- 2016-10-04
- Posted by: Scott Smith
- Categories: Gmail, Google Apps

Filters are some of the most powerful Gmail tools, serving to keep less important email out of your face, and allowing the cream to rise to the top.
To access these tools, look for the gear icon in the top-right corner of your Gmail. In that dropdown, click “Settings,” then the “Filters” link at the top of the next page. This page shows you any existing filters, then invites you to “Create a New Filter.”
You can also get more advanced setting up specifically filtered emails to automatically be marked as read or archived. Use the plus sign to search for multiple senders or receivers.
If you need a visual representation of different types of messages in your inbox, you can set up labels with many different color schemes. You can then assign anything that comes into your inbox, from a specific sender to a specific version of email. Some helpful label ideas are “shopping,” “follow up,” “bills,” or anything you want to sort visually.
You can also add stars to your filtered messages, so they’ll automatically show up as important if they contain any of your search criteria. Unfortunately, while Gmail has added several different searchable star designs, it doesn’t allow you to add a specific type of star to your message.