Read Email from Gmail with Python

5/16/2020 How to Read Email From Gmail Using Python - Code Handbook
CODE HANDBOOK 
PYTHON
How to Read Email From Gmail Using Python
In this tutorial, you’ll see how to read email from Gmail using Python. In order to accomplish the mail reading task we’ll make use of
the imaplib Python module. imaplib is a built in Python module, hence you don’t need to install anything. You simply need to import
the module.
You can also use Gmail API to read Email From Gmail Using Python.
How to Login to Gmail Using Python

You need three things to login to Gmail using Python. You’ll need a mail server, a username and password. In this case, since we are
trying to login to Gmail, our mail server would be either imap.gmail.com or smtp.gmail.com. If you are trying to read the incoming
mail your incoming mail server would be imap.gmail.com and if you are trying to send mail then your outgoing mail server would be
smtp.gmail.com. Hence, our mail server is imap.google.com. Username and password are your gmail username and password. Let’s
start by writing some code:
ORG_EMAIL = "@gmail.com"
FROM_EMAIL = "yourEmailAddress" + ORG_EMAIL
FROM_PWD = "yourPassword"
SMTP_SERVER = "imap.gmail.com"
SMTP_PORT = 993
https://codehandbook.org/how-to-read-email-from-gmail-using-python/ 1/10
CODE
defHANDBOOK
readmail(): 
# mail reading logic will come here !!
In the above code, we have de ned our required variables for reading email from Gmail. We have de ned the username and password
using which we’ll be reading the email and the smpt server address and port number. Let’s use the imap module to login to Gmail
using the above credentials.
mail = imaplib.IMAP4_SSL(SMTP_SERVER)
mail.login(FROM_EMAIL,FROM_PWD)
We just used the imap module to connect to the SMTP server over SSL. Using the email address and password de ned above we
logged into the email account. I would recommend putting the the whole code inside a try catch block, so that it makes things easy to
debug in case something breaks.
Also read : Creating a Web App Using Angular 4
Once we have logged into the email account, we can select the inbox label to read the email.
mail.select('inbox')
Let’s move forward and search the mails in the inbox. It would return a list of ids for each email in the account.
type, data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')

mail_ids = data[0]
id_list = mail_ids.split()
Using the rst email id and last email id, we’ll iterate through the email list and fetch each email’s subject and header.
first_email_id = int(id_list[0])
latest_email_id = int(id_list[-1])
Read Email From Gmail Using Python

Let’s iterate through the email and fetch the email with a particular Id. We’ll fetch the email using RFC822 protocol.
CODE HANDBOOK
typ, data = mail.fetch(i, '(RFC822)' ) # i is the email id 
Here is the full code for the Python utility to read emails from Gmail:
import smtplib
import time
import imaplib
import email
# -------------------------------------------------
#
# Utility to read email from Gmail Using Python
#
# ------------------------------------------------
def read_email_from_gmail():
try:

mail_ids = data[0]
for i in range(latest_email_id,first_email_id, -1):

typ, data = mail.fetch(i, '(RFC822)' )
for response_part in data:

if isinstance(response_part, tuple):
msg = email.message_from_string(response_part[1])
email_subject = msg['subject']
email_from = msg['from']
print 'From : ' + email_from + '\n'
print 'Subject : ' + email_subject + '\n'
except Exception, e:
print str(e)
Wrapping it Up
In this tutorial, we saw how to read email from Gmail using Python. We used the python module imap to implement the email reading
task. Have you ever tried to implement mail reading imap module ? Have you ever encountered any issues trying to read email? Do let
us know your thoughts in the comments below.
CODE HANDBOOK jay 

I’m a software developer. I blog about web development related tutorials and articles in my free
time.
See author's posts
 
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JAY
# EMAIL, # GMAIL, # PYTHON
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ALSO ON CODE HANDBOOK
a year ago • 13 comments 2 years ago • 2 comments 2 years ag

How To Read Understanding How T
Email From JavaScript JavaS
GMAIL API … Promise Prom
41 Comments Code Handbook 🔒  Ava
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Join the discussion…
Stephan Code • a year ago • edited

