How to Find Unread Emails in Gmail

Are you facing the same problem as me? Your inbox shows tons of unread emails, but with millions of messages in your Gmail, finding them feels like an impossible task.

This is actually a common issue; I’ve seen it mentioned frequently on Reddit.

It’s time to explore the various solutions to find unread emails in Gmail: the quick solution and the long-term fix.

Search Unread Emails in Gmail: The Quick Win

The quick solution involves using Gmail’s search bar.

Unread Emails in Gmail

Open Gmail in a browser, then type is:unread in the search bar to see all unread emails, regardless of their folder.

You can refine your search results by adding specific details after typing is:unread.

Examples:

is:unread from:[email protected] – Shows unread emails from a specific sender.
is:unread to:[email protected] – Shows unread emails sent to a specific address.
is:unread subject:keyword – Displays unread emails containing a specific keyword in the subject.
is:unread after:YYYY/MM/DD – Shows unread emails received after a certain date.

💡 Good to know: On desktop, you can also click on the three-slider icon in the search bar to open advanced search options.

Unread Emails in the Gmail App

It’s the same process as on the desktop version. All mentioned filters, like is:unread, from:, to:, or label:, work the same in both environments.

The only difference is that advanced search options are visible at a glance on mobile.

Whether your smartphone uses Android or iOS, the app is identical.

How to Sort Unread Emails in Gmail by Default

There are two possible solutions, depending on your preferences.

Ask Gmail to Always Show Unread Emails First

You can set up your inbox so that unread messages appear at the top:

Open Gmail and click the Settings button ⚙️.
Select See all settings.
Go to the Inbox tab.
Scroll to the Inbox type row and set it to Unread first.
Click Save changes.

This solution is extremely simple. However, based on your preferences, it might not satisfy all users. That’s why we have another suggestion.

Add a Dedicated “Unread” Folder to Your Gmail Inbox

❓“Folder” or “Label”? Unlike traditional email systems (like Outlook), Gmail doesn’t have folders where an email exists in only one place. Gmail exclusively uses a labeling system, allowing you to tag an email with multiple categories simultaneously. So, a single email can be tagged as both "Project A" and "Urgent."

This solution doesn’t disrupt your inbox layout.

Gmail offers many ways to filter your emails, one of which is creating Gmail labels. This works the same on both desktop and mobile.

It’s a simple, hassle-free solution that can save you valuable time.

💡 Good to know: Gmail doesn’t allow you to automatically tag all unread emails with a specific label. To keep the label updated, you’ll need to perform a search and manually tag new unread emails.

You can create an "Unread" label to tag all your unread emails.

Step 1: Create the "Unread Emails" label

Open Gmail.
In the left menu, scroll down and click on “New Label.”
Name the label “Unread Emails” and click “Create.”

Step 2: Add unread emails to the label

Type is:unread in Gmail’s search bar.
Select the unread emails you want to tag.
Click the three vertical dots.
Click “Label as” and choose “Unread Emails” to add them to the label.

Now, you can easily find all your unread emails by simply clicking on this label.

The Professional’s Insight: Finding Unread Emails from Your Email Marketing Campaigns

Finding unread emails in your Gmail account isn’t so complicated after all.

Did you know you can also locate unread emails from your email marketing campaigns?

Even with hundreds or thousands of recipients, it’s just as easy. You only need to apply the right filter in Google Sheets.

With the email tracking feature, you know if emails sent via Mail Merge for Gmail have been opened, thanks to a simple filter in Google Sheets.

Conclusion

I hope this article has been helpful and that these solutions will simplify your daily tasks.

Our Mail Merge app has a generous free plan – give it a try!