{"id":178762,"date":"2021-10-25T11:43:16","date_gmt":"2021-10-25T09:43:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sftarticles.wpenginepowered.com\/en\/?p=178762"},"modified":"2025-07-01T21:02:24","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T04:02:24","slug":"what-is-gmail-and-how-it-works","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/what-is-gmail-and-how-it-works\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Gmail and How it Works"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Gmail<\/a> is a free email client <\/strong>provided by Google. It works similarly to any other email client. You can send an email, receive and respond to email, block spam and potential threats, create an address book and perform other email tasks. However, Gmail also offers quite a few other features that make it one of the most popular email clients around. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gmail works from within your browser. You can log in to your Gmail account<\/strong> from most devices and browsers without needing specific requirements. However, users have reported better results in Chrome, Firefox, Windows Edge, and Safari browsers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this guide, we will be covering what Gmail is, how it works, and the features that make it such an excellent free email service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is Google Gmail?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Gmail is used to send, receive and respond to emails<\/strong>. As such, it is an email client that not only offers basic email tasks, but also many innovations to make sending and receiving emails easier. You can also personalize your Gmail account<\/a> for a nice touch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gmail\u2019s Features<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Here’s a list of the top Gmail features<\/a> you can use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gmail Notifier<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Gmail Notifier is a handy little app that you can download on your PC. Once enabled, it will check for new emails every two minutes<\/strong> and notify you without accessing your browser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mail Fetcher<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

This feature allows you to fetch emails from up to five other accounts<\/strong> and download them to your central Gmail account. This makes it easy to stay on top of your emails if you have multiple accounts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact Groups<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

What is Google Contacts? <\/strong>This is your address book in Gmail<\/strong>. Gmail has a handy feature that allows you to group contacts to send emails to the entire group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Security and Spam<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Gmail is very security conscious<\/strong>. Every email is run through a virus scan as it enters your inbox. Attachments are scanned twice. Suspicious emails are automatically sent to your spam folder. You may be wondering what is spam in Gmail? Spam is any unwanted sales, promotional, or potentially harmful phishing emails that you don\u2019t want<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parental Controls<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Children under the age of 13 need parental consent<\/strong> to create a Gmail account. Parents can also set filters to block unwanted or inappropriate emails from reaching your child. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other innovative Gmail features include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n