Why do emails arrive on my computer but not my phone?

That means the mail is on the account and the phone is simply not fetching it. The cause is nearly always that syncing is switched off for the account, or that battery saving is stopping the app from working in the background. Both can be turned back on.

The app keeps asking for my password. What should I do?

Remove the account from the phone and add it again in Settings. Type the password yourself on the phone and approve the verification there. Never give the password or a code to anyone who contacts you, and we will never ask for them.

Is it safe to clear the Gmail cache?

Yes, it only removes temporary files and you stay signed in. Avoid Clear data, which resets the app and signs you out. After clearing the cache it can take a minute for the inbox to fill in again.

Could the emails have gone somewhere else?

Often. Look in Spam and in All Mail, and check you are in the right inbox if you have several accounts in the app. A filter that you or someone else created can also move messages straight to a label or to the bin.

Gmail not syncing on your phone? How to get mail back

When new emails stop appearing on your phone, it is nearly always because syncing is switched off for that account, or because battery saving is holding the app back. The mail stays safely on the account in the meantime, so nothing is lost. The first steps take two minutes.

Check first that the emails are really missing. Open gmail.com in a browser on a computer or on the phone and see whether the new messages are there. If they are, only the phone needs to fetch them.

Try this first

Open a web page on the phone to confirm the internet is working.
Open Gmail and pull down in the inbox with your finger. That forces a fetch, and a small circle spins at the top.
Tap your profile picture at the top right and check you are looking at the right account if you have more than one.
Open the menu on the left and look in Spam and in All Mail. A filter may have moved the messages there.
Restart the phone. This fixes a stalled sync surprisingly often, and deletes nothing.
Update the Gmail app in the App Store or Google Play.

On Android

Open Gmail, tap the menu, choose Settings and then your account.
Check that Sync Gmail is ticked.
Look at Days of mail to sync. If it is set low, only the last few days are fetched.
Check the system level sync: Settings > Accounts and backup > Manage accounts

your Google account > Sync account, and switch Gmail on. On a Pixel it is Settings > Passwords and accounts.
Stop battery saving from restricting the app: Settings > Apps > Gmail > Battery, and choose Unrestricted.
Clear the cache: Settings > Apps > Gmail > Storage > Clear cache. Leave Clear data alone.

If that did not help

If you use the Mail app on iPhone rather than Gmail, go to Settings > Apps > Mail > Mail Accounts, select the account and check that Mail is switched on.
Check Fetch New Data in the same place. With Push switched off, mail is only collected at intervals.
Turn on Settings > General > Background App Refresh for Gmail and Mail.
Remove the account from the phone and add it again. The mail stays on the server and comes back once the account is added.
If the Google account is full, new mail stops arriving. Go to one.google.com/storage in a browser and check how much room is left. If it is full, delete large attachments or buy more space.
Always type the password yourself and approve the verification on your own phone. Never hand out passwords or verification codes to anyone, including us.

If the emails are missing from Gmail in a browser too, if the account asks for a verification you cannot complete, or if you suspect someone else has been in your mail, write to us straight away. Your email account controls the recovery of every other account you have, so it is worth dealing with the same day.