This what I get:
[Errno 8] nodename nor servname provided, or not known

None
Process finished with exit code 0
***************
- I have enable "less secure apps" & IMAP in gmail,
- I have modified the code for Python 3, as it says in the

comments.
- I have respected the indentation, eventho it doesn't show here:

CODE HANDBOOK 
import smtplib #Also this is GREY

import time # This is also GREY
import imaplib
import email
try:
mail = imaplib.IMAP4_SSL('imap.google.com')
mail.login('myemail', 'mypassword!')

mail_ids = data[0]
for i in reversed(id_list):
typ, data = mail.fetch(str.encode(str(i)), '(RFC822)')

msg = email.message_from_string(response_part[1].decode('utf-
8'))
email_subject = msg['subject']
email_from = msg['from']
print('From : ' + email_from + '\n')
print('Subject : ' + email_subject + '\n')
except Exception as e:
print(str(e))
print(read_email_from_gmail())
6△ ▽ 1 • Reply • Share ›
remi Ehounou > Stephan Code • 5 months ago

You probably solved this already but i am just posting
the solution i used just in case! I just had to go in my
google account and make sure "less secure apps" as well
as imap are enabled in gmail and I verified that I was the
one trying to connect after i try to the first time
△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›
Keegan K • 3 years ago

How can you make it only show the latest email?
2△ ▽ • Reply • Share ›
Etheo > Keegan K • 2 years ago • edited

instead of iterating from last to first ID, just do a single
mail.fetch(latest_email_id, '(RFC822)' )
if that doesn't work (like I tried in Python 3.6.3) you
might need to encode the id to byte (as the fetch is
looking for byte type):
mail.fetch(str.encode(str(latest_email_id)), '(RFC822)' )
or
mail fetch(bytes(str(latest email id) 'utf-8' )
mail.fetch(bytes(str(latest_email_id), utf-8 ),
'(RFC822)' )
CODE HANDBOOK 
That, or simply don't convert the latest_email_id to int,
which is much cleaner.
Matt Pryse • 10 months ago

The range loop was not working when I had only one message
(start=1, stop=1, step=-1). I reversed the ids and iterate through
them with a for loop instead:
mail_ids = data[0].split()
for i in mail_ids[::-1]:
Ryan McGrath • 2 years ago • edited

This line breaks the type() function. This should be revised to

something like
response, data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')
Also setting a SMTP_PORT variable that is never used.

Mehdi Zarrouk Che • 2 years ago

no data received and no connection done
Victor • 4 months ago

Hello ,
I'm french and i've got a problem with this program.
When I save a subject with emphasis, he's sending it back to me
without emphasis.
I'm coding with utf8 so I think it's the RFC822 protocol who
don't accept the emphasis.
If anyone would like to help me thank you so much.
I'm sorry for my english
Suvarna Sivadas • 9 months ago

i get this error
Traceback (most recent call last):

File "t.py", line 11, in <module>
mail = imaplib.IMAP4_SSL('imap.google.com',993)
File "/usr/lib/python3.6/imaplib.py", line 1283, in __init__
IMAP4.__init__(self, host, port)
self.open(host, port)
File "/usr/lib/python3.6/imaplib.py", line 1296, in open
IMAP4.open(self, host, port)
self.sock = self._create_socket()
File "/usr/lib/python3.6/imaplib.py", line 1286, in
_create_socket
sock = IMAP4._create_socket(self)
File "/usr/lib/python3.6/imaplib.py", line 284, in
_create_socket
return socket.create_connection((self.host, self.port))
File "/usr/lib/python3.6/socket.py", line 704, in
create_connection
for res in getaddrinfo(host, port, 0, SOCK_STREAM):
File "/usr/lib/python3.6/socket.py", line 745, in getaddrinfo
for res in _socket.getaddrinfo(host, port, family, type, proto,
flags):
socket.gaierror: [Errno -2] Name or service not known
megha shree • a year ago
Below is my code in python 2.7 and it's running without giving

