you aren't already logged in.
2. Click the gear-shaped Settings icon at the top-right of the screen, then select See all settings.
3. In the Labels tab, scroll down to the Labels section and click Create new label.
4. Enter the name of the label you want, then click Create. If you want the new label to nest under an existing label (like a subfolder), click the box next to Nest label under and select the folder you want the new label to go into.
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How to create a folder in Gmail on iPhone
Unfortunately, folders cannot be created on the Android app for Gmail. The option does exist for iPhone, and you can take the following steps to set them up:
1. Open the Gmail app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Log in to your account.
3. Tap the hamburger menu (three horizontal lines) on the top-left of the screen.
4. Scroll down to the Labels section, then tap Create new.
5. In the pop-up menu, enter the name of the label you want (225 characters max), then tap Done.
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How to apply labels in Gmail
1. In your Gmail inbox on desktop, click the boxes next to the emails you want to label and click the Label icon on the right side of the top toolbar. On the mobile app, tap the circular profile icon of the sender on each email you want to label, then tap the three dots icon, and select Label in the pop-up.
2. On both desktop and mobile, check the boxes corresponding to the labels you want to apply (you can choose more than one). On desktop, click Apply and on mobile tap the check mark to apply the labels.
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How to automatically apply labels via filtering
You can change your Gmail settings to automatically apply labels, and even forward emails with a certain label, by changing your filter settings.
1. In your Gmail inbox on desktop, click the Show search options icon, which looks like three hatched lines, on the right side of the search bar.
2. Set the parameters for the filter. You can filter by From, To, Subject, Has the words, Doesn't have, Size, and Date.
3. After setting the criteria, click Create Filter.
4. On the next page, click the box next to Apply the label and choose a label from the drop-down menu.
5. Click Create Filter.
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How to edit or delete a label
You can edit or delete Gmail labels at any time, on desktop or iOS.
On desktop:
1. In your Gmail inbox on desktop,click the gear-shaped Settings icon at the top-right of the screen, then select See all settings.
2. In the Labels tab, scroll down to the Labels section.
3. To edit a label, click on the label name, enter in the new name, then hit the Enter or Return key. Alternatively, click the corresponding edit button in the Actions tab. You can also change a label's nesting properties in this window.
4. To delete a label, click the corresponding remove button in the Actions tab, then click Delete.
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On iOS:
1. In the Gmail app, tap the hamburger menu icon in the top-left corner, next to the search bar.
2. Scroll down and tap Settings.
3. On the next screen, select the email address you want to apply the change to.
4. Scroll down on the next page and select Label settings in the Labels section.
5. On the Label Settings page, tap the label you want to edit or delete.
6. Tap the Name field to enter a new name, or tap the Delete [label name] button at the bottom to delete the label.
Abigail Abesamis Demarest is a contributing writer for Insider based in New York. She loves a good glazed donut and nerdy deep dives into the science of food and how it's made.
