emailGmail cleanup
Clear years of old Gmail in three steps
We read dates, senders and subjects. Never the body of an email, never an attachment. What it reads
Start with a sign-in
Sign in with osec.one (email code, Google or Apple) so your review belongs to you alone. Then connect Gmail below.
Signed in
1 Connect Gmail
Google asks you to let email59 read and move your mail. Or use an app password:
What is an app password and where do I get one?
An app password is a separate 16-letter password that Google makes for one app. It is not your Google password, it only opens mail, and you can cancel it at any time without touching anything else.
- Your Google account needs 2-Step Verification switched on (myaccount.google.com/security).
- Open myaccount.google.com/apppasswords, type a name such as
email59and press Create. - Copy the 16 letters Google shows and paste them here.
When you're done cleaning, press Disconnect here and delete the app password on the same Google page. email59 stores it encrypted and only while your mailbox is connected.
2 Review
email59 reads the date, sender, subject, labels and size of each email in All Mail and Spam. It takes about a minute for every 20,000 emails. Nothing is deleted in this step.
Empty Trash too?
Emails in Trash still count toward your Google storage (Gmail, Google Drive and Google Photos share it) until Gmail deletes them after 30 days. Empty it now to get the space back today.
Starred emails in Trash stay. Not sure yet? Leave it: Gmail empties Trash by itself after 30 days, and until then you can put anything back.
3 Pick what goes to Trash
Safe to delete
Older than 30 days, and never anything you starred or Gmail marked important.
Gmail's own sections
Whole sections, as Gmail already sorted them. Open the examples before you tick Updates or Purchases: receipts and statements live there.
Starred emails are never moved. Trash is Gmail's own Trash: everything stays there for 30 days and can be put back from Gmail.
Keep it clean, regularly
Have more email to get through, and want it done on a schedule?
Do it yourself, every week or month
- Come back to this page and press Review again.
- Tick the groups and press Move these to Trash.
- For senders you never want to see: open a group's examples, copy its Gmail filter for these senders, paste it into Gmail's search box and press Enter.
- Click the sliders icon in the search box, then Create filter, tick Delete it and press Create filter.
Or let email59 do it for you
We look at your Gmail every hour and move new spam, plus any other sections you pick, to Trash. For up to 3 Gmail accounts.
$3 a month for 3 Gmail accounts. Cancel any time on your account page.
Gmail is a trademark of Google LLC. email59 is not affiliated with Google.
What email59 reads, and what it never reads
| Read and kept for the review | Never read |
|---|---|
| Date, sender and subject of each email | The body of any email |
| Read or unread, starred, marked important | Attachments (only whether there is one) |
| Your labels and Gmail's section (Promotions, Social, Updates, Spam) | Your contacts, calendar or anything outside mail |
| Size | Your Google password |
Questions people ask first
Can I undo a cleanup? Yes, for 30 days. email59 moves mail to Gmail's Trash. Open Trash in Gmail, select what you want back and move it to the Inbox. Only if you press "Delete from Trash for good" after a cleanup (and confirm) are those emails gone at once; there is no undo for that.
Does mail in Trash still take up space? Yes. Google counts Gmail messages and attachments toward your storage, including Spam and Trash, until Gmail deletes them after 30 days. Emptying Trash gets the space back the same day.
What happens to the review? It sits in email59's database so the page can count and group your mail. Press "Delete the review from email59" and it's gone at once. If you forget, it is deleted a week after the review. Disconnecting deletes the review and the stored app password together.
Why are those three groups "safe"? A social network keeps every notification it emailed you. Amazon keeps your orders. And a no-reply sender can't even take an answer. After 30 days those emails are copies of something that lives elsewhere. Starred mail, mail Gmail marked important, and (for no-reply senders) anything you labelled or that carries an attachment stays out.
What does the hourly clean-up touch? Only mail that arrives after you subscribe, in the sections you tick (Spam to begin with). Starred mail stays. Everything goes to Gmail's Trash, where it waits 30 days.
Does it work with a work Gmail (Google Workspace)? Usually. Some companies switch app passwords off; then Gmail refuses the sign-in and nothing is stored.
email59 is run by Biz59 LLC, New York, NY. Questions about your data: harish@biz59.net. Privacy.
A lighter mailbox by tonight
Sign in, connect Gmail and see what years of notifications add up to.