How to Unsend an Email in Gmail
Sent a Gmail message too soon? Click Undo in the seconds after sending, and set a longer window — up to 30 seconds — so you always get the chance.
Gmail can pull back a message for a few seconds after you send it. Right after you hit Send, a “Message sent — Undo” prompt appears at the bottom of the screen; click Undo and the email reopens as a draft. You can stretch that window to as long as 30 seconds so you never miss the chance. That 5-to-30-second window is chosen only in Gmail’s web settings; the mobile app has no matching control and shows its own brief Undo prompt right after you tap Send.
Click Undo right after sending
The catch is speed: the prompt only lasts as long as your Undo Send window, which is five seconds by default. Click Undo before it disappears and the message goes back to a draft, where you can fix the typo, add the attachment you forgot, or change the recipient. On the mobile app, a brief “Undo” toast appears the same way.
Set a longer undo window
Give yourself more time. On the web, open Settings (the gear), See all settings, and on the General tab find Undo Send. Pick a send cancellation period and Save.
| Window | Good for |
|---|---|
| 5 seconds (default) | Fast, confident senders |
| 20-30 seconds | Catching mistakes and missing attachments |
Thirty seconds is the maximum Google offers, and it is the setting most people should use. The change is made on the web but applies to your account everywhere.
Know its limit — it is not a true recall
Undo Send works by holding the message for those few seconds before it actually leaves, so it only helps within the window. Once the time is up the email is gone and cannot be pulled back — unlike a corporate Outlook recall, which can attempt to retract a message after the fact on an Exchange system. If you often send at the wrong moment, scheduling the email to go later gives you a real editing buffer, and labels help you find what you have sent.
Set the window to 30 seconds today — it costs nothing and turns “sent too soon” into a non-event. For anything you might regret, schedule it instead of sending right away.
Common questions
What is the longest you can set Gmail’s undo send window?
Thirty seconds. Gmail offers 5, 10, 20, or 30 seconds on the web, and 30 is the maximum.
Can you unsend a Gmail email after the undo window closes?
No. Undo Send only holds the message for the seconds you set; once that window passes, the email is delivered and cannot be pulled back.
Can you unsend an email in the Gmail mobile app?
Yes. Tap Undo on the brief prompt that appears after you send. The mobile window lasts only a few seconds and cannot be extended in the app; the adjustable setting lives on the web.
Is Gmail’s Undo Send the same as a recall?
No. Undo Send simply delays the message for a few seconds before it leaves, so nothing has actually been sent yet. An Exchange-style recall tries to retract a message that has already been delivered.