Gmail doesn't have a built-in email list feature, but you can create one using Gmail's contact groups
Gmail's contact groups let you send one email to multiple people at once without typing each address individually. When you create a group, Gmail stores it in your contacts, and you can add or remove people from it anytime. This is different from a mailing list service — it's a simple way to organize people you email regularly, like a book club, a team, or family members.
The groups you create stay in your Gmail account. If you switch to a different email provider or lose access to your Gmail, the groups go with it. For that reason, some people use Gmail groups for occasional emails to small groups, and use dedicated mailing list services (like Mailchimp or ConvertKit) when they need the list to survive account changes or when they want detailed tracking of who opened what.
Key Takeaways
- Gmail contact groups let you send one email to multiple people by typing the group name in the "To" field, just like typing a single email address.
- You create a group by opening your contacts, clicking "Create label", naming the group, and adding people to it one at a time or in bulk.
- You can edit a group anytime — add new people, remove people, or rename the group without affecting the emails you already sent.
- Gmail groups work only within Gmail; if someone replies to a group email, their reply goes to you alone, not to everyone in the group.
- For large lists, frequent sends, or tracking who opens your emails, a dedicated mailing list service works better than Gmail groups.
How to create a contact group in Gmail
Open Gmail in your web browser and click the Google apps menu — the grid of nine dots in the top right corner. Select "Contacts" from the dropdown menu. You'll see your existing contacts on the left side and a search bar at the top.
On the left sidebar, look for the "Labels" section. Click the plus sign next to "Labels" or click "Create label". A box will appear asking you to name your group. Type a clear name — something like "Book Club" or "Project Team" — and click "Create". Gmail adds the new group to your Labels list.
Now add people to the group. Click on the group name you just created. The right side of the screen will show it's empty. Click the "Add members" button (or the plus icon). A box appears where you can type email addresses. Type one address, press Enter, and repeat until you've added everyone. You can also paste multiple addresses separated by commas if you have them ready.
How to send an email to your group
Open Gmail and click "Compose" to start a new email. In the "To" field, type the name of your group — Gmail will show it as an option and you can click it to select it. The group name will appear in the "To" field, and when you send, Gmail expands it to all the addresses in that group.
Write your subject and message as you normally would. When you click "Send", Gmail sends one copy of the email to each person in the group. Each recipient sees only their own address in the "To" field, not the addresses of everyone else in the group — this is called a "blind copy" and it's the default behavior for Gmail groups.
If someone in the group replies to your email, the reply comes back to you alone. It does not go to the other people in the group. This is different from a mailing list service, where replies can be set to go to the whole group.
How to add or remove people from a group
Click "Contacts" from the Google apps menu. Find your group in the Labels section on the left and click it. You'll see everyone currently in the group.
To add someone new, click "Add members" and type their email address. To remove someone, hover over their name in the group and click the trash icon that appears. The change takes effect immediately — the next email you send to the group will use the updated list.
You can also add someone to a group while you're looking at their individual contact card. Open their contact, click the pencil icon to edit, scroll down to the "Labels" section, and check the box next to the group name. Click "Save".
How to rename or delete a group
Open Contacts and find your group in the Labels section. Right-click on the group name and select "Rename label". Type the new name and press Enter. Everyone stays in the group — only the name changes.
To delete a group, right-click it and select "Delete label". Gmail will ask you to confirm. Deleting the group does not delete the people in it from your contacts — it only removes the group itself. You can still email those people individually.
When to use Gmail groups versus a mailing list service
Gmail groups work well for small, occasional emails — a family group chat, a monthly book club reminder, or a quick update to your project team. They're free, they're already in Gmail, and you don't have to learn a new tool.
A dedicated mailing list service like Mailchimp, ConvertKit, or Substack is better if you send emails regularly, want to track who opened them, need people to be able to reply to the whole group (not just you), or want the list to survive if you stop using Gmail. These services also let you design fancy email templates, schedule sends for a specific time, and manage unsubscribes automatically. Most have a free tier for small lists.
If you're just starting out and your group is small and informal, Gmail groups are the fastest way to get going. You can always move to a mailing list service later if you need more features.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can people reply to everyone in the group, or just to me?
Replies go to you alone. If someone in the group clicks "Reply All", it still goes only to you, not to the whole group. If you want group conversations where everyone can see replies, you need a mailing list service or a tool like Google Groups (which is different from Gmail contact groups).
What's the difference between Gmail contact groups and Google Groups?
Gmail contact groups are simple — you create them in your contacts and use them to send emails. Google Groups is a separate tool that creates an actual group email address, lets people reply to the whole group, and keeps a searchable archive of all messages. Google Groups is more powerful but also more complex to set up.
Can I export my Gmail group to use somewhere else?
You can export your contacts as a CSV file, which includes the groups you've created. Go to Contacts, click the menu (three dots), select "Export", and choose which contacts to download. You can then import that file into another email service or mailing list tool.
Is there a limit to how many people I can add to a group?
Gmail doesn't publish a hard limit, but contact groups work best with under 500 people. If you're sending to thousands of people regularly, a dedicated mailing list service is more reliable and gives you better tools for managing large lists.
Do people know they're in a group when I email them?
No. When you send to a group, each person sees only their own email address in the "To" field. They don't see the group name or the other addresses. This is the default behavior and you can't change it in Gmail.