The fastest way to block someone in Gmail

Open the email from the person you want to block. Click the three dots (more actions menu) in the top right of the email. Select "Block [sender's name]" from the dropdown. Gmail will move that sender's future emails to spam automatically, and you won't see notifications when they arrive.

That's the complete process. Once blocked, emails from that address go straight to your spam folder. You can still see them if you check spam, but they won't clutter your inbox or trigger alerts on your phone.

If you've already deleted the email, you can still block the sender. Go to Settings (the gear icon in the top right), click "See all settings," then the "Filters and Blocked Addresses" tab. Click "Create a new filter," type the email address in the "From" field, click "Create filter," then check "Delete it" or "Skip the inbox (Archive it)" and click "Create filter."

Key Takeaways

  • The three-dot menu on any email from that sender is the quickest way to block them permanently.
  • Blocked emails go to spam, not deleted, so you can review them later if you change your mind.
  • You can unblock someone anytime by going to Settings, Filters and Blocked Addresses, and clicking "unblock" next to their name.
  • If someone uses a different email address to contact you after being blocked, you'll need to block that address separately.
  • Blocking only affects your account; it doesn't prevent the sender from emailing you or notify them that they're blocked.

What happens when you block someone

When you block an email address, Gmail routes all future messages from that sender to your spam folder. You won't see a notification, and the email won't show up in your inbox count. The sender has no way of knowing they're blocked — the email goes through normally on their end, but you never see it arrive.

Emails that arrived before you blocked the sender stay in your inbox unless you delete them manually. Blocking only affects new messages going forward. If you want to clean up old emails from that person, you can search for their address and delete those messages separately.

Unblocking someone if you change your mind

Go to Gmail Settings (gear icon, top right), then click "See all settings." Find the "Filters and Blocked Addresses" tab. Scroll down to "Blocked addresses" and you'll see a list of everyone you've blocked. Click "Unblock" next to the person's name.

Once unblocked, their emails will no longer go to spam automatically. Any messages they send after you unblock them will arrive in your inbox normally. Old emails they sent while blocked are still in your spam folder, but new ones won't be routed there.

When blocking isn't enough

If someone is harassing you or threatening you, blocking is a safety tool but not a complete solution. Blocking stops their emails from reaching your inbox, but it doesn't stop them from creating new email addresses and contacting you again.

If the harassment is severe, save the emails as evidence before blocking. You can forward them to Gmail's abuse team at abuse@gmail.com, or report them to local law enforcement if the messages contain threats. Gmail takes reports of harassment seriously and may take action against the account.

For ongoing harassment from someone you know, consider changing your email address entirely and sharing it only with people you trust. This is more disruptive than blocking, but it's the only way to may provide they can't reach you if they keep creating new accounts.

Blocking email addresses that look like they're from Gmail

Scammers sometimes send emails that appear to come from Google or Gmail support, asking you to verify your password or confirm your account. These are almost always fake. Gmail's real support team will never ask for your password in an email.

Block these addresses the same way you'd block any other sender. But also report them to Gmail as phishing. Open the email, click the three dots, select "Report phishing," and Gmail will investigate. This helps protect other Gmail users from the same scam.

If you're unsure whether an email is really from Google, go directly to myaccount.google.com in your browser instead of clicking any links in the email. You can check your account security and recent activity there without ever giving out your password.

Using filters for more control than blocking

Blocking sends all future emails from someone to spam. Filters give you more options. You can set up a filter to delete emails automatically, archive them without showing them in your inbox, or label them so you can review them later without them cluttering your main view.

To create a filter, go to Settings, then "Filters and Blocked Addresses," then "Create a new filter." Type the sender's email address in the "From" field. Click "Create filter." Now you can choose what happens to their emails: delete them, archive them, star them, or explore a label. This is useful if you want to keep a record of someone's emails but don't want to see them in your inbox.

You can also filter by subject line or keywords. For example, if you're getting unwanted promotional emails from a company, you can create a filter for emails with "unsubscribe" in the subject and have those go straight to a folder. This is less aggressive than blocking and gives you a way to review them if you ever want to.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can someone tell if I've blocked them?

No. When you block someone, their emails still go through normally on their end. They won't receive a notification, bounce-back message, or any indication that you've blocked them. The only way they'd know is if they created a new email address and you told them directly.

What if the person uses a different email address to contact me?

You'll see emails from the new address in your inbox because it's technically a different sender. You'll need to block that address separately using the same three-dot menu method. If someone keeps creating new addresses to contact you, that's harassment, and you should report it to Gmail and consider law enforcement.

Do I need to block someone on my phone differently than on a computer?

The process is the same on the Gmail app for Android or iPhone. Open the email, tap the three dots in the top right, and select "Block [sender]." On desktop, it's the same three-dot menu. The settings are synced across all your devices, so blocking on your phone blocks them everywhere.

Can I block an entire domain, like all emails from a company?

Gmail doesn't have a built-in "block all from this domain" feature, but you can create a filter that catches most of them. Go to Filters and Blocked Addresses, create a new filter, and in the "From" field type "*@companyname.com" (replace companyname with the actual domain). Then set it to delete or archive. This won't catch every variation, but it catches most.

If I block someone and then unblock them, will they see my old emails?

No. Blocking and unblocking only affects how their incoming emails are routed to you. It has no effect on emails you've already sent them or that they've already received. They can still see your old messages in their inbox.