Archived emails in Gmail are part of Google’s service to store messages for the future in an archive so you can view them whenever you want. However, if you don’t know where they are, you won’t be able to reach them and restore them back to your inbox.
With Gmail, it’s easier to archive your emails and restore them through the All Mail label, which gives you access to where these emails are kept.
Once you find this label, you can put back your archived messages to your inbox and read or use them as though they just came in.
Gmail stores archived mail in your account and they remain indexed while there, such that when you search for them, they’ll appear. You can open them on any of your devices, and still view them even while archived. However, if you want to respond to them, you have to move them to your inbox.
How to Retrieve Archived Emails in Gmail
If you’re using a browser, do the following:
- Open Gmail and select All Mail on the left (or More arrow to expand the list if it doesn’t show)
- Find the email you want to put back to inbox
- At the top of the toolbar, click Move to Inbox
- You’ll get a confirmation to verify that the email(s) have been restored to Inbox. If you moved one by error, you can press Undo to reverse it
If you’re using Gmail mobile app, do the following:
- Open Gmail app on your mobile device
- Tap the burger menu (three-line icon at the top left side) and find All Mail
- Now tap the email message you want to retrieve
- When it opens, select the three-dot icon at the top and tap Move to Inbox
Sometimes you may accidentally archive email messages but you can avoid this using these precautions:
- Don’t make sudden right to left swiping motions on your mobile device. Scroll through messages with care and slowly
- You can change the swipe motion for archive emails: General settings>Swipe actions
- Check any confirmation messages for emails that are archived, and use the Undo button where needed
Elsie is a tech writer with 8+ years professional experience. For Tech News Watch, she brings rich experience contributing to topics such as Windows, MacOS, Android, and iOS among others. In her spare time, she loves checking out the latest tech trends, gadgets, and news, listening to music and cars.
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