This wikiHow teaches you how to unsend emails sent within seconds of you sending them in Gmail. This can be done on the desktop version of Gmail as well as the app version for iPad and iPhone. Although you can't cancel sent emails, Android users can activate a setting that asks Gmail to confirm before sending an email.
Step
Method 1 of 3: On Desktop Computer
Step 1. Visit Gmail
Run a web browser on your computer and visit https://www.gmail.com. When you are signed in, your Gmail inbox will be opened.
If you're not logged into Gmail, type in your email address and password when prompted
Step 2. Activate the "Undo Send" feature if necessary
If you're not using the new version of Gmail, do the following to enable " Undo Send ":
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Click
- Click Settings in the drop-down menu (drop-down).
- Check the box "Enable Undo Send" in the tab General.
- Select the length of time you want to cancel emails from the "Send cancellation period" drop-down menu.
- Scroll down the screen, then click Save Changes.
Step 3. Click Compose
It's in the top left of your Gmail inbox.
Click COMPOSE if you're using the classic version of Gmail.
Step 4. Type in the recipient and subject of the email
Enter the recipient's email address in the " To " text box, then press Tab and type in the subject you want to use for the email.
Step 5. Type in the email message
In the main text box, type the message you want to convey via email.
Step 6. Click Send
It's a blue button at the bottom of the window. The email will be sent.
Step 7. Click Undo when prompted
This message appears at the top of the page (for classic Gmail) or at the bottom left of the page (in the new version of Gmail).
By default, you are given 10 seconds (in classic Gmail) or 5 seconds (in newer Gmail) to unsend a message
Step 8. Check the unsent emails
After the sending is canceled, the email will be reopened in draft form. You can edit or delete it from there.
Step 9. Change the time period for unsending the email
If you're using a new version of Gmail and want to have more than 5 seconds to cancel an email, do the following:
-
Click
- Click Settings.
- Click the "Send cancellation period" drop-down menu in the tab General.
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Set the time in seconds (for example
Step 30.) from the drop-down menu that appears.
- Scroll down the screen, then click Save Changes.
Method 2 of 3: On iPhone
Step 1. Launch Gmail
Tap the Gmail icon, which looks like a red "M" on a white background. When you are signed in, your Gmail inbox will be opened.
- If you're not logged into Gmail, type in your email address and password when prompted.
- Unfortunately, you can't undo Gmail emails sent via Android devices.
Step 2. Tap Compose
It's a pencil-shaped icon in the lower-right corner. A form for creating a new email will appear.
Step 3. Enter the recipient's email address
In the " To " text box, type the email address of the person you want to send the message to.
Step 4. Write the subject and body of the message
Type the subject of the email into the " Subject " text box, then type the body of the message into the body of the email.
Step 5. Tap on “Send” icon
Its icon is in the top right corner. Once you do, the email will be sent.
Step 6. Tap UNDO when prompted
This option appears in the lower right corner.
You are given 5 seconds to cancel sending the email
Step 7. Check the unsent emails
Once unsend, the email will be reopened in draft form. You can edit or delete it from there.
Method 3 of 3: Confirming Before Sending Emails on Android
Step 1. Launch Gmail
Tap the Gmail icon, which looks like a red "M" on a white background. When you are signed in, your Gmail inbox will be opened.
If you're not logged into Gmail, type in your email address and password when prompted
Step 2. Tap in the top left corner
A pop-out menu will be displayed.
Step 3. Scroll down the screen, then tap Settings
This option is at the bottom of the pop-out menu. The Settings menu will open.
Step 4. Tap on General settings which is on the Settings page
Step 5. Scroll down the screen, then tap Confirm before sending
This option is at the bottom of the page. With this setup, from now on every email sent must be confirmed before it leaves the inbox. This is to prevent you from accidentally sending an email.
If there is a check mark to the right of the option, it means the option is active
Tips
The new version of Gmail provides a "self-destruct" feature that makes an email disappear from the recipient's inbox after a certain amount of time (at least a day)
Warning
- Setting the cancellation period to more than 5 seconds will result in notable latency (lag) between times when you click the button Send with the time the email actually arrives in the recipient's inbox.
- Unfortunately, you can't make any effort to unsend an email once the " Undo Send " period has expired.
