Gmail’s automatic filters were broken, but Google says it’s been fixed [U]

Andrew Romero | Jan 25 2026 - 7:30 am PT

Gmail’s filter system has been a strong way to quiet the noise of constant promotional emails and updates, but it might be broken. We are seeing several reports of Google’s email service not filtering emails as inboxes blow up.

Update 1/25: Google says that the issue preventing emails from being sorted into the Promotions and Updates tab has been fixed. The company called the issue a “misclassification of emails in [the user’s] inbox,” as well as “delays in receiving email.” With the issue resolved, users should see Gmail’s filters functioning properly.

Early Saturday morning, users began experiencing an influx of abnormal notifications. Gmail’s automatic Promotions and Updates filters seem to have broken down for the time being. This report comes from several on the 9to5Google team, as well as several reports online from Reddit and Google’s official forums.

Gmail has had an automatic filter system for quite a long time, now, and it generally works reliably well. That makes the sudden fault all the more noticeable. Instead of receiving a few personal emails in intermittent intervals, notifications have been pouring in nonstop for some.

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These emails are from companies and businesses whose emails would normally be filtered into either the Promotions or Updates tabs. Google’s redesign in 2013 introduced the automatic filters, and users have become more than used to the reduced amount of notifications that have followed since.

Looking into those respective tabs, no new emails since the problem first began occurring seem to have been filtered in. In essence, the automatic system that sorts or filters emails into each of Gmail’s inbox categories seems to have broken for the time being.

Google has yet to address the issue, though the issue seems to be widespread among users.

This article was originally published on January 24, 2026.