Promotions is a Gmail category tab, not Spam. Clear the backlog by searching category:promotions, selecting all matching conversations, and archiving or deleting them. Stop future ones by unsubscribing or moving senders out of Promotions. If you want one combined inbox, turn Categories off under Settings → Inbox.
I'm Alec Lindsay. I founded the Gmail Unsubscribe Chrome extension, and about 104,000 people have installed it. Most of the people who ask me how to "get rid of Promotions" want two different jobs mixed together: empty the pile sitting there today, and keep stores and newsletters from rebuilding it tomorrow. This page covers both, plus the optional setting that hides the tab entirely.
What the Promotions tab is
When Inbox type is Default, Gmail splits mail into category tabs: Primary, Social, Promotions, Updates, and Forums. Google sorts each message automatically.
- Primary: people and messages Gmail thinks you will answer.
- Social: network notifications and connection updates.
- Promotions: marketing, deals, and most newsletters.
- Updates: receipts, confirmations, and account notices.
- Spam: a separate folder for mail Gmail treats as junk. It is not a category tab.
Mail in Promotions still counts against your Google storage. Filing it there does not unsubscribe you, and it does not mean the sender is a stranger. For missing or broken tabs, see Gmail categories not working.
Clear existing Promotions mail on the web
Do this on a computer. The Gmail app has no "select all conversations that match this search," so a 5,000-message cleanup is a web job.
- Open Gmail in your browser and type
category:promotionsin the search bar. Press Enter. To leave newer deals alone, add an age operator:category:promotions older_than:6m. - Click the checkbox at the top left of the results. That selects only the page you can see (usually 50 or 100 conversations).
- Click the blue line that appears: Select all conversations that match this search. Without that click, Archive or Delete only hits the first page.
- Click Archive to clear the tab and keep the mail searchable in All Mail, or the trash icon to Delete. Confirm when Gmail asks.
Skim the first page of results before you confirm. Exclude keepers with -from:store@example.com if one sender still matters. If you deleted and need the space today, open Trash and choose Empty Trash now; otherwise Gmail empties it after 30 days. The general select-all pattern, including other searches, lives in how to mass delete emails in Gmail.
Stop future promotions
Clearing the tab once is temporary if you are still on the lists. Pick the action that matches the sender.
- Unsubscribe from stores and newsletters you joined. Use Gmail's Unsubscribe link on a message, or the built-in Manage subscriptions view for frequent senders. The full walkthrough is in how to unsubscribe from emails in Gmail.
- Move to Primary when you want that sender's mail in the main inbox. Open a Promotions message, use Move to → Primary, and tell Gmail to do this for future messages from that sender when it asks.
- Block only for true spam or phishing, not for a list you signed up for. Blocking quietly files that exact address in Spam. Steps are in how to block an email address in Gmail. For the broader spam split, see how to stop spam emails in Gmail.
Filter promotions out of the inbox
Unsubscribing and blocking both change what a sender is allowed to do. A filter changes what Gmail does with mail that already arrived, which makes it the right tool for a sender you want to keep but not see: a retailer whose receipts you need, a partner update you skim quarterly.
- Open a message from that sender, click the three-dot More menu, and choose Filter messages like these.
- Check the criteria Gmail filled in, or widen them (
category:promotions from:example.comworks here), then click Create filter. - Pick the action: Skip the Inbox (Archive it), Mark as read, Apply the label, or Delete it.
- Tick Also apply filter to matching conversations if you want the existing pile handled too, then click Create filter.
A filter never tells the sender anything, so the list keeps growing on their side and your Google storage keeps filling on yours. Use it alongside an unsubscribe, not instead of one. If a rule you built stops firing, Gmail filters not working covers the usual causes.
| Action | What changes | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Unsubscribe | The sender stops mailing you, if their mechanism works | Lists you joined |
| Filter | Gmail archives, labels, or deletes on arrival | Senders you keep but do not want to see |
| Block | That address goes to Spam from now on | True spam and phishing only |
| Move to Primary | Future mail from that sender lands in Primary | Senders Gmail sorted wrong |
Turn Categories on or off
If you prefer one inbox with no Promotions tab:
- Click the gear, then See all settings.
- Open the Inbox tab.
- Next to Categories, click Customize.
- Untick Promotions (and any other tabs you do not want). Primary cannot be turned off.
- Click Save Changes.
Inbox type must be Default for category tabs to exist. Turning Promotions off does not stop the mail; Gmail just stops putting it on its own tab. Unsubscribing is still what reduces volume.
Promotions in the Gmail app
On iPhone and Android, open the three-line menu and tap Promotions under the inbox (category rows appear when Categories are enabled for that account in the app). You can long-press messages and delete a screenful at a time. You cannot select every category:promotions match in one tap. For a large backlog, clear it on the web, then use the app for day-to-day triage.
When the extension helps
If Promotions keeps filling with real mailing lists, the bottleneck is unsubscribing one sender at a time. Gmail Unsubscribe scans for subscription senders, shows counts, and lets you bulk unsubscribe through each sender's own mechanism, then archive the old mail. It is built for lists you joined, not for blocking strangers.
The free plan covers 5 unsubscribes a month plus unlimited scan and archive. Pro is $35.88/year. About 104,000 people have installed it from the Chrome Web Store.
Scan free, see which lists are filling Promotions, and unsubscribe from the ones you are done with without hunting each footer by hand.
Add to Chrome, freeCommon questions
Should I delete or archive Promotions mail?
Archive if clutter is the problem and you might need a receipt later. Delete if storage is the problem. Deleted mail stays in Trash for 30 days before Gmail erases it. Archiving frees no space.
Primary vs Promotions: what's the difference?
Primary is for people and reply-worthy mail. Promotions is for marketing and most newsletters. Both are inbox tabs. Spam is a separate folder.
Will unsubscribing empty Promotions?
No. Unsubscribing stops new messages from that list. Existing mail stays until you archive or delete it. Clear with category:promotions, then unsubscribe so the tab does not refill.
Does blocking a sender unsubscribe me?
No. Blocking sends that address to Spam and leaves you on the mailing list, so the sender keeps counting you as a subscriber. Unsubscribe if you joined the list. Block only when the mail is spam or phishing.