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Search your mailbox

Updated

Find messages with the search box, operators, and filter chips.

Your messages are end-to-end encrypted, so Aster Mail searches them on your device instead of on the server.

  1. Select the search box at the top of your mailbox, or press /.
  2. Type a name, an address, or words from the subject. Matching messages appear as you type.
  3. To see every match, press Enter or select View all results for your search.

Search message content

Search looks at the sender, the recipients, and the subject. Search message content is on by default, so search also looks at the text inside your messages. You can turn it on or off in the panel that opens under the search box.

To search message content, Aster Mail downloads and indexes your messages on this device. While it works, the panel shows Indexing messages… with the progress and an estimated time remaining. Select Pause or Resume to control the download.

  • The index can take up a lot of storage on your device.
  • The index stays on your device, and Aster Mail deletes it when you sign out.
  • Each device builds its own index, so a new device needs time to index your mail before content search finds everything.

To stop indexing and remove the index, turn off Search message content. If a search takes too long on the results page, you can also select Turn off indexing.

Search operators

To narrow a search, type these operators in the search box. You can combine several in one search.

OperatorFinds
from:annaMail from a sender
to:team@example.comMail sent to an address
contact:annaMail from or to a person
subject:invoiceWords in the subject
has:attachmentMessages with a file attached
has:pdfMessages with a PDF attached
filename:reportMessages with attachments that mention the text, such as a file name
is:unreadUnread messages. Also is:read, is:starred, and is:unstarred
in:archiveMessages in a folder, such as inbox, sent, drafts, starred, spam, or trash
label:receiptsMessages with a label or folder of that name. Also folder:
before:2026-01-01Mail older than a date
after:2026-01-01Mail newer than a date
date:todayMail from a period. Also yesterday, this_week, last_week, this_month, and last_month
larger:5mbMessages bigger than a size. Also smaller:
size:1mb-10mbMessages within a size range
  • Write dates as year, month, and day, for example 2026-01-01.
  • For sizes, use kb, mb, or gb. A number without a unit counts as bytes.
  • has: also accepts image, document, spreadsheet, video, audio, and archive.
  • filename: also works as attachment:, and both match only messages that have an attachment.
  • in: and label: also accept the name of a folder or label you created.
  • in:all searches every folder except Spam and Trash. in:anywhere includes them.
  • If you use the same from:, to:, or contact: operator more than once, Aster Mail finds messages that match any of them.

Phrases and exclusions

To search for a phrase in an operator, put it in quotation marks, for example subject:"quarterly report".

To leave out messages that match an operator, put a hyphen in front of it. For example, -from:alerts@example.com hides mail from that sender. To leave out messages with a word in the subject, type NOT before the word, for example NOT newsletter.

Filter with chips

When you open the search box, the panel shows the chips Has attachments, 1 Week, and From:. Select one to add its operator to your search.

On the results page, a row of chips narrows the results without typing operators:

  • From and To, where you enter a name or an email address.
  • A date chip, Any time by default, with Older than a week, Older than a month, Older than 6 months, Older than a year, and Custom range.
  • Has attachment. When it’s on, the chips Image, Document, PDF, and Video appear so you can pick a file type.
  • Is unread.

To see more options, select Advanced search on the results page, or Advanced in the search panel.

Build a search in the filter panel

To search without typing operators, select the filter button next to the search box. The panel opens with these fields:

  • Contacts: From and To.
  • Message: Subject, Has the words, Doesn’t have, and Size, where you pick greater than or less than and a unit of MB, KB, or B.
  • Date: Date within, from Any time to 1 year, plus From date and To date.
  • Filters: Search, which sets the mailbox to look in, including All Mail and Mail, Spam & Trash, plus Has attachments and Search message content.

Select Search to run it. Aster Mail turns your entries into operators in the search box, so you can edit the query afterward.

To turn the same conditions into a rule that runs on new mail, select Create filter. See Filter mail with rules.

To keep a search you run often, run it and then select Save this search next to the search box, and enter a name. Saved searches appear under Saved Searches when you open the search box.

If a message doesn’t turn up

  • Message content search is off. To search the text inside your messages, turn on Search message content.
  • The index is still building. After you turn on content search or import mail, check the progress in the search panel.
  • You’re on a new device. Each device builds its own index.
  • Part of the index couldn’t be read. If Aster Mail says some messages might be missing from the results, turn Search message content off and then on again to rebuild the index.
  • The message is in Spam or Trash. When matches are hidden there, Aster Mail shows “Some messages in Spam and Trash match your search.” Add in:anywhere to include them.

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You can also email hello@astermail.org.