Everybody wants to feel included—but can you really be expected to remember every single one of your coworkers every time you send a department-wide email? Here's how to create a group in Gmail, so you can save time, be more consistent, and stop forgetting to CC Dave in Accounting.
First, two quick caveats:
While most people use the term "group" for this, in Google terms, you're really creating a label. Groups is technically a different feature in the Googleverse.
Sometimes, people also confuse groups with Gmail aliases, which are used to make alternative email addresses managed by the same individual account.
Table of contents:
How to create a group email in Gmail
Ready to create an email group? Here's how to get your whole team bundled up into a single, convenient package—even Dave. We'll start with the quick version, but keep reading for more details.
Go to contacts.google.com.
In the side menu, click the Create label icon, which looks like a plus (
+) sign.Enter your label name, and then click Save.
Select contacts for your email group.
Add contacts to the label you created.
1. Open Google Contacts
To get started, go to contacts.google.com. Alternatively, you can click the Google Apps icon, which looks like a three-by-three grid of dots, next to your profile icon. Then click Contacts. Any contacts you or your organization have added or with whom you often communicate will be found here.
2. Create a new label
In the side menu, click the Create label icon, which looks like a plus (+) sign.
3. Name your label
This should bring you to a pop-up prompting you to name the group. Consider something that'll be top of mind for you, like "Marketing Team" or "Everybody Including Dave from Accounting." When you've entered your label name, click Save. Your new label should appear on the sidebar under Labels.
4. Select contacts for your group
To find a pool of contacts to add to your new label, you can look at the Contacts, Frequently contacted, or Directory options in the side menu. To add a contact to your email group, hover over that contact's icon, and click the checkbox next to their name.
5. Add contacts to the label you created
Once you've selected all your desired contacts, click the Manage labels icon above the contact list. This will display any labels you've already created and give you the option of creating a new one on the fly. Select your label, and click Apply.
How to send a group email in Gmail
Now that your label is G2G (good to go, good to Gmail, good to group, etc.), here's how to send a group email in Gmail.
Compose a new email in Gmail.
Start typing the name of your email group in the To field of a new email. Your email group will appear, indicating the number of members associated with it. Click the name of your email group to automatically populate every recipient's email in that group in the To field.
Compose and send your email as you normally would.
How to manage contacts for Gmail groups
If you don't have any contacts listed in your Google Rolodex (Googodex?) yet, here's how to add them from scratch or via directory, as well as how to kick someone off your contact list if needed.
Create or import new contacts to an email group
You can add new contacts straight to a label by using the Create contact button. That can be found at the top of your Google Contacts side menu or in the Contacts tab if you haven't added any yet. You can also import contacts from an XLS or vCard file using either of these two methods.
This will bring up a new profile field. Under the profile photo, you'll see a + Label button. Click this to bring up your labels, select the label you want, and boom: your new contact will go straight to your label of choice.
Add a contact to a group from your frequently contacted list or your organization's directory
If you've been using your account for a while, you probably have contacts in the Frequently contacted list in the side menu. If your account is associated with an organization, there may also be preloaded contacts listed in the Directory tab.
In either case, you can navigate to the appropriate tab and start selecting contacts from the list. Then, click the Save contact icon at the top of the contacts list to populate them in your own Contacts list.
Remove contacts from an email group
Need to update the contacts in your email group?
In the Google Contacts side menu, click the label you need to modify.
Hover over the contact you want to remove, and click the More actions icon, which looks like an ellipsis (
...).Make sure the correct label is checked, then click Remove from label.
Tips for getting the most out of Gmail email groups
Making groups in Gmail allows you to package a list of contacts you message regularly, so you don't have to enter each address individually. This saves time, cuts out another menial recurring task, encourages teamwork, and helps you be sure you never exclude anyone (as much as you might want to). Here's what else groups can do for you:
You can also use groups/labels to create Google email lists, so you can perform contact-based actions en masse, like signing teams up for a newsletter, sending team lists to outside organizations, sharing documents, or updating permissions.
For even more productivity, you can use labels on Gmail templates to quickly send pre-written messages to established groups.
You can add contacts to multiple labels. For even more granularity, try creating separate labels for groups within groups.
When removing labels, be careful not to remove the contacts with them (unless you want that). You'll be given an option before you confirm, but it's usually better to have contacts you don't use than to need contacts you've deleted.
Enhancing collaboration with group emails in Gmail
Tricks like creating contact labels can give you a quick boost in efficiency for common tasks like sending team emails. But to cut out hours of repetitive tasks, automation is even better. Through Zapier's Gmail automation, you can connect Gmail to all your other apps and automate your inbox. Learn more about how to automate Gmail, or get started with one of these pre-made templates.
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Zapier is the leader in workflow automation—integrating with thousands of apps from partners like Google, Salesforce, and Microsoft. Use interfaces, data tables, and logic to build secure, automated systems for your business-critical workflows across your organization's technology stack. Learn more.
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This article was originally published in April 2023. The most recent update was in April 2024.
