Searching

Postbox can find e-mails no matter where you’ve stashed them. Searching is quick and easy, whether it’s a simple search or an advanced search using multiple criteria.

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Indexing

Postbox harnesses the power of looking up data in its database allowing you to search for content in all sorts of cool and useful ways. To unleash this power Postbox needs to index all of your email folders first. While this may take a while, indexing will be done in the background and won't interrupt your work.

To get Indexing started, go to Tools > Indexing > Index All Folders...

Quick Search

While Postbox lets you find what you need without searching by using Topics and Focus Pane, you may find yourself in a situation where you need to look up an email by its content or subject line. Simply click into the Search bar located in the top right-corner of the main Postbox window and type your search criteria. You can choose to search in the selected folder or all folders. As you type, Postbox presents a list of similar recent searches.

Additionally, you can click on the down arrow next to the magnifying glass in the Search field to use specific search options (i.e. ContainsFrom, etc.).

You can also type in these search operators yourself (i.e. after:"last friday"). Once you perform a search, the message list will only show emails that match your search criteria. To jump back and see all messages simply clear the Search bar.

Advanced Search

If the powerful Quick Search is not enough, there is also Advanced Search which is a dedicated window with a variety of search options. This searches the mail databases directly, and while slower, it may be more complete than Quick Search.

Go to Edit > Find > Advanced Search..., select account or folder to search, specify the search criteria, and click Search.

Matching messages will be listed in the bottom half of the Advanced Search window. You can even save your search as Smart Folder to instantly perform the same search in the future with just one click in the main window!

Content Search

Postbox provides fast and direct access to the files and images buried within your email messages. Postbox's content views enable you to work more fluidly with the content that's important to you.

Simply click the View button in the Postbox Toolbar to toggle between messages, attachments and images.

Go ahead, try clicking on the view button now!

Postbox will first display the most recently or frequently accessed content. To see more results, click the Load More Results... button at the bottom of the screen. Use the Search Options in the Search Bar to search by specific criteria such as subject, sender, or date.

Search Within Compose

When composing a new message or a response, use the Sidebar to find and use files and images as attachments. This way you don't have to switch between multiple windows to find what you need!

To reveal the Sidebar, go to View > Sidebar while in the Compose Window. Alternatively, you can use the Sidebar button (can be added or removed from the Toolbar).


Once you've found what you're looking for, simply drag and drop one ore more files into the attachment area located at the bottom of the message body.

Search by Contact

The Contacts Card lets you search for messages, attachments, or images by contact! Simply click on a contact within the message header to bring up the Contacts Card.

Search for messages, attachments and images from this sender by clicking one of the search buttons next to find recent. Search results will conveniently open in a new tab.