Apple’s default email client on iOS and macOS is Apple Mail, an email communication powerhouse tool.
One would be hard-pressed to find someone these days who is not familiar with essential email functions.
However, many Apple users are not aware of the extent of Apple Mail’s capabilities and how they can help enhance expediency, efficiency, and productivity in their work or personal lives.
Not sold on that statement alone? Then, let us tell you about 10 Apple Mail tips you need to start using now to bolster your email-utilizing prowess.
Smart Mailboxes
No one needs to see every email in their inbox, so many users prefer to be able to reference only the emails they deem relevant without the need to filter through the entire inbox every time.
With efficiency in mind, Apple Mail allows for the setup of Smart Mailboxes as preset filtering mechanisms.
While in your inbox:
- Swipe left and tap Edit in the upper right corner.
- You will be presented with a host of pre-set mailbox filters, such as Unread, Today, Flagged, To or CC, Attachments, Muted Threads, and many others. Tap the circle next to the preset mailboxes to filter only the applicable emails.
- Tap Done. You will be returned to the mailbox filtered to only the email criteria you set up.
On macOS, you can also dynamically update the inbox with preset criteria. You can find these by accessing Mailboxes from the Apple Mail app and choosing New Smart Mailbox.
Set up the conditions similarly for the Smart Mailbox filtering to take effect.
Also: 5 ways you can use Apple’s Journal app to help reduce stress and improve peace of mind
Quick Unsubscribe
If you receive emails from an advertiser or a mailing list you no longer care to hear from, there is a good chance that you could find an “unsubscribe” link buried somewhere in the fine print of their email.
But most users don’t have the time or patience to comb through the emails to find it just to get off a mailing list.
Apple Mail makes unsubscribing gloriously simple. Just open the message you wish to unsubscribe from and look right above the sender for a small link that says “Unsubscribe.”
Simply tap that link and confirm that you want to take that action by clicking Unsubscribe in the confirmation pop-up. Apple Mail will take care of the rest.
Blocking Senders
Sometimes, unsubscribing doesn’t go far enough or isn’t a viable option, but if you still don’t want to hear from a sender, Apple Mail makes blocking senders very simple.
From your inbox, tap and hold an email. You will be presented with a list of options. Scroll down to Block Sender and tap it.
You will be returned to your inbox, and a circle icon with a line through it on the message will indicate that going forward, the particular sender’s messages will be rerouted into your email trash.
Also: 10 things you can do with the iPhone’s Files app that will change the way you use your phone
Selecting Multiple Emails
Selecting multiple emails typically involves selecting one and then tapping the check circles next to the rest.
But if the emails are next to each other, you can select multiple emails by choosing one and dragging your finger down through the rest. The action will highlight all the other emails for selection automatically.
Unsend Emails
There are two kinds of people in this world: those who regret sending certain emails right after they hit Send for various reasons, and there are liars.
All of us have, at one point or another, wished we had not sent a message after sending it. But now, Apple Mail provides the option not to send it.
If you just hit Send but want to take it back, you will see an “Undo Send” option at the bottom of our Inbox listing. Simply tap it, and the email returns to draft form, which is not being sent.
It is important to remember that there is only a brief delay during which you can unsend an email. The good news is that you can control how long that delay is.
To do this:
- Go to the Settings app.
- Tap on Mail.
- Choose Undo Send Delay.
- Choose if you want the delay to be 10, 20, or 30 seconds or be off entirely.
Also: 10 brilliant Apple Reminders features that I use every day to get my life together and reduce stress
Scheduling Emails
If you want to send an email but don’t want it to happen immediately, you can use Apple Mail’s scheduling send functionality.
It is as simple as long-tapping the Send button, which will present options for times when you want the email to be sent.
If the ideal sending time is not available on the presented list, you can select “Send Later” and choose a custom date/time when the sending will happen.
Search For Email By Attribute
Apple Mail offers more options than just searching for an email from a particular contact.
You can search by date range when it was sent or received and even by the attachments included with it.
The search by date range doesn’t need to be specified with exact start and end dates. Apple Mail will understand if you type “Last Weekend” into the search bar and automatically identify emails from the previous weekend.
Additionally, there are options to search for “Before” or “After” that date to easily search pre- or post-ranges, too.
If you need to search by an attachment, you can start typing the type of attachment you are interested in, such as “text file” or “spreadsheet,” and tap on the link with that attachment type and the paperclip icon.
This will isolate all emails with that particular type of attachment for you.
Convert Email to PDF
If you need a PDF version of your email, you can do this with the Apple Mail app. First, long-tap the Reply icon and scroll down to the Print option. Tap on it.
When you see the email thumbnails at the bottom, use your thumb and index finger to expand the image to fill the whole screen.
This will present all the pages of the email, allowing you to tap the little arrow icon at the top and choose to either Print to a device or Save To Files. Both can accommodate the PDF file type.
Also: 3 free and easy methods to convert photos to PDF on your iPhone
Focus Filters
If you are working, you may choose not to be distracted by personal emails and vice-versa. However, that might prove challenging if you use the same inbox to receive both.
However, in a cool feature of Apple Mail, you can set up a Focus Filter to keep your personal and professional email life separate.
- Navigate to the Settings menu.
- Tap Focus.
- To set up a Work Focus, tap Work.
- Scroll down and tap Add Filter.
- Choose the Mail App from the App Filters screen.
- You will see all connected email addresses, so tap only the one you want to see during work hours. Then, tap Add.
Now, close the Settings app and follow these steps:
- Swipe down from the top to access the control center menu.
- Click the Do Not Disturb icon, and you will be presented with some filters
- Choose the filter you edited (Work, in this example).
Head back to your Mailbox and notice that only your work emails are there.
Send Links For Large Files
Sometimes, we want to email an attachment that exceeds the attachment limit of emails.
While Apple Mail does not accommodate limitless attachment sizes, it does allow for the sending of large files in other ways.
Try to attach the large file to your email. If the size exceeds the limit, Mail Drop will automatically offer to put the file in iCloud and send the recipient a download link instead, circumventing the email’s limitations.
Wrap Up
These 10 Apple Mail tips are immensely helpful in providing a more robust and effective email experience.
From filtering to getting around attachment size limitations, this guide offered a variety of useful features.
But the best part is that these only scratch the surface of the great features you’ll find as you use and dig into Apple Mail more.
