Email App Disappeared from iPhone? How to Find & Restore It (iOS 17)

What to Know

  • If your Mail app is missing from your iPhone or iPad, check your App Library and reinstall the app if it has been deleted. 
  • For a missing email account in the Mail app, resync the email in Settings.
  • Can't see the All Inboxes folder? Get it back by accessing a hidden menu in the Mail app.

Whether you accidentally deleted the Mail app on your iPhone, the Mail icon disappeared from your iPhone, or you can't find the All Inboxes folder in your Mail app, we can help! Let's cover how to get the Mail app back on your iPhone.

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Where Is My Email App On My iPhone & iPad?

Is your email app not showing on your iPhone or iPad? If the Mail icon has disappeared from your iPhone, here's how to get it back! Your Mail app is missing for one of two reasons: you've removed the app from your Home Screen, or you've accidentally deleted the app. If your iPhone Mail app icon is gone from your Home Screen, you should first check the App Library on your iPhone. If you see your Mail app in the App Library, you can just move it back to your Home Screen. Also, be sure to check out how to add multiple Gmail accounts to your iPhone if you have more than one email account. 

If you didn't see the Mail app in the App Library, don't worry. You're not the only iOS user who has reported that their iPhone Mail icon has disappeared. If your Mail app has suddenly disappeared, it's likely you accidentally deleted the Mail app. In the sections below, we'll cover how to get the Mail app back on your iPhone and reactivate the email accounts synced to your Mail app. 

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How to Reinstall Mail App on iPhone & iPad

If you've accidentally deleted the Mail app, here's how to reinstall the Mail app on your iPhone or iPad and restore your missing emails.

  1. Open the App Store app.

  2. Tap the Search tab at the bottom of the screen.

  3. Type Mail or Mail app in the Search field, then tap Search.

    type mail in search field then tap search to reinstall mail app on iphone
  4. Locate the Mail icon in the list of options, then tap the Download icon to restore the Mail app.

    how to restore mail app on iphone tap download icon

And that's how to reinstall the Mail app on your iPhone or iPad! 

How to Get My Email Back on My Phone

After downloading the Mail app, it will appear on one of your Home Screens, but perhaps not the Home Screen or location you want. You can easily shift your Mail app to a different Home Screen or place it on the Dock at the bottom of the screen. To move your Mail app to either location, follow the steps below to learn how to add the Mail app back to the Home screen on your iPhone.

  1. Swipe left or right to navigate to the Home Screen containing the newly downloaded Mail app. 

  2. Tap and hold the background until the icons jiggle. This indicates that you are in Home Screen editing mode.

  3. Drag the app to reposition it; you can drag it across Home Screens by pulling it up to the edge until you see a different Home Screen.

  4. If you want to add the Mail app to the Dock, drag it to the bottom of the screen. 

  5. Tap Done when you are happy with the location of the Mail app.

Pro Tip: If you don't see the Mail app icon on your Home Screen, it might be hidden in your App Library. 

You can store apps in your App Library without having the icon on your Home Screen to reduce clutter on your phone. Here's how to find a hidden app on iPhone and add it back to your Home Screen.

How to Reactivate Previously Inactive Email on iPhone

Another thing to keep in mind is that once you've retrieved your iPhone Mail app, you may need to reactivate the applicable email accounts in your Settings in order to get your email inbox back to the way it was. Here's how:

  1. Open the Settings app.

    Open the Settings app if mail disappeared from iPhone.
  2. Tap Mail.

  3. Tap Accounts.

    tap accounts to restore mail account on iphone
  4. Select an inactive email account you want to restore.

    tap mail account to restore on iphone or ipad
  5. Toggle the Mail setting to the on position and then return to Accounts.

    toggle on mail to restore mail account to iphone or ipad

Repeat these steps for each account you want to use. After the account has been reactivated, the emails from that account will appear on your iPhone. 

How to Fix Apple Mail All Inboxes Disappeared Issue

As people are resyncing their email accounts, they sometimes find that the All Inboxes folder allowing them to view emails from all synced accounts has disappeared. There's an easy way to get your All Inboxes mailbox back on your iPhone. Here's how to restore the All Inboxes folder in the Mail app:

  1. Open the Mail app.

  2. If you're in a specific inbox, go to Mailboxes by backing out of whichever inbox you're currently in (usually by tapping the upper-left corner).

    tap email account name to go back to all email accounts in mail app
  3. Tap Edit

    tap edit at top of mailboxes page in mail app to restore missing email folder
  4. Tap the circle next to All Inboxes to check it and add the folder, so you can see all emails from accounts synced to the Mail app. 

    tap circle next to all inboxes to restore mail folder on iphone
  5. Tap Done in the upper-right corner.

    tap done to reinstall mail app folder on iphone
  6. Now you'll see All Inboxes restored at the top of the Mailboxes page of your Mail app.

    how to reinstall mail app folder on iphone

FAQ

  • Why has my email app disappeared from my iPhone? You might have accidentally deleted the Mail app on your iPhone, moved the app, or All Inboxes emails are not showing up on your iPhone or iPad.
  • How do I get my email back on my iPhone? You can download the Mail app from the App Store, 
  • What if my Mail icon is missing on my iPhone still? Make sure Mail is one of your Always Allowed apps in Screen Time Settings, just in case that's why your Mail app disappeared from your iPhone.  

This should restore your All Inboxes folder in your iPhone email. Hopefully, your email is now placed on your Home Screen and set up exactly the way it was before. If the Mail icon is still missing on your iPhone or iPad, it's time to contact Apple Support. If you'd like to further organize your Mail app, you can also learn how to create email folders on your iPhone and iPad, and how to delete or mass delete all your unread emails at once

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Author Details

Sarah Kingsbury's picture

Author Details

Sarah Kingsbury

As the Editorial Director at iPhone Life, Sarah Kingsbury manages the online editorial team and oversees all website content. She is a long-time Apple enthusiast who never goes anywhere without her Apple Watch and owns way too many HomePods. Since joining iPhone Life in 2013, Sarah has done everything from writing hundreds of how-to articles to founding the Daily Tip newsletter. She even co-hosted the early episodes of the iPhone Life Podcast. When not at work, Sarah can be found hiking in the mountains and canyons around Las Vegas, where she lives with her partner and dogs.