Whether you need to find an old receipt, an important message from a doctor, or a conversation from months ago, the search function in your email is the most powerful tool available to you. Think of it like having a personal assistant who can instantly look through every single email you have ever received and find exactly what you need — in seconds.
Look at the top of your email screen. There should be a long rectangular box, often with a small magnifying glass icon inside or beside it. This is the search bar.
Click inside the search bar so your cursor is there.
Type in something you remember about the email. This could be:
The name of the person who sent it (e.g., "Margaret" or "Dr. Santos")
A word from the subject line (e.g., "appointment" or "invoice")
A topic or keyword related to what the email was about (e.g., "prescription" or "delivery")
Press the Enter key on your keyboard, or click the magnifying glass icon.
A list of emails matching your search will appear. Scroll through them to find the one you are looking for.
Be specific. The more specific your search word, the fewer results you will get, making it easier to find what you need. For example, searching "water bill August" will give you fewer results than just searching "bill."
Try different words. If your first search does not find the email, try a different word related to the same topic.
Make sure you are searching All Mail, not just the Inbox. Some email programs only search your Inbox by default. Look for an option to expand the search to "All Mail" or "All Folders."
Check Trash. If the email was deleted, the search might not find it unless you specifically look in the Trash folder.
If you have searched thoroughly and the email simply does not appear anywhere, it is possible it was permanently deleted at some point — either accidentally or because your mailbox was full and older emails were removed. In this case, please contact our support team and we will do our best to investigate.