Search operators in Gmail
If you are using the search form in Gmail, there are a few search operators that will help you find what you are looking for:
| Operator | Definition | Example(s) |
|---|---|---|
| from: | Used to specify the sender |
Example: from:amy Meaning: Messages from Amy |
| to: | Used to specify a recipient |
Example: to:david Meaning: All messages that were sent to David (by you or someone else) |
| subject: | Search for words in the subject line |
Example: subject:dinner Meaning: Messages that have the word "dinner" in the subject |
| OR |
Search for messages matching term A or term B* |
Example: from:amy OR from:david Meaning: Messages from Amy or from David |
|
- (hyphen) |
Used to exclude messages from your search |
Example: dinner -movie Meaning: Messages that contain the word "dinner" but do not contain the word "movie" |
| label: |
Search for messages by label* *There isn't a search operator for unlabeled messages |
Example: from:amy label:friends Meaning: Messages from Amy that have the label "friends"
Example: from:david label:my-family |
|
has:attachment |
Search for messages with an attachment |
Example: from:david has:attachment Meaning: Messages from David that have an attachment |
| list: | Search for messages on mailing lists |
Example: list:info@example.com |
| filename: | Search for an attachment by name or type |
Example: filename:physicshomework.txt
Example: label:work filename:pdf |
|
" " |
Used to search for an exact phrase* *Capitalization isn't taken into consideration |
Example: "i'm feeling lucky"
Example: subject:"dinner and a movie" |
|
( ) |
Used to group words Used to specify terms that shouldn't be excluded |
Example: from:amy (dinner OR movie)
Example: subject:(dinner movie) |
| in:anywhere |
Search for messages anywhere in Gmail* *Messages in Spam and Trash are excluded from searches by default |
Example: in:anywhere movie Meaning: Messages in All Mail, Spam, and Trash that contain the word "movie" |
|
in:inbox in:trash in:spam |
Search for messages in Inbox, Trash, or Spam |
Example: in:trash from:amy Meaning: Messages from Amy that are in Trash |
|
is:important label:important |
Search within messages that Priority Inbox considers important. |
Example: is:important from:janet Meaning: Messages from Janet that were marked as important by Priority Inbox |
|
is:starred is:unread is:read |
Search for messages that are starred, unread or read |
Example: is:read is:starred from:David Meaning: Messages from David that have been read and are marked with a star |
|
cc: bcc: |
Used to specify recipients in the cc: or bcc: fields* *Search on bcc: cannot retrieve messages on which you were blind carbon copied |
Example: cc:david Meaning: Messages that were cc-ed to David |
|
after: before: |
Search for messages sent during a certain period of time* *Dates must be in yyyy/mm/dd format. |
Example: after:2004/04/16 before:2004/04/18 Meaning: Messages sent between April 16, 2004 and April 18, 2004.* *More precisely: Messages sent after 12:00 AM (or 00:00) April 16, 2004 and before April 18, 2004. |
| is:chat | Search for chat messages |
Example: is:chat monkey Meaning: Any chat message including the word "monkey". |
| deliveredto: | Search for messages within a particular email address in the Delivered-To line of the message header |
Example: deliveredto:username@gmail.com Meaning: Any message with username@gmail.com in the Delivered-To: field of the message header (which can help you find messages forwarded from another account or ones sent to an alias). |