How to manage multiple Gmail accounts

I have a Gmail account from 2005—a U.S. senator in internet years. Back then, Gmail was invite-only and flexed two entire gigabytes of storage, dwarfing the standard 2-4 MB offered by competitors. It also introduced innovative features like labels and threaded conversations, making it easy to find that one JibJab eCard buried under a hundred RE: RE: FWD: RE: follow-ups. Trust me, it was cutting-edge stuff at the time.

Fast forward nearly two decades, and I evolved into someone who cringes at the mere thought of a consolidated inbox. Between my personal email, work email, side hustle email, and the handful of burners for free trials and newsletters I’m not quite ready to commit to, I have more Gmail accounts than fingers to count them on.

If you, too, have an email empire that spans so many accounts that you’re basically an unpaid personal assistant to yourself, keep reading. I’ll walk you through how to manage multiple Gmail accounts because “just use one account” isn’t the kind of groundbreaking solution you came here for.

Table of contents:

How to manage multiple Gmail accounts within Gmail: browser or app

Google makes it relatively easy to juggle multiple Gmail accounts without too much hassle, allowing users to sign in to multiple accounts simultaneously and switch between them without needing to log out. Here’s a step-by-step breakdown of how to do it.

1. Open Gmail

Start by opening Gmail in your web browser or mobile app, and sign in with your primary Gmail account. If you’re on your desktop, you can navigate to gmail.com. On your mobile device, open the Gmail app.

2. Add another account

You’ll see your profile photo or initial icon in the top-right corner of the screen. Click on it to open the profile switcher dropdown menu.

In this menu, you’ll see Add account (or Add another account if you’re already signed in to more than one). Click on it.

A new window will appear asking you to log in with another Gmail account. Enter the email address and password of your secondary (or tertiary or quaternary) account.

If you’re doing this from the Gmail app, you’ll have to choose the account type (Google) and then follow the instructions to add a new Gmail account.

Once signed in, this new account will appear in the same dropdown menu. Congratulations—you’re now officially a multi-account manager.

You might be thinking, “Will I have to go through this every time?” Nope! Gmail remembers all your accounts, so switching between them is seamless—unless, of course, you forget your password. But that’s a problem for another day.

3. Switch between accounts

You’ve added all your Gmail accounts, and now they’re nicely stacked under your profile. To switch between them on your computer, just click on your profile picture again, and you’ll see a list of all your logged-in accounts. 

Select the one you want to switch to, and Gmail will load that inbox without needing your login credentials again. Now, you can ignore important emails in any account.

On the Gmail app, things work a little differently. You can toggle each account on or off, allowing you to look at multiple inboxes simultaneously or just one at a time.

To see emails from all your Gmail inboxes in one view on your phone, make sure all accounts are toggled on and then tap All Inboxes.

5 other ways to manage multiple Gmail accounts

While the built-in Gmail account switcher works for most users, you might find it limiting if you have a bunch of accounts to juggle. Here are five methods to help you manage multiple Gmail accounts more efficiently.

1. Use a dedicated email client

Pros of email clients:

Cons of email clients:

If you’re tired of navigating between browsers or phone apps, it might be time to consider a dedicated email client. Platforms like Microsoft Outlook, Apple Mail, Mozilla Thunderbird, or Spark let you integrate multiple Gmail accounts, so you can experience the pleasure of reading emails from several different sources in a unified inbox.

Configuration is pretty standard across the board:

1. Download your chosen email client.

2. Open the app and find the option to add an account.

3. Add your Gmail accounts using the IMAP configuration.

If you’re in the market for an email client (and let’s face it, if you’re reading this, you probably should be), check out these roundups for expert recommendations:

Native Gmail desktop app, when, Google?

2. Maintain multiple Chrome profiles

Pros of multiple Chrome profiles:

• Keeps each account’s browsing history, extensions, saved passwords, and bookmarks separate

• No risk of sending work emails from your account that’s dedicated to questionable online purchases

Cons of multiple Chrome profiles:

If you’re the type of person who avoids mixing business with pleasure, using multiple Chrome profiles is the way to go. Think of Chrome profiles as different little browser personas, each with its own set of bookmarks, history, extensions, and, yes, Gmail accounts.

You can set up a dedicated Chrome profile for work that has all your professional emails, tools, and LinkedIn tabs open while keeping a separate profile for personal stuff. This way, you won’t accidentally send fantasy football trash talk from your work account or, worse, stumble upon a spreadsheet during your personal time. It’s the best way to keep your digital spaces clean and organized without crossing any professional boundaries.

Note: It’s easy to confuse Chrome profiles with Gmail accounts, but they’re not the same thing. Chrome profiles are like separate containers for your online activities, and you can sign in to any Gmail account within any Chrome profile. The benefit here is keeping everything—not just email—separate and organized.

Here’s how to set up multiple Chrome profiles:

1. Open Google Chrome and click on your profile icon in the top-right corner.

2. Click + Add to create a new profile.

   

3. Sign in with the Gmail account you want to use with that profile.

   

4. Give your second Chrome profile a name (e.g., “Work account”).

5. Repeat for each Gmail account you want to manage separately.

Now, whenever you want to switch between accounts, click the profile picture near the toolbar, and select the account you want to switch to. Chrome will open a new window featuring a session that’s tied to the chosen account.

