"Gmail" is an e-mail application that I regularly use on "Android". I find the app to be very easy to use, but Gmail isn't always known for being highly customizable. That said, the Settings page does offer some options that give you good control over how the app interacts.

A good example of this is the swipe action. By default, swiping left on an email deletes it, while swiping right snoozes it. If you're using a non-Gmail email account, swiping left deletes and right swiping is disabled.

Then, how can I set those swipes to perform the actions I want? This article introduces the procedure.

There is only one caveat regarding swipe action settings. The snooze option is only available for Gmail accounts, so you can't apply that option to other accounts.

Things necessary

All you need to customize your swipe settings is the Gmail app and at least one configured email account. With those two things ready, let's move on.

  • Step 1: Open Gmail's Settings

Log in to your Android device and open the Gmail app. Once the app opens, tap the three-line menu button in the top-left corner of the app's screen, then scroll to the bottom of the left pane and tap Settings.

Gmail's Settings is at the bottom of the left pane.

  • Step 2: Open General Settings

From within the main Settings page, tap General Settings and you should see a Mail Swipe Actions option. Tap that option.

The Mail Swipe Actions option in Gmail's Settings.

  • Step 3: Set Right Swipe Behavior

The page that appears has two options, one for right swipes and one for left swipes. Tap "CHANGE" on the right side of the right swipe option and when the popup appears, set the action associated with the right swipe.

Here you can set both left and right swipe actions.

  • Step 4: Set Left Swipe Behavior

Let's set left swipe behavior in the same way as right swipe. It doesn't matter which behavior you set. The list of available options is the same as with the right swipe. You can set the same behavior for both right and left swipes, or disable one or the other if you prefer.

If you want to disable one (or both) of the swipe actions, simply select "None" from the popup list and that action will be disabled.

After completing the settings, return to the main Gmail window from the "Settings" page. You should now be able to perform the right swipe and left swipe actions you configured earlier for any email.

As mentioned earlier, snooze is the only action that cannot be set for non-Gmail accounts. Other than that, you can set whatever behavior you like (or set it to nothing at all). For those looking for a more efficient way to navigate the Gmail app, I highly recommend setting both left and right swipe actions. These gestures are limited in what you can do, but when configured to suit your workflow, they can make a big difference.



  • This article is an article from overseas Red Ventures edited by Asahi Interactive for Japan.