I’d appreciate any insights from the hive mind. For 20 or 30 years, I’ve used a single mail client for both personal and professional use. After leaving Windows and Outlook, I migrated over to Apple Mail. It is served perfectly well.
However, after so many years, I have tens of thousands of emails residing somewhere within the Mail app. I have no idea how many of those are actually downloaded and the extent to which email is taking up storage. When I check iCloud storage, it shows I’m using 3.1GB for Mail. But, given decades’ worth of attachments, I doubt that includes ALL of my professional AND personal email.
I am considering using Gmail on the web and the mobile apps for work (we use Google Workspaces) and only using Apple Mail for personal email. I don’t need decades worth of old emails cluttering my system.
Do you do something similar? If so, does it work well for you? Have you tried and then abandoned that approach, and if so, why?
What problem are you fixing. Will you new work process fix that problem?
Practically speaking, there should be no problem using two segregated email systems and their relevant client software. Practically, seems to be work email should be on the work’s system and presumably there are resources available at work to help maintain/secure that system for you. And, may not apply to your work situation, but many “work” organisations require their staff to use the “work” email system. And if your “work” does not have that requirement, perhaps they could/should (if there is are resources and will to manage it).
There is no requirement to use Google email by way of the web app or mobile apps. I merely added the work Gmail account to Apple Mail. I suspect there are several within the organization who do the same.
Given the sheer volume of email, I began to think that perhaps it is best for several reasons to keep work and emails separated by using separate clients. I’m interested in the experience and advice of others who are or have taken this approach.
I should have said, that’s how I worked for many years (decades), no problem. I had my own Apple Mail accounts, along with Fastmail, Outlook (server and client) and Google (server) used with employers then clients. Again, no problem. It works.
You didn’t say what email servers your Apple mail client is connected to–other than I assume Google. Apple?
That being said 3.9 gb is a lot but probably not over-whelming to Apple Mail as long as you have sufficient space on the email server. Until you clean it out and archive and/or delete, that space is consumed somewhere.
I always ensure that my work and personal accounts are separate. Failure to do so can lead to embarrassment at best and legal requests for information from your devices at worst.
I use Apple Mail personally and Outlook for work email.
I recommend you just start using Google’s client and web software on Mac and iOS devices without making any changes to Apple Mail client … and see if it works for you. If in time it works and you aren’t using Apple Mail clients for work stuff, you can delete those accounts from Apple Mail clients.
@wweber Makes a good point about calendars and contacts … you’ll have work calendars/contacts and personal calendars/contacts. Apple’s Contact and Calendar apps, as you have probably discovered, can connect to Apple’s and Google’s servers.
As far as calendars are concerned, I believe I can still keep my Google work calendar subscribed in Apple Calendar even if I delete the work email account from Apple Mail, correct? I do need an integrated calendar to keep my life straight.
I do this but I like both clients (Hey, Mail app) and my personal email has me in such a different reading and writing mode. I’ve tried doing work in the Gmail app and it’s not fun for me. I wouldn’t worry about 3GB storage, personally.
Clearer. So, as I said up post, before making any changes to Apple Mail, see if you can use the Google clients software on macOS and iOS exclusively for work for a while and see if it suits you. If it does, you can remove that account from Apple Mail clients on macOS and iOS. It’s really up to you and there is no issue using multiple email clients like this.
I will do that. I assume that if I remove the google work email account from Apple Mail that all of the work emails will be deleted from Apple Mail, correct? In others, once deleted, there should be no archive of work emails in Apple Mail or iCloud, correct?
Sorry for all the question, but I appreciate your help!
Yea, although I never audited a machine to see what was left after removing an email account.
But don’t be in a rush to do that. I don’t see why you need to do that, but up to you. Work with both email clients for a while and make sure you are happy and it fixes the problem you want to fix.
I used to use separate email clients. However, with focus modes I switched to using one client for all accounts. I just silence different accounts depending on which focus mode is enabled. What I like about this is that I am not distracted by the other contexts when I am not in those contexts, yet I get to interact with my email the same everywhere. And in the event that I need to access email from another context, I can still open that account from within Mail.
Disclaimer: I am self-employed, so the line between what is work and what is personal might not be as well-defined as it is for you.
That said, I have tried the two-client approach and it failed miserably. It turns out that most of the people who email me have multiple addresses for me in their email client, and they are not selective when firing off a quick email. Personal notes come to my business email, and vice versa.
I’m also not always as selective as I might strive to be, and sometimes buy or otherwise sign up for a professional service with my personal email.
Since personal and business email ended up being everywhere, it made no sense to fiddle with two clients. Now I use my Gmail client for all of my email addresses, which includes one personal and two business-related.
I’ve used the same email client (mutt) on separate computers to isolate work from personal email since the 90’s. Then again I also batch process my work email to inbox zero once a day in the early afternoon and for years my co-workers have told me that I respond faster than anyone else.
