To clean up your inbox, delete messages one at a time or by specific categories. Deleted messages move from your inbox to your trash.
Learn what happens when you delete a message
Important: When you delete a draft, you can't recover it from Trash.
When you delete a message in Gmail, it's moved to Trash.
Up to 30 days after deletion:
- You can find the message in Trash.
- You can recover the message from your trash and move it back to your inbox.
- You can also delete the message permanently. After that, you can't recover the message.
After 30 days:
- The message is permanently deleted.
- You can't recover the message.
Delete one or more messages
- On your Android phone or tablet, open the Gmail app
.
- Touch and hold each message you want to delete.
- At the top, tap Delete
.
Delete multiple messages quickly
- On your Android phone or tablet, open the Gmail app
.
- Touch and hold a message.
- At the top left, tap the box next to "Select all."
- By default, Gmail selects up to 50 messages to delete.
- To delete 50 more messages:
- Scroll to the top of the page.
- At the top left, tap the box next to “Select all.”
- To delete 50 more messages:
- By default, Gmail selects up to 50 messages to delete.
- At the top, tap Delete
.
To delete specific emails, enter a search operator in the search bar.
For example, you can search for:
- Senders: From: fatima@cymbal.com
- Date ranges: after:2025/3/29 before:2025/4/5
- Keywords: “Confidential”
- Message attributes like attachments: has:attachment
Empty your trash
- On your Android phone or tablet, open the Gmail app
.
- At the top left, tap Menu
Trash.
- At the top, tap Empty trash now.
Remove messages from your trash
- On your Android phone or tablet, open the Gmail app
.
- At the top left, tap Menu
Trash.
- Touch and hold each message you want to move.
- At the top right, tap More
Move to.
- In the "Move to" menu, choose where you want to move the messages.
Swipe to delete a message quickly
To quickly delete a message in your inbox with a swipe, add "Delete" as a swipe action.
- On your Android phone or tablet, open the Gmail app
.
- At the top left, tap Menu
.
- Tap Settings
General settings
Mail swipe actions.
- Next to "Right swipe" or "Left swipe," tap Change
Delete.