What is the shortcut to mark an email as unread in Gmail?
Shift + u — Mark as unread
Select the conversation or open it and press Shift + U to mark it as unread; Shift + I marks it as read again. Keyboard shortcuts must be switched on under Settings > General for the single-key commands to work.
Related Gmail shortcuts: Actions
| Shortcut | Action | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| , | Move focus to toolbar | |
| x | Select conversation | |
| s | Toggle star/rotate among superstars | |
| e | Archive | |
| m | Mute conversation | |
| ! | Report as spam | |
| # | Delete | |
| r | Reply | |
| Shift + r | Reply in a new window | |
| a | Reply all | |
| Shift + a | Reply all in a new window | |
| f | Forward | |
| Shift + f | Forward in a new window | |
| Shift + n | Update conversation | |
| ] or [ | Archive conversation and go previous/next | |
| z | Undo last action | |
| Shift + i | Mark as read | |
| Shift + u | Mark as unread | |
| _ | Mark unread from the selected message | |
| + or = | Mark as important | |
| - | Mark as not important | |
| b | Snooze Tip: This shortcut isn't available in classic Gmail. | |
| ; | Expand entire conversation | |
| : | Collapse entire conversation | |
| Shift + t | Add conversation to Tasks |
From the Gmail reference (85 entries) · all how-to answers
The read and unread pair
Shift + u and Shift + i are mirror images: one clears the read state, the other sets it. Both work on whatever is selected in the conversation list — check several rows with x first and one press changes all of them — and they work inside an open conversation, where marking it unread also bumps it back into the bold, unread count in the left sidebar. Gmail applies the change to the whole conversation, not to a single message within it.
Turning shortcuts on
The single-letter shortcuts are off in a new Gmail account. Open Settings, choose See all settings, and on the General tab set Keyboard shortcuts to on, then save at the bottom of the page. Until that is done only the Ctrl and Shift combinations that browsers pass through will work, and pressing ? to open the shortcut cheat sheet does nothing. Once enabled, ? shows the complete list inside Gmail.
Selecting the unread ones in bulk
If the goal is to sweep every unread conversation on the page, * + u selects all unread rows and * + r selects the read ones; a following Shift + i or Shift + u then acts on the selection. The _ key marks a conversation unread from the selected message onward, which is the way to leave a thread half-read on purpose. All of these come from Google’s own shortcut list and are reproduced with their categories on the Gmail reference page.
Unread as a to-do list
Marking a thread unread is the lightest way to leave yourself a reminder without a label or a star: the row goes bold, the inbox counter rises, and the next visit puts it back in front of you. If you do this often, pairing Shift + u with the * selection keys turns a scan of the inbox into a two-keystroke triage, and the Gmail reference page groups those selection keys in their own section so they are easy to find.