As online shopping surges during the festive and holiday sales, Google is upgrading Gmail with a brand-new Purchases tab on both mobile and web. This update is designed to simplify the way users track online orders, consolidating purchase-related emails into one dedicated space. Alongside this, Gmail is enhancing its Promotions tab with smarter sorting options and timely deal highlights, making inbox management easier and more useful.
The Purchases tab will automatically organise all order-related emails—such as order confirmations, receipts, and shipping updates—into a streamlined view. This eliminates the need to manually search through cluttered inboxes to track purchases.
The feature builds on Gmail’s existing package-tracking tools, which already display delivery updates and highlight shipments arriving within 24 hours. At the top of the Purchases tab, users will see ‘Arriving Soon’ cards, offering a quick snapshot of upcoming package deliveries for convenience.
Google confirmed that the new Purchases option will be placed under “All labels” in Gmail’s navigation menu. This ensures easy access alongside existing inbox categories like Primary, Social, and Promotions.
For every purchase-related email, Gmail will continue to show summary cards with essential details—such as order status and estimated delivery date—so users don’t need to open each message individually. This creates a centralised hub for real-time order tracking directly from the inbox.
The Purchases tab is rolling out globally to all personal Google accounts, and it will be accessible on Android, iOS, and the web. Google is timing this update to align with the holiday shopping season, ensuring users can track their festive and year-end sale orders more efficiently.
This move reflects Google’s broader strategy of making Gmail not just an email service but also a personal productivity assistant, helping users save time and stay organised.
Alongside Purchases, Gmail’s Promotions tab is also getting smarter. Google is introducing a new “Most relevant” sorting option, which prioritises promotional emails from the brands and senders users interact with the most.
While users can still switch to the “Most recent” view, the default will ensure that important deals and updates don’t get buried under less relevant messages.
Additionally, Gmail will start using nudges to highlight upcoming discounts, sales, and limited-time offers, ensuring users don’t miss out on festive deals.
These updates come shortly after reports of a massive Gmail data breach circulated online, claiming that hackers had accessed data from up to 2.5 billion users. Some outlets even reported that Google had issued password reset alerts.
However, Google dismissed these claims, clarifying that no such breach occurred, no widespread intrusion was detected, and no password reset alerts were sent to users. The company reaffirmed its security-first approach, reassuring users that Gmail remains a safe platform for personal and shopping-related communications.
With the surge in e-commerce orders during festive sales, tracking multiple packages across different retailers can become overwhelming. By centralising purchase-related emails, Gmail is making life easier for users who frequently shop online.
The Purchases tab not only improves inbox organisation but also reduces the chance of missing important delivery updates. At the same time, the smarter Promotions tab helps users focus on deals they actually care about, saving time and boosting shopping efficiency.
Conclusion
The launch of Gmail’s Purchases tab and the upgrade to its Promotions section underline Google’s efforts to make Gmail a more intuitive and useful platform for modern users. As the festive season approaches, these features will give online shoppers a smarter, more organised, and deal-friendly inbox experience.
For Google, this is another step toward integrating AI-driven features that go beyond email, turning Gmail into a central hub for productivity, shopping, and personal organisation.