CODE HANDBOOK
me any error but not getting any data. 
import email
import imaplib2
EMAIL_USER = 'mailid@gmail.com'
EMAIL_PASSWORD = 'password'
EMAIL_SERVER = 'ns21.interactivedns.com'
def read_mail_from_server():
try:
mail = imaplib2.IMAP4_SSL(EMAIL_SERVER, 993)
mail.login(EMAIL_USER, EMAIL_PASSWORD)
# code, mailboxen = mail.list()
# print(mailboxen)
mail.select('INBOX')
typ, raw_data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')

see more
Sayyed • a year ago

I am not getting the error ,program run successfully but not
getting the Data
Tom • a year ago • edited

Hey all - I seem to have successfully accessed the gmail servers
(no more password errors) but now my code throws the
exception every time, even though I'm certainly searching for
existing email subject lines. Here's my code right now. Any
advice would be great!
ORG_EMAIL = "@gmail.com"
FROM_EMAIL = "yourEmailAddress" + ORG_EMAIL
FROM_PWD = "yourPassword"
SMTP_SERVER = "imap.gmail.com"
import smtplib
import time
import imaplib
import email
try:
mail = imaplib IMAP4 SSL(SMTP SERVER)
see more
Abhijit Phadke • a year ago

I am getting authentication error
NEHA VARSHNEY > Abhijit Phadke • a year ago

Hey, I am getting the same error. Please share the
insights if you were able to solve it.
Thank You
Roddd2000 > NEHA VARSHNEY • a year ago

You have to enable "less secure app" to bypass
this. https://myaccount.google.co...
Sean Brown • 2 years ago

If you use msg['subject'] to get the subject line what would you
do to get the body of the email?
Dominus Labs > Sean Brown • a year ago

CODE HANDBOOK 
Think it is ''c = msg.get_payload()'' but I am not sure.
Haven't tested this yet
Bharath > Dominus Labs • a year ago

can u please tell in detail .
If Im trying to print c ..its telling that a message
instance is being created
Neeraj Joon • 2 years ago

how to make it read one newest email from a single email adrr +
i wanted to print the body msg of that latest email
newswat • 2 years ago • edited

am getting this error:
Traceback (most recent call last):

File "em.py", line 2, in <module>
import smtplib
File "/usr/lib/python2.7/smtplib.py", line 46, in <module>
import email.utils
File "/home/dira/dira/email.py", line 5, in <module>
mail= imaplib.IMAP4_SSL('imap.gamil.com',993)
IMAP4.__init__(self, host, port)
self.open(host, port)
self.sock = socket.create_connection((host, port))
File "/usr/lib/python2.7/socket.py", line 557, in
create_connection
for res in getaddrinfo(host, port, 0, SOCK_STREAM):
socket.gaierror: [Errno -2] Name or service not known
Thai Laoquoc > newswat • 2 years ago

'imap.gmail.com' not that line you write down in your
code
appukuttan mamachan • 2 years ago

Thanks for the tutorial. It was helpful. But on python3, it shows
up errors. Below is an example working code with tweaks. Note
that it will only print the subject.
# try:

mail_ids = data[0]
for i in range(latest_email_id,first_email_id, -1):

typ, data = mail.fetch(str(i), '(RFC822)' )
see more
test app • 2 years ago

no output. just blank
py
CODE HANDBOOK
artemis > test app • 2 years ago 
It's just a function, it's not called. Try adding the line 'def
read_email_from_gmail()' to the end.
Abhinav Anand • 3 years ago

Does it work with python3
Etheo > Abhinav Anand • 2 years ago • edited

Not directly. Some modification is required. Here's how
I got it working:
try:

mail_ids = data[0]
for i in reversed(id_list):
typ, data = mail.fetch(i, '(RFC822)' )

see more
disqus_s1OiharEwN > Etheo • 2 years ago

thanks !! makes sense
Evan Mead > Etheo • 2 years ago

Ive typed the corrected code but i get a blank
shell, do i need to send a brand new email for this
to work?
Abhinav Anand > Etheo • 2 years ago

Thanx
Sanjay Sharma > Abhinav Anand

• 2 years ago
The code extracts emails but it doesn't
pull all emails for the seacrh condition.
Example: maibox has 1300 emails by
same sender but it only pulls 676. any
suggestions ?
Dk • 3 years ago • edited

