With 18.2 introduction of category inboxes in apple mail, even when selecting list view (top three dots in mail app) to return it to the old format, you still have the annoying new icons representing the categories in front of each email. I'm selecting 'list view' because I don't want to use 'categories' at all. Can the icons be removed from list view so that I can just see a normal/clean email inbox?
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
iPhone 16 Pro, iOS 18
If you take a few minutes to read the thread you posted to you can learn how to customize the Mail app. A feature that has been requested for a very long time. Or just read the release notes→What’s new in iOS 18 - Apple Support
Mountain_Woman wrote:
I was commenting on a post where the writer wondered if any beta testing was being done. I’m very happy to hear that what the Apple employee told me is nonsense!! Thank you for setting the record straight.
Back to the matter at hand… I also see no point in the annoying icons in the list view and less of a reason for the icons to be in the individual emails. And maybe in the small print somewhere it says that Apple has the right to dig around in my email, but I’m feeling like my privacy has been violated since an AI agent/program had to dig around in my emails in order to decide what stupid icon to attach to each email.
Apple is not “digging around in your email”. The icons that appear are avatars of the contacts that sent you email or are derived by interpreting words in the subject of the message.
And, if you read the top-rated post at the top of this very page you will see how to turn off the avatars if you don’t want them.
DrBevP wrote:
My iPhone has divided my emails into categories. I am loosing important info as a result. How do I get back my emails without categories?
Tap the three dots in the upper right corner and select List view.
haghop wrote:
Thanks for the useful info. That has fixed the icon issue next to each email in my inbox list.
However, when I open an email the category icons still appear next to the From: To: and Reply To: fields, do you happen to know how to disable that as well?
To turn off message categories, on any inbox tap the ⋯⃝ in the upper right, then tap List View.
I realize that with 14 pages of replies it is easy to miss the solution that has been posted dozens of times, so here it is again:
To remove the icons in the list view:
To turn off Categories:
These 2 steps will return the Mail app to the way it previously worked.
Galebrook wrote:
I would like to revert to the simple categories of inbox, composing, junk, trash, archive for my email. I have my own system of categories. How can I get rid of all these other categories?
As posted dozens of times in this thread:
To turn off Categories:
These 2 steps will return the Mail app to the way it previously worked.
This has already been posted dozens of times in this thread, but to save you the trouble of looking for it:
To remove the icons in the list view:
To turn off Categories:
These 2 steps will return the Mail app to the way it previously worked.
Open the Mail app like normal. Click the 3 dots in the upper right hand corner. Then click “list view”. This will remove the annoying categories.
M5mfx wrote:
There is no ‘Message List’
Yes, you are missing something: the Top Ranking Reply at the top of every page in this thread.
Yes you do, if you look in the right place. Read rosefromulster’s post carefully.
Yeah me too.
"Can the icons be removed from list view so that I can just see a normal/clean email inbox?"
I have my own categorising system which works better so the icons in list view are just wasting space on my iPhone screen.
I think the Category view is a good thing for some people but for _leefy and me any new display feature like this needs to have an "off" button.
Who thinks of this stuff? Does Apple ever run Beta testing with actual people? I think not. The only vaguely positive concept with the new email categories is the choice between Primary and All Mail. But then I have to try to ignore the shopping cart, promotions and the like. I will just go back to the pre ios 18.2 view.
Thank you very much for that info. I was pretty put off by the look, colors, and pointlessness of the icons in the new mail app (along with many other users, apparently) but couldn't get any useful info from Siri on how to either change their color or get rid of them altogether. I assumed that the "show contact photos" button had something to do with the photos of folks in your contacts list being visible when you get emails from them. I never would have guessed that was the way to get rid of those annoying icons! Thanks again👍
How to remove Category icons in iOS 18.2 Mail?
