How to View Your Junk Spam Folder in Gmail

Just like the majority of email services, Gmail can sort out your junk mail into the spam folder. It helps to keep the inbox neat, however, at times even important emails may end up in spam. If you want to check your junk mail or clear it, but don’t know how, we’re here to help.

In this article, we will provide a step-by-step guide on managing your junk mail in Gmail. We will explain how to find and clear the spam folder, how to mark emails as spam, and how to make the folder always visible. We will also answer the most common questions about junk mail in Gmail. Read on to find out how to keep your email in order and manage your Gmail contacts.

How to View Your Spam Folder in Gmail

By default, the Gmail junk mail folder is hidden. Before we go into more complex things, let’s locate it. Follow the simple instruction below:

1. Open Gmail in your browser.
   
2. Scroll down the left sidebar until you see the “More” option, then click on it.
   
3. Select the “Spam” folder.
   

If you are using a mobile app, the steps will be slightly different:

1. Open the Gmail app.
   
2. Click on the three bars icon in the upper left corner.
   
3. Scroll down until you see the “Spam” folder, then click on it.
   

How to Make Your Gmail Spam Folder Visible

If you want the junk mail to be easier to access, you can make the spam folder visible at all times or only when you have unread messages. To do this, follow the guide below:

1. Open Gmail in your browser or in the mobile app.
   
2. Navigate to Settings by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right corner.
   
3. Select “Settings” from the dropdown menu.
   
4. Click on “Labels” and scroll down, then select “Spam”.
   
5. Select one of the three options – “show”, “hide”, or “show if unread”.
   
6. Exit settings.

How to Delete Spam Emails in Gmail

Junk mail can pile up quickly, therefore Gmail clears the Spam folder automatically every 30 days. If you want to empty it more often or only want to delete certain emails, do the following:

1. Navigate to the Spam folder.
   
2. Above the email list, click on “Delete all spam messages now” to empty the folder.
   
3. Confirm deleting all messages by clicking “OK”.
   
4. To select certain emails, tick the checkboxes beside the emails you want to delete and select the “Delete” option that appears above the email list.
   

In the Gmail mobile app, selecting certain emails to delete them is slightly different:

1. In the Spam folder, tap and hold for a few seconds the first message you wish to remove.
   
2. To select more, tap on the rest of the messages in the same way.
   
3. Click on the bin icon in the upper right-hand corner.
   

How to Mark and Unmark Emails as Spam in Gmail

Often the sorting feature doesn’t work accurately, leaving junk mail such as ads in the main inbox folder. If you mark an email as spam, all future messages from the sender will be moved to the spam folder. To do this, follow the guide below:

1. Open the Gmail Inbox folder.
   
2. Tick the checkbox on the left from the email you want to mark as spam. You can select multiple emails at once.
   
3. Click on the exclamation point icon to mark a message as spam.
   
4. Choose “Report spam & unsubscribe” or “Report spam”. If you choose the first option, you won’t get emails from the sender anymore. If you choose the second option, you will continue to get emails, but they will be sorted into junk mail.
   

To unmark an email as spam, do the following:

1. Open the Gmail Spam folder.
   
2. Tick the checkboxes beside emails you want to unmark as spam.
   
3. Select the “Not spam” option above the message list. The email will now appear in your Inbox folder.
   

How to Mark and Unmark Emails as Spam in the Gmail Mobile App

If you are using a mobile app, to report messages as spam, follow these instructions:

1. Open the Gmail Inbox folder.
   
2. Tap the email you want to report and hold for a few seconds. You can select multiple messages the same way.
   
3. Tap the three-dot icon in the upper right corner of the screen.
   
4. From the dropdown menu, select “Report spam”.
   
5. Choose “Report spam” or “Report spam & unsubscribe”.
   
6. To cancel, tap anywhere else on the screen.

To unmark emails as spam in the Gmail mobile app:

1. Navigate to the Gmail Spam folder.
   
2. Tap the email you want to unmark as spam and hold for a few seconds. Do the same with other emails you want to unmark.
   
