Video: How to Set Up Gmail E-Mail Forwarding

Video:Gmail: How to Set Up Mail Forwarding

Email forwarding can be a really useful tool and is very easy to set up in Gmail. This About.com video will provide tips on activating mail forwarding in Gmail.See Transcript

First, click the gear symbol in the top right corner of your inbox. In the drop-down menu that appears, click "Settings."

Near the top of the "Settings" page, click the tab that reads "Forwarding and POP/IMAP." Next, click "Add a forwarding address." In the box that appears, type in the email address to which you'd like your Gmail incoming messages forwarded; when finished, click "Next." Confirm that your address is correct, then click "Proceed."

The next box will notify you that a confirmation code has been sent to the email you've just added. Click "OK."

Confirm Email Forwarding

Login to the email address you provided and open the email from "Gmail Team." The subject line will read "Gmail Forwarding Confirmation." Next, click the link provided in the email to confirm your request.

If for some reason you cannot open the link, highlight and copy the 8-part confirmation code. You can use this code to confirm your request by following the instructions provided in the email.  

Activate Forwarding in Gmail

When mail forwarding has been confirmed, log back into your original address and click on the gear symbol. In the drop down menu that appears, click "Settings." Next, click the "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" tab. Then click the circle next to the sentence that reads "Forward a copy of incoming mail to my email address." This will enable email forwarding. Finally click "Save Changes" at the bottom.

Choose how Gmail should handle forwarded messages. Select

• • keep Gmail's copy in the Inbox to have Gmail leave the message in your Gmail Inbox as new and unread.
  • archive Gmail's copy (probably the most useful setting) to make Gmail mark forwarded messages as read and remove them from the Inbox, but keep them in the archive for later search and retrieval.
  • trash Gmail's copy to move message to the Trash after they have been forwarded. Trashed messages will be deleted automatically after 30 days.
• Click Save Changes.

Using Gmail filters, you can forward only specific messages, or all incoming mail to multiple accounts.