3. Consolidate your Google accounts

Pros of consolidating your Google accounts:

Cons of consolidating your Google accounts:

Maybe you’re more of a “less is more” kind of person. If so, you can consolidate Gmail accounts. Unfortunately, there’s no quick way to merge all your Gmail accounts, but if you’ve got some patience and a little time on your hands, there’s a workaround.

This is ideal if you have a main email address you’d like to use for everything. You can forward emails from other Gmail accounts to this primary address and send emails from your other addresses without leaving your main account.

I’ll go over the very basic steps, but it would be behoovey if you read Zapier’s exhaustive guide on how to merge Gmail accounts before proceeding with this option.

1. To get started, go to Settings in your primary Gmail account.

2. Select Accounts and Import.

3. Under Send mail as, click Add another email address.

4. Follow the prompts to link your other Gmail accounts.

5. Repeat the process for the Check mail from other accounts section.

From there, you can organize incoming emails with labels and filters for each account to keep everything tidy. After that, move important emails, contacts, and calendar events from the Google accounts to your primary account.

Once you’ve transferred all the important data, close any accounts you no longer need. But remember, this step is irreversible, like a bad tattoo (something I’m very familiar with).

4. Use a browser extension

Pros of browser extensions:

Cons of browser extensions:

If you’re the type of person who likes to solve problems by adding more problems (I see you, and I respect your chaotic energy), then Chrome browser extensions might be your jam. They allow you to juggle multiple Gmail accounts from one interface.

Here are some popular extensions for managing multiple Gmail accounts:

• Checker Plus for Gmail: Add this extension, log in to all of your Gmail accounts, and view and reply to emails sent to any of your accounts by clicking on the extension’s icon. You can compose emails from the extension, too.

• Google Mail Checker: While this extension supports multiple accounts, its focus is primarily on notifications, displaying the number of unread emails in your inbox. Clicking the icon shows a preview of your inbox and allows you to navigate to specific messages.

• DragApp: While not strictly for managing multiple Gmail accounts, DragApp turns your Gmail inbox into a Kanban board. This can be helpful for organizing emails across different accounts if you use those accounts for different purposes (like work and personal).

5. Change your default account

Pros of changing your default account:

Cons of changing your default account:

Assert dominance over your digital existence by changing your default Gmail account. Since Google uses the first account you log in to as the default, this will ensure your go-to account is prioritized.

The process is very simple as long as you’re not a commitmentphobe:

1. Click on your profile icon in the top-right corner of the screen.

2. In the dropdown menu, click Sign out of all accounts.

3. Sign back in to the Gmail account you want to be the default. Then, sign in to your other accounts.

Now, every time you open Gmail, your preferred account will be the chosen one, the Harry Potter of your email ecosystem, if you will.

The best way to manage multiple Google accounts

This is where I say, “It depends.” What a cop-out, right? But really, it does. There’s no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to managing multiple Gmail accounts—it boils down to your specific needs and preferences. Here’s a quick recap:

• Use Gmail’s built-in account switcher if you have a couple of accounts and don’t mind switching between them manually.

• Use a dedicated email client if you want all your emails in one place.

• Create multiple Chrome profiles if you need to keep browsing data and extensions separate.

• Consolidate your accounts if you prefer to manage everything from a single inbox.

• Use a browser extension if you live in Chrome, and all you need is something to streamline your Gmail access.

• Change your default account if you find yourself constantly returning to a specific Gmail account.

Automate your Gmail accounts with Zapier

Once you’re managing all of your Gmail accounts like a pro, you should automate them all, too. Connect Gmail with Zapier to do things like saving email attachments to Google Drive or creating tasks in your project management tool when an email comes in. Learn more about how to automate Gmail, or get started with one of these pre-made workflows.

Managing multiple Gmail accounts FAQs

We’ve covered a lot of ground about managing multiple Gmail accounts, but you may still have questions, and I may have some answers.

Can I access multiple Gmail accounts at the same time?

Can you walk and chew gum at the same time? If yes, then you’re already overqualified for managing multiple Gmail accounts simultaneously. As we covered earlier, Gmail allows you to sign in to multiple accounts and switch between them without logging in and out.

How many Gmail accounts can you have?

In the immortal words of Lindsay Lohan in Mean Girls, “The limit does not exist.” There’s no strict cap on the number of Gmail accounts you can create. The real limit is your ability to remember all those passwords.

Additionally, Google may implement verification processes—like phone number verification—to prevent abuse. So, feel free to create multiple accounts as needed, but be mindful of Google’s policies and any verification requirements along the way.

Can I set a default Gmail account for easier access?

Absolutely! And if you’ve read this far, you already know how to do it. But in case you skipped ahead (not that you would do that), here’s a quick recap: 

1. Sign out of all accounts.

2. Sign in with the Gmail account you want as your default.

3. Add your other accounts.

Related reading:

This article was originally published in March 2019 by Jessica Greene. The most recent update was in October 2024.