The search box on the web understands operators. Type them next to ordinary words, then press Enter. Each recognised operator shows as a small chip under the box. Select the cross on a chip to remove it from the search.
from:anna has:attachment older_than:1y
invoice -draft (from:anna OR from:ben)
is:unread size:>5MB in:anywhereOperators#
| Operator | Matches |
|---|---|
from: to: cc: bcc: subject: | The address or words in that field. |
label: | Conversations with a label. |
in: | A folder by name. in:anywhere (also all or everywhere) searches every folder. folder: and mailbox: work too. |
has:attachment | Messages with an attachment. |
has:link | Messages that contain a link. |
filename: | Words in an attachment file name. |
before: after: | A date, such as 2026-11-01, yesterday, 1 Nov 2026 or "3 days ago". |
older_than: newer_than: | An age such as 12h, 7d, 2w, 3m or 1y. |
is: | unread, read, starred or snoozed. |
size: | A size such as size:>5MB or size:<500KB. Units are B, KB, MB and GB. |
Combine terms#
- Words and operators are joined with AND. Typing
ANDis optional. - Use
OR(or|) for either side. - Put
-in front of a term to exclude it, for example-from:anna. - Put a phrase in quotes to match it exactly.
- Parentheses work one level deep.
What gets ignored#
An operator SipherMail does not know stays in the search as plain text. A value it cannot read, such as size:big, is dropped. In both cases a notice under the box says Ignored and explains why. An in: folder that does not exist is also ignored.
label:, filename: and is:snoozed cannot be used inside OR or parentheses. They are ignored there. A search can be up to 2,000 characters long.
Related#
- Search covers the search box, recent searches and the Advanced search window.
- Saved searches keep a search you use often.