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Setting up Filters and Rules

  1. Mailbird
  2. Knowledge Base
  3. Emails Management
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Oliver Jackson
  • April 22, 2026 08:46
  • Updated

⚙️ Introduction

Mailbird offers powerful filters (rules) to help you keep your inbox organised and easy to manage.

Before getting started, there’s one important limitation to understand:

  • Filters are not synced with your email server.
  • They only run when emails arrive while Mailbird is open and running.

Once emails are downloaded into Mailbird, your filters will apply and their effects (such as moving emails) may then reflect in your webmail (e.g., Gmail) or other email clients.

⚠️ How Filters Work in Mailbird

When a new email arrives, Mailbird:

  • Checks all filters that match the defined conditions
  • Combines the actions from those filters
  • Executes them simultaneously

❗ Important exception:

  • Actions like Delete or Mark as spam override other actions (e.g., moving to folders)

🧩 Create a Filter in Mailbird

Follow these steps to create a new filter:

  1. Click the Mailbird menu (☰ in the top-left corner).
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Open the Filters tab.

👤 Choose an Account

  • Select the account where you want the filter applied
  • Or choose Unified Accounts to apply it across all accounts
  • Click Add to create a new filter
F02.png

🔍 Set Conditions

  1. Choose a condition (e.g., sender, subject, keywords).
  2. Enter the relevant value in the field provided.
  3. Click Add condition if you want to include multiple conditions.
F03.png

🎯 Define Actions

This is the most important step—decide what happens when conditions are met.

Examples of actions:

  • Move to folder
  • Copy to folder
  • Delete
  • Mark as spam
F05.png

ℹ️ Notes:

  • For Move to folder or Copy to folder, select an existing folder or create a new one.
  • These folder actions are not supported for Unified Accounts.
  • You can click Add action to include multiple actions

👀 Review and Save

  • Check your configuration in the Review section.
  • Click Save if everything looks correct.

▶️ Save and Run

  • Click Save and Run to:
    • Apply the filter to existing emails in your inbox
    • Automatically apply it to future incoming emails

F08.png

⚠️ Additional Notes

  • Filters only run when Mailbird is open and running.
  • Emails received while Mailbird is closed will not be filtered automatically.

🤝 Got a Question?

Filters are a powerful way to automate inbox management in Mailbird, helping you stay organised with minimal effort. 

If you require any further information or guidance, then please don't hesitate to contact our Customer Happiness Team by clicking here.

 

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  • Keyboard Shortcuts
  • Gmail Shortcuts
  • Advanced Search queries and UI
  • Setting up Filters and Rules
  • How to organize folders from within Mailbird?
  • Moving Emails To Folders
  • How to move emails between email accounts
  • Send Later
  • Can I download an email as a file in Mailbird?
  • How to backup your email data
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