Much-needed Gmail redesign greatly simplifies settings on iOS

Abner Li | Oct 17 2022 - 6:13 pm PT

Even before the addition of Chat and Meet, Gmail preferences have been unwieldy on mobile. Google has now rolled out a redesign of Gmail settings on iOS that will hopefully make its way to Android.

Previously, opening Settings — which is accessed at the very bottom of the navigation drawer instead of the profile avatar — brings you to a menu that starts with “General settings” and then lists all your signed-in accounts.

App-level settings (like theme and mail swipe actions) are considered “General,” while everything else requires opening account settings. That’s further split into sections like Account, Inbox, Notifications, General (again), Meet, Nudges, Inbox Tips, and Data usage for a rather long list.

This release brings a redesigned settings experience, making it easier to manage your preferences.
App Store changelog

The Gmail settings redesign on iPhone and iPad starts by getting rid of the General and accounts distinction. The preference list starts by immediately breaking out options for Chat and Meet with the ability to quickly disable those tabs. Meanwhile, colorful icons are used throughout to make everything stand out more.

You then get high-level controls for “Notifications,” while “Inbox” and “Compose and Reply” are very straightforward. Lastly, you have a reasonable “General” section.

1-2: Gmail | 3: Chrome

This is a great settings redesign for Gmail that will hopefully come to Android even if it’s very much native to iOS. It’s more user-friendly, and similar to Chrome for iOS preferences. Google would do well to update all of its major apps in a similar manner.

The setting revamp is widely rolled out on iOS with recent versions of Gmail, but release notes for version 6.0.221002 make it official today.