3. Tap the three-dot icon in the upper right corner of your screen.
   
4. From the dropdown menu, select “Report not spam”. The messages will appear in your Inbox folder.
   
5. To cancel, tap the arrow icon in the upper left-hand corner of your screen.
   
   

How to Add a Sender to Contacts in Gmail

If a sender isn’t added to your contact list, emails from them may be sent to the spam folder, meaning that you might miss something important. To fix this, do the following:

1. Open an email from the person you want to add to your contacts.
2. Move the cursor to the sender’s name at the upper left-hand side of the email.
3. Select “Add to Contacts” from the pop-up window.
   
4. Additionally, you can edit the contact’s name and other information by selecting “Edit Contact” in the same pop-up window.
   
5. Click “Save”.
   

If you are using the Gmail mobile app, to add a sender to contacts, follow the instructions below:

1. Open an email from the person you want to add to contacts.
2. Tap the sender’s picture and hold for a few seconds.
3. From the pop-up window, select “Add to Contacts”.
4. Edit the information if required and tap “Save”.

FAQ

Now that you know where to find the Gmail spam folder and how to manage your emails and contacts, you may want to find out more. Discover answers to the most common questions related to the Gmail junk mail in this section.

Why Do My Emails in Gmail Have a Warning Label?

Gmail uses a question mark instead of a sender’s picture as a security warning. It is used when Gmail doesn’t identify an email as spam but considers it as being potentially malicious. The email may still be from a legitimate sender, though. A lot of messages from business emails get recognized automatically, and you don’t have to add senders to contacts. But if a sender isn’t recognized and isn’t on your contact list, you will see the warning sign.

Why Did a Message From a Contact in Gmail Go to the Spam Folder?

Sometimes even emails from your contacts may end up in the junk mail folder. This happens if a message has spam features. The spam features include excessive capitalization and exclamation point usage, phrases often used in spam, credit card offers, some attachments, and others. Even too many grammar mistakes may be identified as spam features. If you wish to move such an email to your inbox, unmark it as spam.

What Is the Difference Between Blocking and Unsubscribing From Emails in Gmail?

You may have noticed that a dropdown menu in your Gmail has two options apart from the “Report as spam” option – “Block” and “Unsubscribe”. If you select “Block”, all emails from that sender will automatically be to the junk mail. Therefore, the “Block” option does essentially the same thing as the “Report as spam” option.

“Unsubscribe” works best for ad subscriptions. If you choose so, you will be deleted from the sender’s mailing list and won’t get messages anymore. You may still receive messages for a few more days, though. In some cases, you will still have to unsubscribe directly on the sender’s website.

How Do I Empty the Trash Folder in Gmail?

Even when you delete all messages from the junk mail folder, they don’t magically disappear. To clear your trash folder, scroll through the left sidebar menu until you see the bin icon, then click on it. Click on the “Empty bin now” option above the email list to delete everything.

To select specific messages, tick the checkboxes beside them and select the “Delete forever” option in the upper left-hand corner of your screen. After you have deleted a message from the Trash folder, you won’t be able to recover it.

How Do I Recover an Email From the Trash Folder in Gmail?

Sometimes emails go into the bin by accident. To fix this, navigate to your trash folder and select the messages you want to recover by ticking the checkboxes beside them. Then, click on the folder with an arrow icon above the email list. From the dropdown menu, select a folder you want to move the emails to. The messages can be moved to your inbox, spam, or a new custom folder.

Keep Your Gmail Tidy

Hopefully, we have helped you to find the Gmail junk mail folder and to manage your spam list. Now your inbox will be neat, and your contacts in order. Don’t forget to empty the trash folder from time to time!

Have you experienced any different issues related to spam in Gmail? Do you know of any additional tips that help to keep your emails in order? Share them in the comments section below.