How to make any email account behave like Gmail
Gmail has some great features, like the advanced spam filters and the way it organises your inbox into priority, social and promotional email.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have these features for your Yahoo, Hotmail and other email accounts? Well, you can. Thanks to the Gmailify feature in Gmail you can have all of your email in one universal inbox, with full access to all the features mentioned above. And here we’ll explain exactly how to get these Gmail features on any email account.
First, though, there are a few things to note. Gmail will scan your emails to determine how they are organised, so if you’re not happy to let Google have that kind of access to your data then you won’t want to use this feature. Second, you can only link one other email account at a time with your Gmail account.
Finally, emails from the second account will appearintermingled with your Gmail emails, not as a separate account. That may be ok, but it also may not.
How to Gmailify email accounts on Android
To bring Gmail functionality to your non-Google account, you’ll first need to have the Gmail app installed and setup. Next, open the app and tap on the three in the top left corner then scroll down and selectSettings. TapAdd accountand choose your email service from the list that appears.
Follow the instructions to set up the account, including your login details, and when everything is completed, you’ll see a page with the heading ‘Less spam, more control’. Underneath this there should be the option toTry Gmailify. Tap this, select the Gmail account you want to link, then tapNext.
Gmail will now link the accounts and take you back to your inbox. To ensure that everything has worked as it should, go to Settings and you should see that under your Gmail account it should say‘Linked with [your email account]’.
That’s it, you’re now free to enjoy the normal Gmail experience, only this time it includes any messages from your other account as well.
How to get Gmailify on iPhone
The method for adding accounts on the iOS version of Gmail is practically identical, with the slight difference that after opening Settings you need to tap on the arrow to the right of your username then selectManage accounts > Add account. After that, follow the steps outlined above to have your non-Gmail account linked with your Gmail account.
How to get Gmail features on an email account via the web version
To add an account via the web version of Gmail, go to your Gmail inbox, select the cog symbol in the upper right corner to openSettingsthen selectSee all Settings.
Click theAccounts and Importtab and look for a section calledCheck email from other accounts. In here you’ll see the option toAdd an email account. Select this and enter the address for your non-Gmail account. A dialog box will appear with two options, from which you need to tickLink accounts with Gmailifythen clickNext.
Log into the account you want to add, then when you see the message ‘You’ve been Gmailified!’ clickCloseto finish the process.
Of course, Gmail isn’t the only email service that can offer interesting features and handle multiple accounts. So check out our guide to thebest Gmail alternativesfor some fine options.
Also, here’show to redirect (or forward) email from an old address to a new one.
Author: Martyn Casserly, Contributor
Martyn has been involved with tech ever since the arrival of his ZX Spectrum back in the early 80s. He covers iOS, Android, Windows and macOS, writing tutorials, buying guides and reviews.
