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Guide: Gmail

Gmail can automatically delete or archive matching emails the moment they arrive.

Published: 21 October 2026

Last updated: 21 October 2026

A Gmail filter can delete or archive matching emails the moment they arrive. Deleted mail waits in Trash for 30 days before Google removes it, and archived mail stays under All Mail. A filter only handles what comes next, so the last section clears the pile that is already there.

A filter does what you wrote, forever. Batmail's rules read each email first.

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A filter with Delete it sends matching emails to Trash as they arrive.

Replace deals.example with the domain of the mail you want gone. The search matches every address at that domain.

Paste this into the Gmail search box

from:(deals.example)

Open this filter in the Gmail filter generator

Saving it as a filter, on a computer

  1. Open Gmail.
  2. In the search box at the top, click Show search options.
  3. Enter your search criteria by pasting the search above. Click Search to check which emails show up.
  4. At the bottom of the search window, click Create filter.
  5. Choose what you would like the filter to do: tick Delete it. To clear what is already in your mailbox with the same filter, also tick Also apply filter to matching conversations.
  6. Click Create filter.

Steps from Gmail Help: Create rules to filter your emails, read 21 October 2026.

Trash empties itself after 30 days, and until then you can move mail back.

Google says trashed messages are automatically deleted after 30 days. Until then the mail sits in Trash, where you can put it back: on the left click More, then Trash, check the box next to each message, click Move to and choose where it goes.

Source: Gmail Help, Organize & archive email and Gmail messages are missing, read 21 October 2026.

Steps from Gmail Help: Organize & archive email, read 21 October 2026.

Skip the Inbox archives matching emails automatically, and they stay under All Mail.

Archiving is the gentler version: the mail skips your inbox and is still searchable. Receipts are the usual case, so this filter takes anything with the word receipt, or the phrase order confirmation, in the subject.

Paste this into the Gmail search box

subject:(receipt OR "order confirmation")

Open this filter in the Gmail filter generator

Save it the same way, then tick Skip the Inbox (Archive it) and Apply the label. Google says archived messages stay under All Mail, and that you can find them with the search in:archive. If someone replies to a message you archived, it returns to your inbox.

Steps from Gmail Help: Organize & archive email, read 21 October 2026.

Google Workspace administrators have their own auto delete setting, with a 30-day minimum.

Google Workspace has an Email and chat auto-deletion setting that an administrator turns on for the people in an organization. The administrator sets how many days messages stay in a mailbox, and what happens when the time is up: move them to Trash or delete them permanently. The minimum is 30 days, and the setting does not apply to messages already in Trash. Read the full rules in Google’s Workspace help.

A filter handles mail from now on, so clear what is already there with a search.

For the backlog, build the search in the free Gmail mass delete tool, paste it into Gmail, select every conversation it finds and delete them in one go.

Delete many messages at once, on a computer

  1. Go to Gmail and run the search.
  2. At the top left, above your messages, check the Select box to select the conversations on the page.
  3. Click the link in the notification that offers to select every conversation, then click Delete.

Steps from Gmail Help: Organize & archive email, read 21 October 2026.

Deleted mail still waits in Trash for 30 days. To empty it now, open Trash and click Empty Trash now. For filters that stop the mail arriving at all, the block guide covers blocking a sender or a whole domain.

These are the questions people ask next.

How do I make Gmail delete emails automatically?

Create a filter for the mail you want gone and choose Delete it as the action. Gmail then moves matching emails to Trash as they arrive, and Google says Trash is emptied after 30 days.

How do I auto archive emails in Gmail?

Create a filter and choose Skip the Inbox (Archive it). The mail skips your inbox and stays under All Mail. Google notes that if someone replies to a message you archived, it returns to your inbox.

Can I get deleted emails back?

For 30 days, yes. Open Trash, tick the messages and use Move to. After 30 days Google deletes them permanently.

Will a filter clean up the mail I already have?

A filter handles mail from the moment you save it. To clear what is already in the mailbox, build the same search in the Gmail mass delete tool and delete the results in one go.

Does Google Workspace have its own auto delete setting?

Yes, for administrators. Google Workspace has an Email and chat auto-deletion setting that deletes messages older than a number of days the administrator chooses, with a minimum of 30. It does not apply to messages already in Trash.

Every step on this page comes from these official pages.

Read on . Spot a step that has changed? Email support@batmail.ai and we will fix it.

A filter cannot tell an urgent invoice from a routine one. Batmail's rules can.

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