Gmail Notifier 1.0.25.0 for Windows

Gmail Notifier 1.0.25.0 is a small Windows utility from Google that sat in the system tray and alerted you when new messages arrived in your Gmail inbox. It is a program from an earlier era of Gmail: Google no longer offers it on an active product page, and it has not been updated for many years. Before you download Gmail Notifier for Windows, consider the modern ways to get the same alerts.

Overview

When Gmail was young, most people read email in a desktop program or kept a browser window open all day. Gmail Notifier solved a simple problem: it checked your inbox in the background, changed its tray icon when new mail came in and showed the sender and subject in a small pop-up. Clicking it opened Gmail in the browser. It could also set Gmail as the default program for email links on the PC. The trouble today is sign-in. Gmail has tightened its security over the years with modern sign-in methods and two-step verification, and old programs that log in the way they did at the time are often refused. Expect that the notifier may not be able to connect to your account, and never lower your account's security settings to make an old tool work.

Better ways to get new-mail alerts

• Browser notifications: open Gmail in Chrome, Edge or Firefox, go to settings and turn on desktop notifications.
• Install Gmail as a web app: browsers can install Gmail as an app with its own window and taskbar icon.
• A desktop mail client: programs such as Thunderbird, Mailbird or Microsoft Outlook connect to Gmail using current sign-in methods and show alerts.
• The phone: the Gmail app on Android or iOS gives instant notifications.

Key facts

Why tray notifiers faded away

Small tools like this were replaced by features built into browsers and operating systems. Windows has its own notification centre, browsers can show alerts from websites, and mail apps handle several accounts at once. A single-purpose notifier simply has less to offer than it did when it was released.

If you try it anyway

Only run a copy you can verify, and scan it with your antivirus first: old, popular tools are a favourite disguise for malware on download sites. Do not type your Google password into any program that you are not sure comes from Google. If it cannot sign in, uninstall it rather than changing account security settings.

Pros and cons

• Pro: tiny, simple tray alerts.
• Pro: free, from Google.
• Con: not updated for many years.
• Con: may not sign in to Gmail with current security.

Alternatives

For email on Windows, our listings include Mailbird and Microsoft Outlook, both of which work with Gmail accounts and show new-mail notifications.