Open & download attachments in Gmail

When you get an email with an attachment, you can download the attachment to your device.

Save or share photo attachments

1. On your iPhone or iPad, open the Gmail app .
2. Open the email message.
3. Tap the attachment to open it.
4. At the bottom of the screen, choose an action for the image:
   • To save it to:
     • Your device: Tap Download .
     • Google Drive: Tap Drive .
     • Google Photos: Tap Photos .
   • To share it: Tap Share .

Tip: You can save photos inside the message to your device:

1. Touch and hold the image.
2. Tap Save to Photos.

Grant permission to save photos in Gmail

Your photos may not save to your device if you haven't allowed Gmail to access your photos. To fix this:

1. Open your iPhone or iPad's Settings app.
2. Tap Privacy & Security Photos Gmail.
3. Choose a permission level.
   • Full access
   • Limited access

Tip: If you choose "None," you can't grant permission.

Save to Google Drive

You can save .pdf files and other file types to Drive.

1. On your iPhone or iPad, open the Gmail app .
2. Open the email message.
3. Tap the attachment to open it.
4. In the top right, tap Save to Drive .
5. When the file is saved, you'll see "Saved to Drive" on your screen.

Learn about suspicious attachments

To protect your account from potential viruses and harmful software, Gmail notifies you about suspicious attachments in the email. An attachment may be suspicious because:

• The attachment allows unverified scripts: We can't confirm that the message's attachments are safe to open. If you open the attachments, there's a chance malicious software will run on your computer or device.
• The attachment is encrypted: Some attachments, like documents that require a password to open, are encrypted and can't be scanned for viruses.
• The attachment includes emails (.eml): While we check the message and .eml attachments for spam and viruses, we can't confirm that the sender in the .eml files actually sent those emails. Learn more about authentication.

If the email looks suspicious, don't reply and don't download the attachment. You can:

• Report spam in Gmail
• Report abuse from a Gmail account

If the email is from someone you know and trust, ignore the warning.

Related resources

• Send attachments with your Gmail message
• Send Google Drive attachments in Gmail