How To Select All Emails In Gmail (By Year/Sender/Category)

Tackling Gmail inbox is pretty challenging with the constant influx of emails. And manually selecting every email either for deletion (or) organization is a tedious task and time-consuming too. But what if you could manage your inbox with a few clicks? Let’s look at the effective methods for selecting all emails at once in Gmail.

Why Would You Want To Select All Emails At Once?

Selecting all your emails in Gmail at once can be a real-time-saver, especially if you’re looking to manage a large inbox. Here are a few reasons why it could be useful:

• Perform bulk actions (delete, archive, label, mark as read) on a large group of emails.
• Clean out clutter from folders like promotions or newsletters.
• Organize emails by sender/recipient by selecting and labeling them all at once.
• Search and then select all emails that meet specific criteria for bulk actions.

Be cautious when selecting all emails, specifically when you are planning to delete them. Cross-check your selection before hitting the delete option.

How To Select All Emails by Year?

Follow these simple steps to select emails by year:

1. Sign into your Gmail account if you haven’t already

2. In the Gmail search bar at the top, enter the following search operator to filter emails by year: after:YYYY/01/01 before:YYYY/12/31

Replace YYYY with the desired year. For example, to select all emails from the year 2023, you would enter: after:2023/01/01 before:2023/12/31

[Note: If additional filtering is needed, combine year search with other operators like from: (for sender) or to: (for recipient)

Example: To select all emails from 2023 sent by “John Doe,” use the search term: year:2023 from:”John Doe”]

3. Click on the checkbox at the top left corner to select all emails on the current page

4. Click on “Select all conversations that match this search”.

Now that you’ve selected all the emails, you can easily perform actions like archiving, labeling, or deleting them.

How To Select All Emails by Sender?

Here’s how you can select all emails from a specific sender in Gmail:

1. Access your Gmail account through the web interface

2. In the Gmail search bar, enter the email address or name of the sender from whom you want to select emails. For example: from:sender@email.com”

[Note: You can also search for emails from multiple senders by separating their email addresses with OR (in uppercase). For example: from:”sender1@email.com” OR from:”sender2@email.com”

3. Repeat the process: Just click on the checkbox at the top left corner to select all emails on the current page and hit “Select all conversations that match this search”.

Once all the emails are selected successfully you can apply desired actions accordingly.

How To Select All Emails by Category?

Gmail automatically categorizes incoming emails into different tabs such as Primary, Social, Promotions, Updates, and Forums. If you want to select all emails from a specific category, here’s what you can do:

1. Click on the category tab from which you want to select emails. For example, if you want to select all emails from the Promotions tab, click on the “Promotions” tab in Gmail’s sidebar.

2. Click on the checkbox at the top left corner and select all emails on the current page

3. Click on “Select all conversations that match this search”

4. With all emails selected, you can now perform actions like archiving, labeling, or deleting them.

What Else Can You Do To Select All Emails In Gmail

Apart from the “Select All” checkbox method, there are alternative ways to select all emails in Gmail. These methods can be useful if you have a large number of emails and the “Select All” checkbox is not visible.

Just use the keyboard shortcut “Ctrl+A” (Windows) or “Command+A” (Mac) to select all emails in your inbox. This keyboard shortcut works in most web browsers and operating systems.

In Gmail, all your emails are stored under the “All Mail” label. To select all emails, you can click on this label located in the left sidebar. Once you are in the “All Mail” view, you can perform actions on all the emails.

What You Can Do With Selected Emails?

Once you’ve selected a bunch of emails in Gmail, you have several options at your disposal. Here are some common actions you can take on those bulk-selected emails:

• Delete: This is the most common bulk action. Be careful with this one, though, as deleted emails are usually sent to the trash and can be permanently removed if you’re not careful.
• Archive: This removes the emails from your inbox but keeps them safe and searchable. It’s a great way to declutter your inbox without losing the emails forever.
• Add a Label: You can create a new label specifically for this group of emails, or add them to an existing one for better organization.
• Move to a Folder: You can easily move selected emails to a specific folder in your Gmail account, just like using labels. It’s handy when you have separate categories for various email types.
• Mark as Read/Unread: You can easily accomplish this task by selecting all of them and clicking once.
• Star Important Emails: If you’ve got a bunch of important emails selected,  you can quickly mark them all with a star to make them easier to find later.
• Forward: Forwarding multiple emails at once can be a big time-saver. Select the emails you want to forward and then choose the forward option.
• Report Spam: If you’ve been getting a ton of spam from a particular source, selecting them all and reporting them as spam can help train Gmail’s filter.

Troubleshooting Common Issues When Selecting all Emails in Gmail

Here are a few common problems and their solutions:

• Missing “Select All” checkbox: In some cases, the “Select All” checkbox may not be visible in the Gmail interface. Refreshing the page or clearing your browser cache can often resolve this issue.
• Inability to select certain emails: If you are unable to select specific emails, it could be due to their status, such as being starred, important, or unread. Clear any applied filters or labels to ensure all emails are selectable.
• Limited Selection: Gmail might only allow you to select a maximum number of emails at once, typically around 500. If you have a massive inbox exceeding that limit, selecting all won’t work. You can try using the search bar to filter your emails to a smaller group and then select all within that filtered view.
• Temporary Glitches: Sometimes technical glitches can happen. Try refreshing the Gmail page or restarting your browser. This can often clear up temporary issues.
• Browser Extensions: Occasionally, browser extensions can interfere with Gmail functionality. Try disabling any extensions you have running and see if that resolves the selection issue.

In rare cases, the issue might be on Google’s end. You can check the Google Workspace Status Dashboard   (https://www.google.com/appsstatus/dashboard/) to see if any reported Gmail outages might be causing selection problems.

If none of the above solutions work clear your Gmail cache and cookies, reset your Gmail settings, or even try a different web browser.

Also Check:

• How To Add A Second Gmail Account?
• Why Is My Gmail Not Receiving Emails?
• How To Find Old Emails Quickly In Gmail?
• How To Delete All Emails In Gmail?

Select All Emails In Gmail – FAQs

Conclusion

Lastly, don’t waste your time deleting or managing emails one by one. Simply select large groups by year, sender, or category and organize your inbox in no time.