Gmail’s Archive vs Mute vs Snooze: Differences Explained

Gmail has certainly come a long way since the simple replacement of the Inbox application, which has since disappeared. This feature-rich email client from Google comes preloaded with tons of useful features. However, it’s the archiving, mute and repeat functionality of Gmail that most often confuses some users. Well, their functions are almost identical, to some extent, but after that, they are separated by poles. In this guide, we will discuss in detail the differences between the three. In addition, we also list the steps for using these three features and in which scenario. But before that, also check out our guide on how to disable the in-app browser in Gmail.

What is the Gmail archiving feature?

Similar to Instagram’s archiving function, Gmail’s archives work in much the same direction here. It hides your email from the inbox. But they are not deleted. They have just been removed from your inbox tab and moved to a separate section. If you find that an email in Gmail is slightly lower in hierarchy, but still can’t completely block that email, consider archiving it. The best part about it is that you can unarchive it anytime.

However, some strings are attached. If you have archived an email, but someone replies to it, that email will automatically be delivered to your inbox. In addition, there is no separate section for archiving emails. That said, here’s how to archive / unarchive and access any email in Gmail. On that note, here is our guide on how to send email attachments in Gmail

Archiving / unarchiving emails in Gmail

• There is a shortcut for archiving any email in Gmail. Just go to your inbox and swipe right or left on this email. it will be automatically archived. Or you can also open said email and tap the archive icon (located to the left of the Delete icon)
• To view any archived email, open Gmail, tap the hamburger menu, and go to All mail sections. You will see all your archived emails there.
• To unarchive any email, open it and tap the overflow icon and select Move to inbox.

So that was all of this section. Now that we’ve discussed the archiving functionality, let’s take a look at the Mute and Repeat functionality of Gmail. In addition, here is our detailed guide on how to CC or BCC automatically any email id in Gmail.

Disable emails in Gmail

While the general idea is that the mute function will just turn off notifications, here in Gmail, things are slightly different. In Gmail, when you turn off a conversation, all of the mail will be deleted from your inbox. Similar to the archiving functionality, emails are not deleted but moved to a separate section. And as was the case with the first one, there is no separate section in Gmail for accessing these silent emails.

So what’s the difference? Well, this comes from the fact that muted emails are not forwarded to your inbox upon interaction (like a reply). It will stay in its designated place until you manually act on it. Here’s how to disable, re-enable, or access any of the disabled emails in Gmail. But before that, be aware of the differences between Mute and Block.

Mute against block

Well, if you block a user, you will not receive any email from that user. However, in the event of a mute, you will continue to receive e-mails but you will not be notified in the same way. In addition, these emails will not clutter up your Gmail inbox, but will be moved to a separate section. So consider blocking only in the most extreme scenarios, otherwise the Mute function should more than suffice in general cases.

How to deactivate / reactivate emails in Gmail

• There are two different methods for cutting all email in Gmail. The first is to long press this email> go to the overflow icon> select Mute. The second method is to open the conversation, tap on the overflow icon and select the Mute option.
• To mute emails, again, there is no separate section. All your silent emails are present under the All mail Gmail section.
• In the same vein, if you want to reactivate an email, simply select Move to inbox option (similar to how you did it to unarchive).

With that, we conclude this section. So, with the Archive and Mute section complete, let’s focus on the repeat functionality of Gmail.

Repeat any email in Gmail

The repeat feature of Gmail is useful when you want to be notified or reminded of any email at a later date. For example, you just received an email indicating that there will be an important meeting the day after tomorrow. In this case, you can repeat this e-mail to make it reappear and inform you on this date and at this time. Read and unread emails can be put on hold in Gmail. Here’s how. Similarly, consult the guide to activate the alarm reminder function in Android 10.

How to repeat emails

1. Open the desired email in the Gmail app.
2. Tap the overflow icon and select Kip.
3. You will now get a list of schedules to choose from. If nothing works for you, press the Select the date and time and set your own schedule.

What happens when you repeat your emails

As soon as the email is put on hold at a later date, it is automatically moved from the inbox to the put on hold section. Yes, Gmail has at least a separate section for this. Tap the hamburger icon, then tap snooze. You will find all the e-mails on hold there.

How to cancel email hold in Gmail

To cancel any email, go to snooze , open the desired email and tap the overflow icon. Now select the Do not repeat and the email will return to your inbox.

So, with that, we conclude this guide regarding the differences between the Archive, Snooze and Mute features of Gmail. Let us know in the comments if you still have any doubts.