How to Unsend an Email You Just Sent by Mistake

Gmail, Outlook, and Apple Mail all let you undo a sent email within a short window. Here is how to enable the feature and use it before it is too late.

In this guide (4 steps):

1.Enable Undo Send in Gmail (and set the window longer)
2.Undo Send in Gmail on your phone
3.Undo Send in Apple Mail
4.Recall an email in Outlook

Enable Undo Send in Gmail (and set the window longer)

~41s

Gmail delays sending for up to 30 seconds — but you have to configure the length. Go to Gmail in your browser → click the gear icon → "See all settings" → under the "General" tab, find "Undo Send" and set the "Send cancellation period" to 30 seconds. Click "Save Changes" at the bottom. Now, every time you send an email, a "Message sent" banner appears at the bottom left of your screen with an "Undo" button. Click "Undo" within 30 seconds to retrieve the email.

Quick Tip

Quick Tip: Set the undo period to 30 seconds immediately — this is the maximum and gives you the most recovery time. The default is often 5 or 10 seconds, which is not enough time to catch mistakes.

Undo Send in Gmail on your phone

~27s

The Gmail app on iPhone and Android also has Undo Send. In the app: tap the three-line menu (☰) → Settings → select your email account → "Undo Send" → set the cancellation period to 10 or 20 seconds. After sending an email in the app, a brief "Sent" message appears at the bottom of the screen with an "Undo" option. Tap it quickly. On iPhone, the window may be shorter than on the desktop — so act fast.

Undo Send in Apple Mail

~40s

On Mac (macOS Ventura and later): go to MailSettingsComposing → check "Undo Send Delay" and set it to 10 or 20 seconds. After sending, a banner appears at the bottom of the screen with an Undo option. On iPhone and iPad (iOS 16 and later): after sending an email in the Mail app, a brief "Undo Send" option appears at the bottom of the screen. Swipe up on it or tap it to cancel the send. The delay setting is in SettingsMailUndo Send Delay.

Quick Tip

Quick Tip: Apple Mail's Undo Send is only available on iOS 16 and macOS Ventura or later. If you have an older iPhone, update it to access this feature: SettingsGeneralSoftware Update.

Recall an email in Outlook

~38s

In Outlook (Microsoft 365): open the Sent Items folder → open the email you want to recall → click the three-dot menu (⋯) or "Message" tab → "Actions" → "Recall This Message." Choose "Delete unread copies" (if the recipient hasn't opened it) or "Delete unread copies and replace with a new message." A recall only works if the recipient uses Outlook and has not yet opened the email — it does not work to Gmail, Apple Mail, or other email services.

Warning

Email recall is not reliable — it fails if the recipient has already opened the email, uses a non-Outlook email app, or reads email on a mobile device. Think of it as a last resort, not a guarantee.

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We have all done it — sent an email too soon, to the wrong person, with a typo, or missing an attachment. Most email services give you a brief window to "undo" or "recall" the send before it truly leaves your outbox.

Gmail, Outlook, and Apple Mail all offer this feature, but it works differently in each. Gmail and Apple Mail delay the actual send by a few seconds, giving you time to cancel it. Outlook has a "Recall" feature that tries to delete the message from the recipient's inbox — though this only works in certain conditions.

This guide shows you how to enable and use "Undo Send" in all three services.

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