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A free guide by Mariah Brunner ↗ INSTAGRAM ↗ TIKTOK

Connect
Gmail To Claude

Stop reading every email. Let Claude tell you what actually matters.

Claude can search your real Gmail inbox, so you stop copying and pasting emails into a chat. Ask a question and it goes and finds the answer, with links back to the exact emails it used.

That works because of connectors, which let Claude use the tools you already have, like Gmail, Google Calendar, Slack and Notion. Connect once and they stay connected.

What You Need

A paid Claude plan (Pro, Max, Ultra, Team or Enterprise). On Team and Enterprise, an owner has to switch Gmail on for your company first.

Set It Up In 3 Steps

01

Open your connectors

On claude.ai or the desktop app, go to Customize, then Connectors. Customize is being renamed Plugins, so you may see that name instead.

02

Connect Gmail

Find Gmail, click Connect, sign in with your Google account and allow access. When the button changes to Disconnect, you’re in. It takes about a minute.

03

Turn it on in a chat and ask

In a new conversation, click + at the bottom left of the message box, choose Connectors and switch on Gmail. Then ask about your email. Claude searches when your question needs it and cites the messages it used.

Know This

The Gmail connector is read-only. Claude can search and read your email, but it can’t send, delete, label or create drafts in Gmail, and it can’t see images inside emails. It writes replies in the chat, and you paste and send them.

5 Prompts To Try First

Paste any of these into a chat with Gmail switched on and fill in the brackets.

What Needs Me Today
You're my inbox chief of staff. Search my Gmail for emails from the last [24 hours] that are still waiting on me. Give me a priority list in three groups: 1. Reply today (with why) 2. Can wait until later this week 3. FYI only, no action For each email: sender, subject, a one-line summary and what they need from me. Skip newsletters, promotions and automated notifications unless something in them needs action. Link each email. If you're unsure whether something needs me, put it in group 1 and say why.
Two-Minute Triage
Search my Gmail for unread emails from the last 24 hours. Summarize them in bullet points so I can triage in two minutes. Group them by: clients or customers, team, money (invoices, payments, receipts), and everything else. One line each, with the sender and the action needed, if any. At the end, tell me the single email I should open first.
Draft My Replies
Find the emails in my Gmail from the last [3 days] that need a reply from me. For each one, write a reply draft I can copy into Gmail. Match my usual tone: [professional but direct / warm and casual]. To learn my voice, read a few of my recent sent emails first. Keep each reply under 120 words. Don't promise dates, prices or commitments I haven't already made in the thread. Mark [CHECK] wherever you need a detail from me.
Everything From One Person
Search my Gmail for every email from [person or company] in the last [90 days]. Tell me: - What they've asked me for, and whether I answered - Any dates, deadlines or money mentioned - What's still open between us Then give me a 3-line summary I can read before my next call with them. Quote the email you're relying on for each point.
Promises I Forgot
Search my Gmail for emails from the last [30 days] where I promised to do something or someone is waiting on me (phrases like "I'll send," "following up," "any update," "circling back"). List each one with who's waiting, what I owe them, when it was promised and a link. Sort oldest first. Then write a short, friendly catch-up reply for the three oldest.
Make It Automatic

On a paid plan you can schedule the first prompt to run every weekday morning. Describe the task and the time in any chat, or in Cowork click Scheduled, then New task. It runs in the cloud, so your inbox summary is ready before you open your laptop.

The Shift

You stop reading email and start delegating it. Claude reads, filters and drafts. You decide and hit send.

Privacy tip: Claude only reaches the Google account you connected, and only when a request needs it. If you don’t want your chats used to train Claude, go to Settings, then Privacy, and turn off Help improve our AI models (how). You can disconnect Gmail anytime from the same Connectors page.