The fastest way to delete many emails at once

Gmail lets you select and delete multiple emails in one action, which is much faster than deleting them one by one. The method depends on how many emails you want to delete and whether they are grouped together or scattered across your inbox.

If the emails are next to each other, click the checkbox next to the first one, hold Shift, and click the checkbox next to the last one. Gmail will select all emails in between. If the emails are not grouped together, click each checkbox individually while holding Ctrl (or Cmd on Mac). Once you have selected the emails you want, click the delete button — it looks like a trash can and appears at the top of your email list.

Key Takeaways

  • Use Shift+click to select a range of emails that sit next to each other, then click the trash icon to delete them all at once.
  • Use Ctrl+click (or Cmd+click on Mac) to select emails that are scattered throughout your inbox, then delete them together.
  • The "Select all" option at the top of Gmail will select every email on the current page, but not emails on other pages unless you confirm the prompt.
  • Deleted emails go to your Trash folder for 30 days before Gmail removes them permanently, so you can recover them if you change your mind.
  • Use Gmail's search bar to find emails matching certain words or senders, then select and delete all results at once.

Selecting a range of emails with Shift+click

This method works when the emails you want to delete are sitting next to each other in your inbox. Open Gmail and look at your inbox. Find the first email in the group you want to delete and click the small checkbox to its left. The checkbox will turn blue with a checkmark.

Now hold down the Shift key on your keyboard and click the checkbox next to the last email in the group. Gmail will automatically select every email between the first and last one you clicked. You will see all the checkboxes turn blue. At the top of the email list, you will see a number telling you how many emails are selected. Click the trash icon (delete button) at the top, and all selected emails will move to your Trash folder.

Selecting scattered emails with Ctrl+click or Cmd+click

If the emails you want to delete are not next to each other, you can select them individually. Click the checkbox next to the first email you want to delete. Then hold down Ctrl on your keyboard (or Cmd if you are using a Mac) and click the checkbox next to each additional email you want to delete. Each checkbox will turn blue as you click it.

You can select as many emails as you want this way, even if they are on different pages of your inbox. Once you have selected all the emails you want to remove, click the trash icon at the top. All selected emails will move to Trash together.

Using "Select all" to delete everything on the current page

At the top left of your email list, just above the first email, you will see a checkbox with a small arrow next to it. Clicking this checkbox will select every email currently visible on your screen. The number at the top will show you how many emails are selected — usually 20, 50, or 100 depending on your Gmail settings.

If you want to select all emails in your inbox across every page, not just the current page, Gmail will show you a prompt after you click "Select all". The prompt will say something like "All 1,247 conversations in Inbox are selected" and offer you the option to confirm. Click that option if you want to delete emails from every page. Then click the trash icon to delete them all.

Be careful with this option — it will select a very large number of emails at once. Make sure you really want to delete all of them before you click the trash icon.

Finding and deleting emails by sender or subject

If you want to delete many emails from the same sender or with the same subject line, use Gmail's search bar instead of selecting manually. At the top of Gmail, click in the search box and type what you are looking for. You can search by sender name (type "from:name@example.com"), by subject line (type "subject:words"), or by any text in the email body.

Press Enter or click the search icon. Gmail will show you all emails matching your search. At the top of the results, click the checkbox to select all emails on the current page. If you want to select all matching emails across every page, click the checkbox, and Gmail will show you the prompt to confirm selecting all results. Once all results are selected, click the trash icon to delete them.

This method is especially useful for deleting newsletters you no longer want, old promotional emails from a specific store, or emails from a sender you have decided to block.

What happens to deleted emails and how to recover them

When you click the trash icon, emails do not disappear when ready. They move to your Trash folder, where they stay for 30 days. During those 30 days, you can recover any email if you change your mind. To recover an email, click "Trash" in the left sidebar of Gmail, find the email you want to keep, click its checkbox, and then click the "Move to" button at the top. Select "Inbox" or any other folder where you want it to go.

After 30 days, Gmail automatically and permanently deletes everything in your Trash folder. You cannot recover emails after that point. If you are worried you might delete something by mistake, take a moment to review your selection before you click the trash icon.

Avoiding accidental deletion when selecting many emails

When you are selecting a large number of emails, it is straightforward to accidentally include one you meant to keep. Before you click the trash icon, look at the number shown at the top — it tells you exactly how many emails are selected. If the number seems too high or too low, you may have made a mistake.

You can also click any selected checkbox again to unselect just that email, without losing your other selections. If you realize you selected too many emails, click the checkbox at the top left again to deselect everything and start over. Taking an extra 10 seconds to double-check is worth it, because you have 30 days to recover deleted emails but it is still an extra step.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I delete emails from multiple folders at once?

No. Gmail only lets you select and delete emails from the folder you are currently viewing. If you want to delete emails from your inbox and your promotions folder, you will need to do each folder separately. Open the first folder, select and delete the emails, then move to the next folder and repeat.

What if I accidentally deleted an email I needed?

Click "Trash" in the left sidebar of Gmail. Find the email you want to recover, click its checkbox, and click the "Move to" button at the top. Select "Inbox" or whichever folder you want it in. You have 30 days to recover deleted emails before Gmail removes them permanently.

Does deleting emails from Gmail delete them from my phone too?

Yes. If you use the Gmail app on your phone or tablet, deleting an email on your computer will also remove it from your phone. The change syncs automatically across all your devices because Gmail stores everything on Google's servers, not on your device.

Can I delete emails without moving them to Trash first?

Not through the normal Gmail interface. All deleted emails go to Trash first, where they stay for 30 days. If you want to permanently delete something when ready without waiting 30 days, you can open your Trash folder, select the email, and click "Delete permanently" — but this is a separate step from the regular delete button.

How do I stop getting emails from a sender so I do not have to delete them later?

Open any email from that sender and click the three dots menu at the top right. Select "Block [sender name]". Gmail will automatically send all future emails from that sender to your Spam folder. You can also unsubscribe from newsletters by clicking the "Unsubscribe" link that usually appears at the bottom of promotional emails.