Creating a label takes three clicks and organizes your inbox instantly

A label in Gmail is a tag you attach to messages so you can find them later. Unlike folders in other email programs, one message can have multiple labels at once. To create a new label, open Gmail, click the Settings gear icon in the top right, select "Labels," scroll to "Create new label," type a name, and click "Create." That label now appears in your sidebar and you can assign it to any message by clicking the label icon when you have the message open.

Labels work best when you name them something you will actually search for later. "Work," "Receipts," "Family," or "2024 Tax Documents" are clear. "Stuff to Read" or "Important Things" are too vague to be useful when you have fifty messages with the same label six months from now.

Key Takeaways

  • Create a label by going to Settings, clicking Labels, scrolling to "Create new label," typing a name, and clicking Create.
  • One message can have multiple labels, so you can tag a receipt as both "Receipts" and "2024 Tax Documents" at the same time.
  • Labels appear in your sidebar on the left, and you can click any label to see all messages with that tag.
  • You can assign a label to a message by opening it, clicking the label icon, and checking the box next to the label name.
  • Nested labels (like "Work/Projects" and "Work/Meetings") help organize related labels under one heading in your sidebar.

Assigning labels to messages you already have

Once you have created a label, you can add it to messages in two ways. The first way: open a single message, click the label icon (it looks like a tag), and check the box next to the label name. The second way: select multiple messages at once by clicking the checkbox next to each one, then click the label icon in the toolbar above the message list, and check the boxes for all the labels you want to add.

If you assign the same label to messages regularly, you can set up a filter to do it automatically. Go to Settings, click "Filters and Blocked Addresses," click "Create a new filter," type in search terms (like "from:boss@company.com"), click "Create filter," check "Apply the label," select your label, and click "Create filter." From that point on, every message matching those terms gets the label automatically.

Creating nested labels to keep your sidebar organized

If you create many labels, your sidebar becomes a long list. Nested labels let you group related ones under a parent label. To create a nested label, go to Settings, click Labels, and in the "Create new label" field, type the parent label name, then a forward slash, then the child label name. For example, type "Work/Projects" to create a "Projects" label nested under "Work."

In your sidebar, the parent label now appears with a small arrow next to it. Click the arrow to expand and see the child labels, or click the parent label itself to see all messages tagged with any child label underneath it. This keeps your sidebar from becoming overwhelming while still letting you organize messages into specific categories.

Removing, renaming, and managing labels you no longer need

To rename a label, go to Settings, click Labels, find the label you want to change, click the three dots next to it, and select "Edit." Type the new name and click "Save." To delete a label, click the three dots next to it and select "Delete." Gmail will ask whether you want to delete the label but keep the messages, or delete the label and the messages together. In most cases, you want to keep the messages and just remove the label.

If you have assigned a label to hundreds of messages and want to remove it from all of them at once, search for "label:labelname" in the Gmail search box, select all results, click the label icon, uncheck the label, and click "Apply." This removes the label from every message in the search results without deleting the messages themselves.

Using labels with Gmail's search and filters

Labels become most useful when you combine them with Gmail's search. Type "label:Work" in the search box to see all messages with the Work label. Type "label:Work label:Urgent" to see messages that have both labels. Type "label:Work -label:Read" to see Work messages that do not have the Read label. This lets you find exactly what you are looking for without scrolling through your entire inbox.

You can also use labels with Gmail's search operators to find messages by date, sender, or subject within a specific label. For example, "label:Receipts from:amazon.com after:2024/01/01" finds all Amazon receipts from this year that you have labeled. This combination of labels and search operators turns Gmail into a filing system you can actually use.

Moving messages between labels and archiving

Labels are not the same as folders — a message with a label stays in your inbox unless you archive it. To archive a message, open it and click the archive icon (it looks like a box with a down arrow), or select the message and press the "e" key. Archived messages disappear from your inbox but stay in Gmail and keep their labels. You can find them by searching for the label or by clicking "All Mail" in your sidebar.

If you want to remove a label from a message without deleting the message, open the message, click the label icon, uncheck the label, and the label disappears. The message stays in your inbox (or wherever it was) but no longer has that tag. This is different from deleting the label itself, which affects all messages with that label at once.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I change the color of a label to make it stand out in my sidebar?

Yes. Go to Settings, click Labels, find the label you want to color, click the three dots next to it, and select "Label color." Choose a color from the palette. The label now appears in that color in your sidebar and next to messages with that label.

What happens if I delete a label?

When you delete a label, Gmail asks whether you want to delete the label only or delete the label and all messages with it. If you choose to delete the label only, the messages stay in your inbox and other labels. If you choose to delete both, the messages are permanently deleted.

Can I use labels on messages I have already sent?

No. Labels only work on messages in your inbox, sent folder, and other folders you receive mail in. You cannot label messages you sent to other people, but you can label messages they sent to you.

How many labels can I create?

Gmail does not publish a hard limit, but most people find that 20 to 50 labels is the practical maximum before your sidebar becomes too crowded to use. Nested labels help you stay organized with more than that.

Do labels sync across devices if I use Gmail on my phone and computer?

Yes. Labels you create on your computer appear on your phone, and labels you assign to messages on your phone appear on your computer. This works in the Gmail app and in the Gmail website on any device.