To give you some background, Gmail has always had search filters (or operators) to allow you to narrow down your email searches and find the relevant emails against your search terms. However, most users have been oblivious to the feature, and as a result, a large number of users could not benefit from it. To address this situation, Google has finally made it easier for you to narrow down your search results by making the filters easily accessible and the functionality a whole lot simpler. So now, you no longer have to sift through irrelevant emails when looking for something specific, and instead, can leverage the new functionality to get faster results when sorting through emails. For instance, when you search for an email from a particular user, you now get suggestions for various filters right below the search box. You can then click on these filters to narrow down your search results till you find the right match for your query.
How to use Gmail Search Chips
Go to Gmail and log in to your account.
Head over to Inbox or any other folder you want to search for an email.
In the search box above, enter the desired search term and hit Enter.
You should now see a list of results against your query with your desired search term. And right below the search box, you will be presented with various filter options, such as Any time, Has attachment, To me, Is unread, and more. Tap on any of these filters (or multiple filters) to narrow down your results.
Using these filters, you should be able to find the relevant email you have been looking for. However, in case that does not help, you can tap on the Advanced search button next to the filter suggestions to perform, well, an advanced search. The advanced search, as it sounds, gives you more control over different variables, which you can leverage to find better results for your query.
Moreover, if you got used to the old operator search method, Google still allows you to use the same, so you can enter the operators in the query to filter out emails. The Search Chip functionality is a much-needed and long-due update to Gmail in a long time. Over the years, we saw Google making changes and introducing accessibility features to several of its apps and services to simplify the experience for the end-user and make service more accessible. And now, with the new search functionality, the company is finally simplifying the search experience on Gmail, which would widely benefit the average user and allow them to use the service to its full potential. Also Read: Search by Email: 5 Best Tips to Find the Person Behind an Email Address
