How to Block Incoming Emails in Gmail (6 Steps)
By Nick Peers
You can't block incoming emails completely in Gmail, but you can send them directly to the Trash folder. The blocked emails don't even make it to your Inbox folder. Emails in the Trash folder are deleted automatically by Gmail after about 30 days. You can also empty the Trash folder manually. To block emails, you need to create a filter. You can block incoming emails from several senders using a single filter, which can be modified at any time.
Step 1
Log in to your Gmail account, click the gear icon and choose "Settings" from the menu to navigate to the Gmail Settings page.
Step 2
Click "Filters" near the top of the page and then click the "Create a new filter" link.
Step 3
Start typing the email address you want to block into the "To" field and choose the correct address from the list of suggestions. Type another address if you want to block incoming emails from several email addresses.
Step 4
Click the "Create filter with this search" link to proceed to the next step.
Step 5
Check the "Delete it" box. If you want to delete emails that are already in your Inbox folder, check the "Also apply filter to matching conversations" box.
Step 6
Click "Create Filter" to create the filter. The filter appears in the list of filters and becomes active immediately.
References
Tips
- Empty the Trash folder by opening the folder, selecting "All" from the "Select" dropdown box and then clicking the "Delete Forever" button.
- You can also block emails based on certain words. Type the words into the "Has the Words" or "Doesn't Have" field and then click "Create Filter With This Search" to filter emails that contain or don't contain the words.
- Delete a filter by checking its box in the Filters section of the Gmail Settings page and then clicking the "Delete" link. Edit the filter click by clicking the "Edit" link.
Warnings
- You can't recover any of the emails if you delete them from the Trash folder.
Writer Bio
Nick Peers has been writing technology-related articles since 2003. His articles have appeared in dozens of technical publications, including MSN UK, CNET, BBC Who Do You Think You Are, LifeHacker UK and TechRadar. He holds a Masters in information technology degree from the University of East London.