I have implemented this code and get a google warning:
File "C:\...\imaplib.py", line 582, in login
raise self.error(dat[-1])
imaplib.error: b'[ALERT] Please log in via your web browser:
https://support.google.com/... (Failure)'
i.e. Google wants me to use an app that has enhanced security--

not python code.
Other discussions group say to "Go to the "Less secure apps"

section in My Account." on gmail and enable less secure apps.
Did that, and still getting the above message.
CODE HANDBOOK 
Do you know any work arounds or code changes we can make to
your code above?
Amit Nirala > Dk • 3 years ago

The cause of this error is the Google Account Security
that is, Google provides security options to secure your
account from unidentified third party applications or
less secure applications, and this security option is
enabled by default.
To resolve this error, just log into your google account,
and visit this link https://myaccount.google.co... , or you
can also manually navigate to this link as
gmail account > click on Profile Image (at top right
corner) > My Account > click on Connected apps & sites
link.
now scroll down to "Connected Apps & Sites" section

and enable "Allow less secure apps" option.
That's it.
△ ▽ 1 • Reply • Share ›
Digamma F > Dk • 3 years ago

In addition, you have to active IMAP and POP services.
(How you do that : https://support.google.com/...
△ ▽ 1 • Reply • Share ›
Ferdinando > Digamma F • 3 years ago

I tried both of these and it didn't work, I still have
this exact same problem. Any idea why? Am
connecting from the UK don't know if it makes
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5/16/2020 How to Read Email From Gmail Using Python - Code Handbook

How to Read Email From Gmail Using Python

How to Login to Gmail Using Python

Also read : Creating a Web App Using Angular 4

type, data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')

Read Email From Gmail Using Python

type, data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')

for i in range(latest_email_id,first_email_id, -1):

for response_part in data:

CODE HANDBOOK jay 

How To Send Email Using Gmail In Python

How To Read Email From GMAIL API Using Python

Python Web Application Development Using Flask MySQL

JANUARY 22, 2017

# EMAIL, # GMAIL, # PYTHON

ALSO ON CODE HANDBOOK

a year ago • 13 comments 2 years ago • 2 comments 2 years ag

41 Comments Code Handbook 🔒  Ava

 Recommend 2 t Tweet f Share Sort by Best

Join the discussion…

Stephan Code • a year ago • edited

[Errno 8] nodename nor servname provided, or not known

Process finished with exit code 0

- I have enable "less secure apps" & IMAP in gmail,

- I have modified the code for Python 3, as it says in the

- I have respected the indentation, eventho it doesn't show here:

import smtplib #Also this is GREY

type, data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')

for response_part in data:

remi Ehounou > Stephan Code • 5 months ago

Keegan K • 3 years ago

Etheo > Keegan K • 2 years ago • edited

Matt Pryse • 10 months ago

Ryan McGrath • 2 years ago • edited

This line breaks the type() function. This should be revised to

response, data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')

Also setting a SMTP_PORT variable that is never used.

Mehdi Zarrouk Che • 2 years ago

Victor • 4 months ago

Suvarna Sivadas • 9 months ago

Traceback (most recent call last):

megha shree • a year ago

Below is my code in python 2.7 and it's running without giving

typ, raw_data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')

Sayyed • a year ago

Tom • a year ago • edited

Abhijit Phadke • a year ago

NEHA VARSHNEY > Abhijit Phadke • a year ago

Roddd2000 > NEHA VARSHNEY • a year ago

Sean Brown • 2 years ago

Dominus Labs > Sean Brown • a year ago

Bharath > Dominus Labs • a year ago

Neeraj Joon • 2 years ago

newswat • 2 years ago • edited

Traceback (most recent call last):

Thai Laoquoc > newswat • 2 years ago

appukuttan mamachan • 2 years ago

type, data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')

for i in range(latest_email_id,first_email_id, -1):

test app • 2 years ago

Abhinav Anand • 3 years ago

Etheo > Abhinav Anand • 2 years ago • edited

type, data = mail.search(None, 'ALL')