Scheduled Emails in Gmail

Did you know you can schedule what day and time and email composed in Gmail can be sent? This is a relatively new feature that has a number of uses. This article reviews the steps for sending a scheduled email in Gmail.

May 16, 2019
Valiant Technology
6 min read

After much anticipation, Gmail has released the ability to schedule an email to be sent at a later day and time. This is great for reminders, or if you really want to emphasize with your team that even if you’re working on a weekend they don’t have to. (Set it to Monday so they don’t even see it until they get into the office). Below are the steps for sending a scheduled email.

Gmail Browser Application

To send a scheduled email using the browser version of Gmail, start by creating a new email. Fill out all the usual information including subject, body, etc.

The orange arrow point to the menu for additional send options such as scheduled send.

Instead of the usual way you send, use the triangle next to the send button to see the option to “schedule send”.

The schedule send option has an arrow with a clock as it’s symbol.

Clicking this will suggest a few times. Click any of these times to finalize your schedule or you can click “pick a date & time” and send exactly when you want it to.

If you choose to pick your own date an time a calendar will pop up. Click the schedule send button to finalize your date and time.

Scheduled emails are like wizards. They are never late, nor early, they arrive precisely when they mean to.

Your message is now scheduled to send at your selected time.

A scheduling confirmation will be at the bottom of your window.

Scheduled Email Location

If you want to revisit an email that has been scheduled and not yet sent, Gmail has created a folder appropriately labeled “Scheduled”. This is located in the same place where you find other folders such as drafts and archive.

The arrow indicated the folder containing any scheduled emails in Gmail.

To cancel a scheduled email, click on the message and then click “cancel send”. This email won’t be deleted, and will instead appear in your drafts folder.

Easily cancel your scheduled email by hitting cancel send.

Gmail Mobile Application

This process is the same as above, but the location for the schedule options is in a different location and some of the visuals are different.

After you have composed your email click the 3 vertical dots to open the options.

A sample email to be sent on a particular date. The three vertical dots can be found at the upper righthand side of the screen.

You will have the option to “Schedule Send”. Click this to continue.

Schedule send is the top option in the drop down.

The Gmail app will suggest times and dates. The image below will pop up along with the option to select your own date & time.

If you tap any of the suggested options, your email will be scheduled and sent to your scheduled folder.

If you pick your own date & time, another pop up will allow you to choose a day off the calendar and the time from a clock.

You can select a time down to the minute with this feature.

Schedule email location (Mobile)

Just as above you can edit or delete a scheduled email. If you set up the schedule on the mobile app you can still edit or delete that email on the browser app and vice verse.

Find and open your scheduled folder.

The scheduled folder is near the sent and outbox folders in the mobile app

Open the selected email. You will have the option to “cancel send”.

Once you click “cancel send” the email will move back into your drafts folder.

Additional Thoughts

Scheduled emails or delayed emails in themselves are not new, so it is about time Gmail integrated this as a regular part of the app. They did what Gmail does best, which is to make it super intuitive and easy to use. If you’re a Gmail user, give this a shot next time you write an email at 3 in the morning and want the recipient to think you have normal sleeping patterns.