Good luck keeping unwanted messages from your inbox: today, spam accounts for a whopping 45% of all emails. If you're getting a few dozen messages a day, you're likely dealing with almost as many unwanted emails!
Typical junk messages may contain everything from flashy marketing to unsavory adult-related products to phishing attempts. In other words, they aren't just unsolicited; they may also be dangerous.
That's why taking time to filter out these spam emails is crucial. However, it's also time-consuming if you're doing it the old-fashioned way. If you're still checking spam messages one at a time, upgrade your process with better filtering techniques!
Whether you want to block senders, redirect junk mail, or unsubscribe altogether, here are the best ways to get rid of spam and keep your inbox clean.
Block Spam Emails
This is likely the most obvious way to filter spam from your email inbox.
Most major email services have algorithms that detect and filter spam without any input from you. This automated filter tucks messages it believes to be junk mail into your spam folder.
However, because these tools use learning algorithms or artificial intelligence to do this, they aren't always great at catching junk mail. It can be hard for them to identify all suspicious messages, and you might sometimes even find yourself digging through your spam folder to catch legitimate emails marked as spam by mistake.
If you want to "train" your spam filter to better block messages, you'll need to start blocking suspicious messages as spam. Any time a piece of junk mail gets past the filter, mark it as spam to tell your spam filter that you don't want to see messages like this in the future.
Marking messages as spam works differently from platform to platform. Most of the time, you can right-click a message and select the option to mark it as spam. Otherwise, look for shield or exclamation point icons, which are the most common ways to designate spam.
Block Spam Email Addresses
With some platforms, you'll also have to block the sender as a separate action. Doing this ensures that you won't get any more messages from them.
Most major platforms make blocking easy. All you'll have to do is right-click the email address you want to block and select "Block sender." If you ever block a sender by mistake, you can undo the action by checking your list of blocked addresses.
Set Up a Custom Filter
What happens if you don't want to block the sender? Maybe you're not sure their messages are spam, for example, or you want to save their marketing materials for later.
If you want to hide a sender's messages while keeping them in your inbox, you can set up a custom filter. Also called "rules," email filters automate the sorting process for you, meaning that future emails that meet your criteria will go wherever you direct them the instant they hit your inbox.
To set up a custom filter, you'll need to check the settings and instructions for your specific email provider.
With most platforms, you can filter messages according to a specific email subject line, sender, or keyword. From there, you can send your chosen messages to a designated folder to hide them from your sight. You can also choose to archive these messages, which keeps them out of view while allowing them to come up in future searches.
Try a Third-Party Filter
Even the best email platforms can only do so much against spam messages. Junk mail senders are always changing their strategies, and they'll try any tactic to get through your automated filter.
That's where third-party tools come in. Unlike artificial intelligence and algorithms, services like Mailstrom leave the choices up to you. When you recognize messages that have crept past your automated filters, especially when you're facing hundreds or even thousands of them at a time, Mailstrom offers powerful tools to help you get rid of them.
You can view messages by sender, subject, size, or time, and Mailstrom will even identify and flag bundles of related emails that you might want to delete. This makes it easy to get a clean inbox fast by hacking through huge batches of emails at once. You can move these messages to an archive or spam folder, or you can delete them altogether.
Even better, Mailstrom offers a one-click block function. This makes it easier than ever to block unwanted senders or subjects from entering your inbox in the future.
In addition, users who aren't used to the complexity of email filters might have an easier time with Mailstrom's Move feature. This feature allows you to create rules that move future messages anywhere you want based on a given sender or subject. Without the extra steps of custom platform-specific filters, you can redirect messages with a simple few clicks.
Unsubscribe From Mailing Lists
If your goal is to deal with fewer filters, you'll need to stop getting so many spam emails! Reducing the amount of junk mail you receive means you'll spend less time and effort sorting them from your email inbox.
To do this, unsubscribe from mailing lists you don't want to be a part of. If you've signed up for newsletters you no longer need or you're getting unsolicited spam mail from an email list you don't recall joining, make sure the sender knows their messages aren't wanted.
For a legitimate newsletter, you should always go to the company's website and unsubscribe via your account. This is safer than clicking the "unsubscribe" button at the bottom of the email, as some phishing schemes use this seemingly trustworthy link as a way to send you to a malicious site.
If you don't recognize the sender, it's best to block them instead. Many scammers make it difficult or even impossible to get off their mailing list.
Never click their "unsubscribe" links, and try not to open their emails, click any buttons or links, or respond in any way. Interacting with these messages may make the sender consider you an active prospect, which may result in them sending you even more emails or sharing your address.
Third-party tools like Mailstrom also make it easy to unsubscribe fast. The "unsubscribe" button in Mailstrom sends an unsubscribe request to the list owner.
Though unsubscribing from a mailing list can be hit or miss with certain scammers, you'll be glad to know it might get easier soon. Gmail will be enforcing harsher rules against spamin 2024, with senders required to let users unsubscribe without a hassle. Scammers may start following this new policy across the board to make their bulk sending easier, so the fallout may even reach users on other platforms.
Use Multiple Email Accounts
Using multiple email accounts has many benefits. One of them is that it allows you to filter emails according to different purposes. This can make it easy to see only the emails related to certain projects or needs.
For example, you can set up separate email accounts for your work and personal use. If you have an online side project or hobby that requires you to send email, you can set up a separate account for that as well. You can also set up email accounts for your login information or an account for collecting junk mail.
A designated "junk mail" account makes it easy to filter unwanted emails out of your other accounts. You might want to use this account for things like shopping, discount signups, and even charitable donations, as charities often share donor information with other charities for future solicitation.
If you do still want to use spam filters and unsubscribe features across multiple accounts, Mailstrom can help with that. You can add and remove email accounts in the "Email Addresses" section of your settings.
Don't forget that you can also give out "burner" email accounts as well. Browser-based throwaway email services allow you to create a temporary alias you can use as long as the tab is open. Using this email to sign up for a one-time shopping order or discount can save you from giving your real account information to scammers.
Some third-party apps also let you generate email aliases you can keep for longer. This allows you to create a short-term account with a website for recurring services or while you wait for an item's delivery, for example.
Filter Out Spam Emails With Mailstrom
No one wants to have to sift through dozens of unwanted spam emails every day just to get to the good stuff. With the tricks above, you can make it easier to get rid of spam on the go, whether you're using automated tools, third-party apps, or manual filtering.
If you're ready to upgrade your filtering efforts, try a tool like Mailstrom!
Our powerful services allow users to filter out, block, and unsubscribe from unwanted emails with a few simple clicks. Even better, the intuitive tools don't require you to spend hours checking individual emails. To learn how Mailstrom can help you clear out your inbox fast, subscribe today or start a free trial.
