Notifications

Gmail notifications let you know when you have a new email. You'll see a pop-up when a new message arrives so you can keep track of your mail even when you’re not looking at Gmail.

Desktop

These notifications are available for Google Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.

Desktop notification

Turn desktop notifications on or off

  1. Open Gmail.
  2. Click the gear in the top right.
  3. Select Settings.
  4. Scroll down to the Desktop Notifications section (stay in the "General" tab).
  5. Choose one of the options:
    • New mail notifications on: If you use inbox categories, you’ll only be notified about messages in Primary.
    • Important mail notifications on: You’ll be notified about every incoming messages marked as important. Learn more about importance ranking.
    • Mail notifications off
  6. Click Save Changes at the bottom of the page.

Open Gmail settings

Important

  • You need to be signed in to Gmail and have Gmail open in your browser in order to see desktop notifications.
  • If you previously disabled all notifications for your browser, change your settings to allow notifications for mail.google.com. Here's how you can change your notification settings in Chrome.
Android app (4.0+)
This information is for the Gmail app for Android 4.0 and up.

With the Gmail app for Android, you can choose how you're notified of incoming messages.

Set up your notifications

By default, notifications are turned on for messages in Primary if you’re using the Default Inbox.

Which messages do you want to be notified about?

All incoming messages
  1. In the Gmail app, touch the Gmail icon Gmail icon, then Settings.
  2. Choose an account.
  3. Make sure that Notifications is checked.
  4. Touch Inbox sound & vibrate.
  5. Check Label notifications.
  6. Choose how you want to be notified. See “Learn more about notification settings” below for more information.
  7. Go back to the previous page and touch Manage labels.
  8. Select an inbox label such as Social, Promotions, Updates, Forums, or Inbox.
  9. Check Label notifications and choose how you want to be notified about messages with this label.
  10. Go back to the previous page and repeat for the rest of the inbox labels if you see them in your list. Inbox labels are at the top of the list, but not all of them are used in your account.
Only messages in certain categories or labels

Limit your notifications to messages you care about. For example, maybe you’d like to be notified about Updates but not Promotions, or only messages with the “Urgent” label you created.

  1. In the Gmail app, touch the Gmail icon Gmail icon, then Settings.
  2. Choose an account.
  3. Make sure that Notifications is checked.
  4. Touch Manage labels.
  5. Choose one of your labels.
  6. Touch Sync messages and choose either Sync: Last 30 days or Sync: All.
  7. Check Label notifications.
  8. Choose how you want to be notified. See “Learn more about notification settings” below for more information.
  9. Repeat for any label you want notifications for. You can choose different ringtones for different labels.

Note: By default, notifications are on for Primary, so you may need to turn off its notifications.

Only important messages

Take advantage of Gmail’s automatic importance ranking by turning on notifications for messages labeled “Important.”

If you use Priority Inbox, you'll get notifications for only important messages by default.

If you use Default Inbox, follow these directions to turn on notifications for important messages:

  1. In the Gmail app, touch the Menu icon, then Settings.
  2. Choose an account.
  3. Make sure that Notifications is checked.
  4. Touch Manage labels.
  5. Choose Important.
  6. Touch Sync messages and choose either Sync: Last 30 days or Sync: All.
  7. Check Label notifications.
  8. Choose how you want to be notified. See “Learn more about notification settings” below for more information.

Note: By default, notifications are on for Primary, so you may need to turn off its notifications.

None, I don’t want any notifications
  1. In the Gmail app, touch the Menu icon, then Settings.
  2. Choose an account.
  3. Uncheck Notifications.

Learn more about notification settings

Sound

Choose a ringtone, or choose None if you don’t want a sound to play.

Vibrate

If checked, your device will vibrate for every notification, except when in silent mode. If unchecked, your device will vibrate only if it's in vibrate mode and you have a sound notification turned on.

Notify for every message

If checked, you’ll receive a notification every time a message is delivered to your inbox. If unchecked, you won’t receive further notifications until you dismiss the current notification.

Notification features on Android 4.1+

With Android 4.1 and above, you can archive or reply to a message directly from a notification.

Gmail Android 4.1+Interactive Notifications screenshot

If you don’t see these options for a single-message notification, expand the notification by swiping down with one finger.

Delete instead of archive from a notification
  1. In the Gmail app, touch the Menu icon, then Settings.
  2. Choose General settings.
  3. Touch Archive & delete actions.
  4. Select Show delete only.

Learn more about archive and delete settings.

I’m not receiving notifications

  • Make sure that sync is on for your device.
    On many Android devices, you can turn off sync for all apps at once. Often there is a sync icon Gmail Refresh Icon that turns sync on and off. You may have turned off sync on purpose or by accident.
  • Make sure that Gmail sync is on.
    In the Gmail app, touch the Menu icon, then Settings. Choose your account, then make sure the box next to Sync Gmail is checked.
  • Verify your settings.
    Review the steps in the previous section to make sure you have all the right boxes checked.

If you're still experiencing problems, try the steps in this sync troubleshooter.

iOS app
This information is for the official Gmail app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Choose how you’re notified of incoming messages for the Gmail app for iPhone and iPad.

Set up your notifications

By default, you’ll get notifications for messages in your Primary category, or Important messages for Priority Inbox.

Step 1: Choose which messages

  1. Open the Gmail app.
  2. Touch Menu iOS Menu icon.
  3. Touch the gear icon iOS Gear Icon.
  4. Choose All Mail, Primary Only, or None.

If you have multiple accounts, you can change this setting for each account.

Priority Inbox users have Important Only instead of Primary Only.

Step 2: Choose how to be notified

  1. Open the Settings app on your device.
  2. Touch Notifications and then Gmail.
  3. Adjust your notification settings.
If you use the default inbox, “Badge App Icon” notifications reflect unread messages in your Primary category.

Battery Saving Tips

Get fewer notifications by choosing Primary Only.

Turn off lock screen notifications.

For maximum battery savings, turn off notifications by choosing None.

Troubleshooting

I’m getting lock screen notifications even though I turned off “Notification Center”

If you don’t want to receive lock screen notifications, make sure that you specifically switched “View in Lock Screen” to OFF in the Settings app.

Keep in mind that switching “Notification Center” to OFF will not turn off other kinds of notifications.

“Badge App Icon” notifications aren’t showing up

Make sure that you chose All Mail or Primary Only on the settings page in the Gmail app. None turns off all notifications, including “Badge App Icon” notifications.

Next, check that “Badge App Icon” is switched to ON in the Settings app.

If you're still experiencing issues with the app, try these troubleshooting tips.