To do this, head to Settings > General settings > Swipe actions.
To do this, head to Gmail Settings > [Account email] > Notification sounds and pick a notification sound for that account.
To change this, head to Settings > [Account email] > Notifications and change it from High priority to All.
To change the inbox view, head to Settings > General settings > Conversation list density and choose Compact.
To turn this off, head to Settings > [Gmail account] and uncheck Download attachments.
Gmail is one of those apps where most people simply sign in and never think twice about its settings. I used to do the same until I realized a few simple tweaks could save me a lot of frustration.
Changing these default settings takes less than five minutes, but they help me declutter the app interface, manage emails easily, and ensure I never miss any important messages because Google's algorithm decided it wasn't worth notifying.
Speed up actions with gestures
They can do more than just archive
Gmail lets you swipe left or right on an email, but by default, both gestures simply archive the message. While that’s useful, you’re not stuck with it. You can set those gestures to mark an email as read/unread, move it to a specific folder, snooze it, or even delete it outright.
To do this, head to Settings > General settings > Swipe actions. Personally, I’ve set my left swipe to mark email as read/unread. It keeps my inbox clean without forcing me to open messages I don’t care about. The right swipe is set to snooze, which is handy for important emails that I can’t get to right away but don’t want to lose track of.
Set different notification sounds for each account
Let your ears do the inbox sorting
Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf Credit: Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf
I have a few Gmail accounts — one for work, one for personal, and a throwaway email I use to dodge marketing emails. And while it’s nice to be able to manage them all from one app, it also means I get hit with notifications throughout the day. Of course, not every one of those is equally important.
To easily differentiate between them, I set different notification sounds for each. That way, I can tell which account just got an email without actually picking up my phone. To do this, head to Gmail Settings > [Account email] > Notification sounds and pick a notification sound for that account. Now that I've done this for all the accounts, I no longer do the whole grab-and-check routine every time my phone buzzes.
Enable notifications for every email
You aren’t the only one missing important emails
Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf Credit: Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf
By default, the Gmail app only notifies you about high-priority emails. And it’s Google’s algorithm that decides what counts as high priority, unless, of course, you’ve manually marked senders as Important or Not Important. Most of the time it gets it right, but I’ve had several instances where the Gmail app wouldn’t notify me about an email. So yes, I no longer leave that call to an algorithm.
To change this, head to Settings > [Account email] > Notifications and change it from High priority to All. You’ll need to do this for each account individually, though it’s best to leave your throwaway account in the default settings.
Change the default inbox view
See more messages at a glance
Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf Credit: Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf
Gmail’s default inbox view isn’t bad. It shows attachments and quick action buttons, which can be useful. But that also means you’re seeing fewer emails at a glance, which adds up to a lot of scrolling.
I personally prefer the Compact view. It only shows the subject and a single line of preview text, but honestly, that’s enough. I can tell within a second if an email needs my attention or just needs to be marked as read and buried.
To change the inbox view, head to Settings > General settings > Conversation list density and choose Compact. There’s also a third option called Comfortable, which shows two lines of email text without attachments.
Hide that Meet tab
It’s just taking space
Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf Credit: Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf
The Gmail app includes a Meet tab at the bottom, which is handy for anyone who needs to jump into Google Meet calls throughout the day. But that’s not me. I only need to use Google Meet maybe once or twice a week, and for those occasional calls, I find it easier to use the dedicated app.
Unfortunately, Gmail doesn’t give you a simple toggle for removing the Meet tab, so you need to do it for each account. Head to Settings > [Account name] and uncheck the Show the Meet tab for video calling.
Disable attachment auto download
Gmail’s saving files you’ll never open
Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf Credit: Pankil Shah / MakeUseOf
By default, Gmail automatically downloads attachments for recent emails. The good thing is that it does this only when you’re on Wi-Fi. The logic also makes sense because it lets you view attachments as soon as you open the email, even when you’re not connected to the internet.
Personally, though, I find it unnecessary. I’d rather save the storage and download attachments only when I actually want to open them. To turn this off, head to Settings > [Gmail account] and uncheck Download attachments. Repeat this for every account, and you’re done.
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These aren’t life-changing settings, but they definitely add up. It’s essentially the same app as before, but now works the way I want it to.
