The Gmail app comes pre-installed on the best Android phones you can buy. Gmail is also used by over 1.8 billion people — roughly 20% of the world’s population. Given the number of people who use the service, its pre-installation state on Android, all the fancy AI features in Gmail, and the fact that Google owns both it and Android, one would assume that Gmail on Android would be the best email experience you can get, right? However, I would argue it’s just OK. Well, at least that’s what I thought for a long time, anyway.
In the past, I had found the Gmail app’s features anemic when compared to the other best email apps for Android. I used Blue Mail for a really long time and recently switched to Outlook, which is actually pretty terrific. In September, though, I got a shiny new Google Pixel 9 Pro, which meant I needed to set up my phone all over again. While I was doing that, I said to myself, “Hey, I haven’t used the Gmail app in a while. I wonder if it’s gotten better than I remember it?”