How to Manage Notifications for Important E-mails on an iPhone or Android

E-mail is among the most commonly used means of communication in the modern world. However, it’s also a safe haven for marketers and advertisers who spam our inboxes daily. With all the unimportant messages, it’s becoming too difficult to keep track of the more important ones.

Luckily, you can tweak the settings in your phone and e-mail app to mark certain message senders as important and get notifications from them right away. Here’s how you can update your iPhone or Android device to never miss an important e-mail again.

How to Manage Notifications for Important E-mails on an iPhone or Android

Both iOS and Android allow users to set up notifications using different apps. For example, Apple users can use Gmail or the built-in Mail app to receive notifications about important e-mails. In the same way, Samsung users can use Gmail or Email, the phone’s built-in mail service.

In the steps below, we outline the easiest and most popular steps per device. Feel free to check the Gmail option further in the article if this is your favorite e-mail service.

Use the Mail App (iOS 11 and Higher)

iPhone and iPad devices have a default e-mail app called Mail. Users can set Mail to receive e-mails from all the leading e-mail providers like Yahoo, Gmail, or Microsoft Outlook. If you haven’t set up your Mail app yet, here’s how you can do that:

1. Launch the “Settings” app on your iPhone.
   
2. Go to “Accounts,” then “Add Account.”
   
3. Choose the e-mail service or choose “Other” to add an e-mail manually.
   
4. Follow the on-screen instructions depending on the service. Most often, you just have to enter your e-mail and password followed by a short description (Work, Personal, etc.)
   
5. Open your “Mail” app and log into the mail account to check that it’s synced.

When everything is set up, you can create a VIP list in the Mail app. You’ll receive a special sound notification whenever an e-mail from this list comes in. Here’s how to add e-mail addresses to the important list:

1. Start the Mail app on your iPhone.
   
2. Find the sender you wish to add as a VIP.
   
3. Tap on their e-mail address.
   
4. Press “Done” for this to “Add to VIP”.
   

You can also add senders to this list by following the alternative steps below:

1. Open the Mail app and press “VIP” if there are already contacts in this list.
   
2. Press the “i” icon next to the VIP section.
   
3. Tap “Add VIP.”
   
4. Pick a name from the contact list.
   

Now that you’ve set up the Mail app and added contacts to the VIP list, it’s time to enable the notifications in your phone settings.

1. Open your iPhone’s Settings app.
   
2. Go to “Mail,” then “Notifications.”
   
3. Hit “Customize Notifications.”
   
4. Select VIP and choose the alert style you want.
   
5. Click on “Sounds” to set the vibration and tone.
   
6. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the setup.
7. You can also create a custom vibration by going to “Vibration” and then scrolling to “Create New Vibration.”
   

Additionally, you can set specific times you want the Mail app notifications to arrive. For example, maybe you want to receive important e-mail notifications no matter what time of day. Or maybe turn them off after the work day is over at 5 p.m. You can tweak these settings by going to “Settings,” and then “Notifications” on your iPhone.

Use the E-mail App for Samsung Devices

All Android phones have an in-built e-mail app called Email. This app allows users to manage multiple accounts from a single, unified platform. Here’s how to set it up:

1. Open the Email app from your phone app list and open the “Menu” section.
   
2. Hit “Settings,” which is represented by a gear icon.
   
3. Add a new account by inputting your e-mail and password.
   

Now that you’ve logged into the app, here’s how to set VIP contacts.

1. Navigate to the app’s “Settings” and pick “Notifications.”
   
2. Make sure the VIP sender notifications are on.
   
3. Hit “Notification Sound” then “Vibrations” to tweak the alert type.
   
4. Head back to the central menu and press “VIP.”
   
5. Hit the “+” button.
   
6. Enter the e-mail addresses of important senders or select people from the Contacts address book.
   

That’s it. The next time you receive an e-mail from the sender designated as a VIP, you’ll see a notification on your phone.

For Other Androids: Try the Gmail App

Gmail is arguably the most popular e-mail provider in existence. The app is packed with functionalities, and it allows users to create filters for important e-mails. Users can also auto-label and auto-star the e-mails that are coming from specific people. It’s then possible to receive phone notifications whenever an e-mail from a particular label category arrives.

Note that it’s impossible to set up important e-mails as auto-labeled on phone devices. You’ll need to use your desktop to perform the following steps.

1. Go to www.gmail.com and log into your Google account.
   
2. Open the message from the e-mail address you want to mark as important.
   
3. Click on the “3 dots” next to the “reply”. You can find this button in the top right-hand of the window.
   
4. Pick “Filter Messages Like This” from the drop-down menu.
   
5. A new form will open where the e-mail of the sender will autofill. Hit the “Create Filter” option at the bottom of the form.
   
6. Make sure the “Apply the Label:” box is checked.
   
7. Pick “Choose Label,” then “New Label.”
   
8. A new pop-up box will appear. Pick a name for the label and press “Create.”
   
9. The page will redirect you to the “Apply the Label” box. Hit “Create Filter” at the bottom of the box to confirm your settings.
   

There’s also an alternative way to label e-mails that may be easier for you:

1. Hit the “gear” settings icon from the Gmail inbox and go to “See all Settings.”
   
2. Open the “Filter and blocked addresses” tab, then “Create a New Filter” from the bottom of the list.
   
3. Enter the e-mail address you want to flag and press the “Create Filter With This Search” link.
   
4. Hit the “Apply the Label:” box and then “Choose Label,” then “New Label.”
   
5. Name the label in the new pop-up and press “Create.”
   
6. You’ll see the “Apple the Label:” box again. Hit “Create Filter” to finish.
   

Finally, you should tweak your Android settings to get a notification whenever an e-mail from the label you just made comes in.

1. Go to the Gmail app on your Android device.
   
2. Open “Settings” from the upper left-hand corner.
   
3. Click on the e-mail address from which you received important e-mails.
   
4. Check “Notifications,” then scroll to “Manage Labels.”
   
5. Find the label you just made and press it.
   
6. Allow the system to Sync your mail and select “30 Days” from the sync options list.
   
7. A notification screen will appear after the sync is complete. Hit “Label Notifications” to customize the vibrations and sounds.
   
8. Make sure no notifications are set for other labels (if you have them).
9. Finally, go to your Primary inbox and turn off the “Label Notifications” section.
   

Gaining Control Over Important E-mail Notifications

Sorting through e-mail lists to find important messages is a tiring and time-consuming task. Luckily, iOS and Android systems offer flexible solutions that let you limit phone notifications to important e-mails or set up custom vibrations and tones for particular senders.

The above steps should work for all iPhone, Samsung, and Android device users. Note that as a Samsung user, you can choose between setting up the Gmail or Email app. Apple users can also follow the steps for Gmail if this is the e-mail platform they prefer.

Which types of e-mails did you flag as important? Do you prefer to completely block all other notifications, or have you simply added a new ringtone style for your important mail? Share your experience in the comments section below.