BlogAdriana Fernandes4 min read

How to Recover Deleted Emails in Gmail

How to Recover Deleted Emails in Gmail

Gmail allows you to retrieve any missing message within 30 days

Deleted the wrong message? Follow these steps to get your email back.

  • For a regular user,** emails can be retrieved from the trash for*+ up to 30 days after deleting

  • Past that time, they are permanently deleted and cannot be restored

  • If you have an admin account with Google, this will give you an additional 25 days to undo any mistakes via the Admin console

This includes even the recovery of permanently deleted messages — which is great, right?

How to Retrieve Deleted Emails in Gmail from the Trash Folder

To retrieve deleted emails from your Gmail account, follow these steps.

Recovering deleted emails on Gmail from your computer

  1. Launch Gmail on your desktop browser and sign in.

  1. On the left side, scroll to the bottom of the menu, expand it by clicking on More, then go to Trash.

  1. Search for the messages to recover. Check the box on the left side to select the emails you need back.

  2. Click on Move to at the top of the list and choose where you want to save the message (like Inbox). This will move the email from the Trash to the new folder.

*That’s it! You’ve just recovered your deleted emails in four simple steps! 🎉

How to Recover Deleted Emails** on Android/iOS**

To retrieve deleted emails in the Gmail app on Android or iPhone, do a similar process — as follows.

Recovering deleted emails on Android/iOS

  1. Open the Gmail app with your mail account.

  2. Tap the triple horizontal bars at the top-left of the screen, and select Trash folder.

  1. Search and locate the deleted email. Once you find it, tap and hold to select it.

  2. Next, tap the three vertical dots at the very top-right of your screen. It will open a list of actions. Select the Move to option.

  1. Choose your destination folder. Select Primary if you want to restore the email to your main Inbox.

*There you go! Your message is now restored!🎉

How to Recover Permanently Deleted Emails

To recover permanently deleted emails from your Gmail account, you first need to check a couple of things.

Is it possible to recover permanently deleted emails on Gmail?

Yes, it is — on a couple of situations:

  • Deleted messages go straight to Trash for 30 days. After that period, they** are erased for good — if you use the free version of Gmail, there is no way around it for now.

  • If you have an *Admin account+ with Google, this gives you an additional 25 days to retrieve the emails — this needs to be done by the account administrator via the Admin console.

Google helps you find out if your account was set up by an administrator

  • If your organization is connected with Google Vault, this would allow you to retrieve data even older than those periods — depending on the retention rules or holds in place for the company.

The data would not be restored directly to the user’s inbox, though — but could still save some key messages!

How to Avoid Losing Important Emails from the Beginning

A very helpful way to go around the need of retrieving deleted messages is to add productivity aids in the work routine, like** Curiosity.**

Disclosure: We’re the makers of Curiosity.

With Curiosity, all your emails, files, and apps are organized in one single place, connecting every tool you already use.

It has a powerful search engine that can go through messages, images, videos, or other attached files, and help you locate and recover what you need.

That lets you save time and get more done.

Unlike other apps, Curiosity is secure and never sends your data to the cloud. The app is available for free on Windows and Mac. And there’s a two-week free trial for Curiosity Pro that offers unlimited searches.

Got curious?

For more content like this, follow Curiosity on Medium or Twitter, or sign up for our newsletter. To try Curiosity for free, download it from our website.

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