If you use the default Mail app for all your email communication, you know that looking at that long list in your inbox can be a bit too much. Thankfully, the new Mail app in iOS 10 has a feature to help you filter that mess, so that it’s manageable to deal with.

Filters in iOS 10 Mail App

Here are the ways you can filter all your mail.

• Mail from all connected accounts.
• Unread email
• Flagged email
• Addressed To: Me
• Addressed CC: Me
• Only with attachments
• Only from VIP

How To Use Filters

To use Filters, open the Mail app and go to any of your inboxes (the view that shows a list of all your emails).

Then tap the “Filter” icon in the bottom left. When you tap it, it will change to solid blue. And next to it you’ll see the text “Filtered by: Unread“. This is the default filter.

To change the filter, tap that area.

You’ll now see a list of all the different ways to filter your email. The one we listed above.

Tap on any one of that and the filter will be added.

To stop filtering and to see all your email again, tap the “Filter” icon again (it will change from solid blue, back to blue lines icon).

Tips and Tricks for Mastering Filter Use

If you’re new to email management, you might be thinking, that’s neat and all, but how do I actually use any of this? We’ve got you covered.

The best way to use Filters is to cut through the email mess in your inbox and directly go to the email that’s most important to you.

You can do this in different ways.

1. Flag emails: Say you’ve come across an email you want to just save somewhere for later use. When reading it, flag it. And then from the Filters list, select “Flagged” to view all the emails you’ve saved this way. To flag an email, tap the “Flag” button in the bottom-left and select “Flag“.
2. From VIP: You should set up VIPs in Mail app, the people you don’t want to miss emails from (we talk more about that in our iPhone productivity guide). Using Filters, you can choose to only see emails from VIPs.
3. Only Addressed: Me: Using this filter, you can see all the emails that are directly addressed to you and aren’t a part of chains.
4. Only with Attachments: Trying to find emails with attachments? Use this filter.

Our iOS 10 Guides

We’re only getting started. There’s lot more new productivity features in iOS 10.

Check out our iOS 10 coverage below:

• Top 44 iOS 10 Features for iPhone
• Top 10 iOS 10 Features for iPad
• Top 25 Hidden iOS 10 Features
• iOS 10 Hand-on: What’s New in Messages
• iOS 10 Hands-on: What’s New in Home Screen and Notification Center
• iOS 10 Hands-on: What’s New In The Lock Screen
• iOS 10 Hands-on: What’s New in the Redesigned Control Center
• iOS 10 Hands-on: What’s New in Photos
• iOS 10: How Siri Integration With Apps Will Work

Your Favorite Mail App Tips and Tricks

If you use the Mail app as your default mail client, you must have some tips and tricks to share with us. Feel free to comment below, we’d love to up our Mail app skills.