Organize messages into folders

iCloud automatically sets up some Mail folders for you: Inbox, VIP, Drafts, Sent, Archive, Trash, and Junk. You can create additional folders and subfolders. A folder with subfolders inside it has a triangle next to it; click the triangle to show or hide subfolders.

To work with folders, make sure you’re in widescreen view. For more information, see “Change how your emails appear” in Read email.

Create, rename, or delete a folder

To create a new folder, make sure no folder is selected (click in the message list), click the Add button next to Folders in the sidebar, type a name, then press Return.
To create a subfolder, do one of the following:
- Select the folder to which you want to add a subfolder, click the Add button , type a name, then press Return.
- Drag an existing folder to another folder. The dragged folder becomes a subfolder.
To rename a folder, double-click the folder’s name, type a new name, then press Return.
To delete a folder, select it, choose Delete Folder from the Action pop-up menu in the sidebar, then click Delete.

Important: Deleting a folder deletes everything inside it—messages, subfolders, and messages in subfolders.

Move messages into a folder

Do either of the following:

Drag messages to a folder.
Select one or more messages, click the Move to Folder button (shown below), then choose a folder from the menu.
To select several adjacent messages, click the first one, then Shift-click the last one. To select multiple nonadjacent messages, Command-click them on a Mac or Control-click them on a Windows computer.

Change the default folder for sent or deleted messages

Choose Preferences from the Action pop-up menu in the sidebar.
In the Mailboxes section of the General pane, select “Save sent messages in” or “Move deleted messages to,” then choose a new folder from the pop-up menu.
Click Done.

Messages in the Trash and Junk folders are automatically deleted after 30 days.