Gmail’s Undo Send gives you a short cancellation window immediately after sending. It is not a general recall service for messages already delivered to other people’s mailboxes. Set the available window in advance and use Undo as soon as you notice a mistake.
Set the cancellation period on a computer
- Open Gmail in the account whose setting you want to change.
- Select Settings → See all settings.
- Find Undo Send and its send cancellation period.
- Choose one of the offered periods: 5, 10, 20, or 30 seconds.
- Select Save changes.
Check the intended account rather than assuming a setting in one mailbox changes every other mailbox in the browser. The setting does not create a minutes-long cancellation option for messages already sent before the change.
Use Undo immediately
After you send, Gmail displays a sent notification with an Undo option during the available period. Select Undo promptly if you need to cancel. Do not spend that short window editing an unrelated setting or opening a new help page first.
Review the message that reopens or remains available for editing. Correct the recipients, attachment, subject, or text, then decide whether to send it again. Cancelling and later resending are separate actions.
Know what the window cannot do
After the cancellation option expires, changing the setting or deleting the message from Sent does not retract an ordinary email. A recipient may have a copy, forwarded it, or read its contents already.
Undo Send also differs from scheduling a future message and cancelling that schedule before it sends. Use the control appropriate to the message’s actual state rather than assuming every item in a mailbox is still pending.
Reduce the need for cancellation
Before Send, expand recipients and check the exact addresses and attachment names. If testing the cancellation window, use a non-sensitive message to an address you control. An important or confidential message should not be used as an experiment. If a message has already gone to the wrong person, follow the relevant correction or incident process instead of relying on a recall that Gmail does not promise.
Browse Gmail & Google Account help
References
Reviewed against the linked official and developer guidance on October 27, 2026. Available options and screen labels can vary by account, device, region, and organization policy.