I found instructions here on setting the interval for auto-deletion of bin contents in Apple Mail but they applied to iOS13. Now we are on iOS 15 and Monterey these settings have again become difficult to find for iOS and macOS.
I'd previously set the interval to a month but just discovered that it has since set itself to 2 weeks. Grrr.
iPhone 12 mini
Hi there Antony Gordon,
We understand you'd like to adjust the interval for when your deleted emails are erased. We'd like to share some information that can help.
For iOS 15, use the steps below from Delete and recover emails in Mail on iPhone:
"Decide how long to keep deleted emails
With some email clients, you can set how long deleted emails stay in the Trash mailbox.
> Mail, then tap Accounts.Note: Some email services might override your selection; for example, iCloud doesn’t keep deleted emails longer than 30 days, even if you select Never."
This page can help with macOS Monterey: Change Mailbox Behaviors preferences in Mail on Mac
We hope this helps.
Hi there Antony Gordon,
We understand you'd like to adjust the interval for when your deleted emails are erased. We'd like to share some information that can help.
For iOS 15, use the steps below from Delete and recover emails in Mail on iPhone:
"Decide how long to keep deleted emails
With some email clients, you can set how long deleted emails stay in the Trash mailbox.
> Mail, then tap Accounts.Note: Some email services might override your selection; for example, iCloud doesn’t keep deleted emails longer than 30 days, even if you select Never."
This page can help with macOS Monterey: Change Mailbox Behaviors preferences in Mail on Mac
We hope this helps.
Antony Gordon,
We're glad to hear that helped with adjusting the settings on macOS Monterey.
To adjust the setting for iCloud Mail on your iPhone, head to Settings > [your name] > iCloud, then scroll all the way down to Mail at the very bottom and select Advanced. From there, you should then see the adjustable option for when to remove deleted messages.
Cheers!
Many thanks. That worked for Monterey where I can see that 1 month is set on two different Macs, but alas it falls down for iOS 15.1.1. When I get to step 2 the option to tap Mail is not there – I end up in Apple ID. I think this is one for Apple Support so that they can view the screen. It's probably iOS that is overriding the 1 month setting for 2 weeks.
Many thanks again Erica_S1. Fixed! That's well hidden. Both iOS were set to delete after 1 week so I guess iCloud judiciously picked a midway point. ;)
Antony Gordon,
Excellent! Good to hear you were able to adjust the settings for both devices.
Feel free to post again if you have any questions in the future.
Take care!
Setting the interval for auto-deleting items in the bin
