How to mass delete emails in Gmail

A crowded inbox can slow you down, eat into your storage, and make it harder to focus on what matters. Whether you’ve got thousands of unread newsletters or years of archived conversations, cleaning up Gmail can instantly make work — and life — feel lighter. This guide walks you through how to mass delete emails on Gmail, step by step. You’ll learn the fastest ways to bulk-delete messages on desktop and mobile, use filters to target old or large emails, and keep your inbox organized for good.

Why mass deleting Gmail emails matters

Keeping a clean inbox can save time, storage, and even carbon emissions. Gmail users send and receive billions of emails daily, and every one of them takes up space. According to Carbon Literacy, the average email emits around 4 grams of CO₂. Multiply that by thousands of unread newsletters or years of archived messages, and your inbox starts to feel heavier than it looks.

Not only that, but an overflowing inbox slows productivity and increases mental clutter. Productivity experts estimate that digital clutter, including emails, can reduce work efficiency by up to 28% — the equivalent of losing more than one full workday per week.

It can also affect Gmail performance and your overall Google storage. Since Gmail shares space with Google Drive and Photos, clearing out emails — especially those with large attachments — can instantly free gigabytes of data. Google accounts share 15 GB of free storage across Gmail, Drive, and Photos. Once full, new emails stop arriving until space is cleared or upgraded.

Regular maintenance keeps your inbox efficient and your storage under control. If you’ve ever hit the “storage almost full” alert, you know how important that is.

How to delete multiple emails in Gmail (desktop)

Desktop Gmail gives you the most control over large-scale deletions. Here’s the fastest way to delete emails from Gmail in bulk:

1. Open Gmail in your web browser.
2. Select a category (Inbox, Promotions, Social, etc.).
3. Click the checkbox in the top left to select all visible emails on that page.
4. A message will appear: “Select all conversations in [Category].” Click it to include everything in that view.
5. Click the trash bin icon to move them to Trash.
6. Confirm the deletion when prompted.

This process lets you delete thousands of emails at once — including unread or promotional ones — without manually scrolling through pages. Gmail will show a short confirmation message when deletion is complete.

Tip: If you have slow internet or older hardware, delete in smaller batches (e.g., 5,000–10,000 emails at a time) to prevent browser lag.

How to delete multiple emails in Gmail (mobile app)

You can also delete Gmail emails in bulk using the mobile app, though the process is more limited than desktop:

1. Open the Gmail app on your phone.
2. Tap and hold one email to enable multi-select mode.
3. Tap additional messages to select them.
4. Tap the trash icon at the top of the screen.

Currently, Gmail mobile doesn’t support “select all” for full categories or filters. If you want to delete thousands of emails, use the desktop version for better control. However, the app is useful for quick cleanups during your commute or downtime.

How to delete Gmail emails by category or filter

If you want to clear certain types of emails — like old newsletters, receipts, or updates — Gmail’s search operators make it easy. Here’s how to use filters to delete specific groups at once.

By category

Type one of these in the search bar:

• category:promotions
• category:social
• category:updates

Then follow the same bulk-deletion steps: select all, choose “Select all conversations,” and click trash.

By sender

To delete all emails from one address:

• Type: from:example@domain.com

You can refine this further:

• from:amazon.com → All order confirmations
• from:linkedin.com → All LinkedIn notifications

By date

Target old messages using:

• before:2022/01/01 → Deletes all emails before January 1, 2022

Combine filters for more precision:

• from:newsletters@domain.com before:2023/01/01

By size

To free up space quickly, delete large attachments:

• larger:10M → Finds all emails larger than 10MB
• has:attachment larger:5M

Once results appear, click the checkbox, select all conversations, and delete. These filters work instantly and let you manage your inbox without installing third-party tools.

How to delete mass emails on Gmail using Labels

If you organize your inbox with labels (e.g., “Invoices,” “Clients,” “Events”), you can delete everything under one label in seconds:

1. Open the label in the left sidebar.
2. Click the checkbox to select all visible emails.
3. Select “All conversations with this label.”
4. Click trash to delete.

This approach works well if you’ve already categorized your emails and want to keep your organizational structure while cleaning up.

How to delete all emails in Gmail

If you’re starting fresh, you can delete everything in your account. Be cautious — this action can’t be undone once the Trash is emptied.

1. In the Gmail search bar, type in:all.
2. Click the checkbox to select all visible messages.
3. Click “Select all conversations in All Mail.”
4. Hit the trash icon to delete.

Depending on your storage size, Gmail may take a few minutes to process. Once complete, all your messages will move to the Trash folder, waiting for permanent deletion.

How to empty the trash folder in Gmail

Gmail automatically deletes emails in Trash after 30 days, but you can clear it sooner to recover space.

1. In the left sidebar, scroll to Trash.
2. Click “Empty Trash Now.”
3. Confirm when prompted.

Once you do this, emails are permanently removed — they can’t be recovered. You’ll instantly free storage space across your Google account.

Tips to manage your Gmail storage

Deleting emails helps, but preventing clutter is better. Here’s how to keep Gmail organized going forward:

• Monitor storage usage: Go to Google One Storage to see what’s taking up space.
• Sort by size: Use filters like larger:10M to find big attachments and delete them.
• Unsubscribe regularly: Use Gmail’s built-in unsubscribe links for newsletters you no longer read.
• Archive, don’t delete: For important messages you might need later, use Archive instead of Trash.
• Clear Spam and Promotions: These categories fill up quickly — check and empty them weekly.
• Automate filters: Create rules to auto-label or delete recurring low-priority emails.

Once your inbox is clean, keeping it that way is the real challenge. That’s where Fyxer AI comes in. Instead of spending time sorting, deleting, or chasing unread messages, Fyxer quietly organizes your inbox behind the scenes. It categorizes emails by priority, drafts replies in your tone, and helps you focus on what actually needs your attention.

No new tools. No extra tabs. Just an inbox that runs itself, so you can get back to meaningful work without getting buried in admin.

Inbox organized. Clutter gone. Back to what matters.

Deleting emails in Gmail FAQs

Will deleting emails free up Google Drive storage?

Yes. Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos all draw from the same 15 GB of free storage. That means every large email or attachment you delete gives you back valuable space you can use elsewhere. It’s one of the quickest ways to reclaim storage without touching your files or photos — especially if you regularly handle PDFs, presentations, or media-heavy threads.

Can I recover deleted emails?

Yes, but only for a limited time. Emails moved to Trash stay there for 30 days before they’re permanently erased. You can recover them anytime within that window by opening Trash, selecting the messages you want, and moving them back to your inbox. After 30 days, Gmail automatically clears them from your account, and recovery isn’t possible.

What’s the difference between deleting and archiving?

Deleting clears space; archiving clears view. When you delete an email, it’s moved to Trash and permanently removed after 30 days. Archiving, on the other hand, simply takes it out of your inbox while keeping it accessible under ‘All Mail’. It’s ideal for messages you might need later but don’t need cluttering your day-to-day inbox.