The fastest way to block an email address

The method depends on which email service you use. In Gmail, open the email, click the three dots in the top right, and select "Block [sender]." In Outlook (both web and desktop), right-click the email and choose "Block" or go to Home > Junk > Block Sender. In Apple Mail, select the email and click Mail > Block Sender. Most services move blocked emails to spam automatically and prevent future messages from reaching your inbox.

If you use a different email provider — Yahoo Mail, ProtonMail, AOL, or your company's email system — the steps are similar but the menu locations differ. The principle is the same: find the sender's address, locate a block or spam option, and confirm. Once blocked, you typically will not see emails from that address unless you unblock it later.

Key Takeaways

  • Gmail, Outlook, and Apple Mail all have a one-click block option accessible from the email itself or from the sender's contact card.
  • Blocking an email address sends future messages to your spam folder automatically, but does not delete emails already in your inbox.
  • You can unblock a sender at any time by finding them in your blocked list and removing the block.
  • If you receive many unwanted emails from different addresses, creating a filter or rule can catch messages by subject line or content rather than blocking one address at a time.

Gmail: blocking step by step

Open the email from the sender you want to block. In the top right corner, you will see three vertical dots (sometimes called a menu icon). Click it and select "Block [sender's name]" from the dropdown. Gmail will ask you to confirm — click "Block" again. The sender is now blocked, and their future emails will go straight to your spam folder.

If you want to block someone but have already deleted their email, you can still block them from your Contacts. Go to Contacts, find the person's name, click it to open their card, and look for a block option (usually represented by a circle with a slash through it). You can also block someone by opening their contact card from any email thread with them and selecting the block icon.

Outlook: blocking on web and desktop

In Outlook on the web, open the email you want to block. Click the three dots at the top of the message and select "Block." In the popup, confirm that you want to block the sender. Outlook will move their future emails to your Junk folder.

In Outlook desktop (Windows or Mac), right-click the email from the sender you want to block. Select "Junk" and then "Block Sender." You can also go to the Home tab at the top, click "Junk," and select "Block Sender" from the dropdown menu. The sender's future emails will go to your Junk folder automatically.

Apple Mail and other services

In Apple Mail on Mac, select an email from the sender you want to block. Go to the Mail menu at the top of the screen, hover over "Block Sender," and click the sender's name. On iPhone or iPad, open the email, tap the sender's name at the top, and select "Block this Contact."

For Yahoo Mail, open the email, click the three dots, and select "Block." For ProtonMail, click the three dots and choose "Block." For AOL Mail, click the three dots and select "Block Sender." Most web-based email services follow this same pattern: find the email, locate the menu icon (usually three dots), and look for a block or spam option.

What happens when you block someone

When you block an email address, future emails from that sender go to your spam or junk folder instead of your inbox. You will not receive notifications about blocked emails, and they will not clutter your main mailbox. However, blocking does not delete emails that are already in your inbox — you will need to delete those manually if you want them gone.

Blocking is one-way: the sender does not know they have been blocked, and they can still send emails. Their messages straightforward will not appear in your inbox. If the sender uses a different email address, those messages will come through normally unless you block that address too.

Unblocking a sender

If you change your mind and want to receive emails from someone you blocked, you can unblock them. In Gmail, go to Settings (the gear icon), click "See all settings," go to the Filters and Blocked Addresses tab, find the blocked sender, and click "Unblock." In Outlook, go to Settings, select "Mail," click "Junk email," and find the blocked sender in the list, then click the X to remove them.

In Apple Mail, go to Mail > Preferences, click the Junk Mail tab, and look for a list of blocked senders. Select the person you want to unblock and remove them from the list. Once unblocked, emails from that sender will return to your inbox normally.

Using filters instead of blocking individual addresses

If you receive many unwanted emails from different senders or the same sender using multiple addresses, creating a filter or rule may work better than blocking one address at a time. In Gmail, open an email from the unwanted sender, click the three dots, and select "Filter messages like this." You can then choose to automatically delete, archive, or send these emails to spam based on the sender's address, subject line, or keywords in the message.

In Outlook, go to Settings, select "Mail," click "Rules," and create a new rule. You can set it to move emails to junk based on sender address, subject line, or content. In Apple Mail, go to Mail > Preferences, click Rules, and create a rule that automatically moves matching emails to trash or junk. Filters are useful when you want to catch a pattern of unwanted mail rather than blocking one person at a time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a blocked sender tell that I blocked them?

No. When you block someone, they do not receive a notification. Their emails straightforward go to your spam folder instead of your inbox. They may eventually notice that you are not responding, but the email service does not inform them that they have been blocked.

Will blocking delete emails already in my inbox?

No. Blocking only affects future emails from that sender. Emails already in your inbox, sent folder, or archive will remain there. You must delete them manually if you want them gone. Some email services let you delete all past emails from a sender when you block them, but this is not automatic.

What if someone keeps emailing me from different addresses?

If one person is using multiple email addresses to contact you, blocking each address individually can become tedious. Instead, create a filter based on the person's name, a common subject line, or keywords they use. This catches emails from any address they send from and automatically sends them to spam or trash.

Can I block emails by subject line or content instead of sender?

Yes. Most email services let you create filters or rules based on subject lines, keywords, or message content. In Gmail, use Filters and Blocked Addresses. In Outlook, use Rules. In Apple Mail, use the Rules feature. This is more flexible than blocking a single address and works well for newsletters, marketing emails, or repeated unwanted messages.

What is the difference between blocking and unsubscribing?

Unsubscribing removes you from a mailing list, usually through a link at the bottom of the email. Blocking prevents all emails from a sender from reaching your inbox. Unsubscribe if you want to stop receiving legitimate newsletters. Block if you want to prevent someone from contacting you or if unsubscribe links do not work.