How to send bulk emails from Gmail for free

If you’re reading this, it’s probably because you don’t know how to send bulk emails from Gmail for your mass email sends.

You’re in the right place: we’re going to show you how to do it step by step, quickly and easily, so you won’t have any trouble sending emails to your contacts in a fast, effective and free way.

First, let’s get to what we came for: sending bulk emails with Gmail.

What does sending bulk emails with Gmail mean?

Basically, it means sending the same email to lots of people at once using Gmail.

Sounds good, right? And it is… up to a point.

Gmail lets you send up to 500 emails a day, which may be fine if you manage a small contact list. But if you want to do email marketing seriously, that’s where the problems start.

Gmail isn’t designed for sending bulk emails professionally. It doesn’t give you statistics, you can’t automate sends and, worst of all, your emails are more likely to end up in the spam folder.

Google sets this limit to stop people from sending mass spam, which is understandable, but if your business grows and you need to send more emails, you’ll run into that barrier.

If you want to run well-crafted email marketing campaigns, with open and click tracking and more attractive designs, you’re better off using platforms like Mailrelay.

How do I send bulk emails with Gmail?

As we said earlier, sending bulk emails with Gmail is possible, but only up to a point, because Gmail is a public tool, so to speak. By that we mean it isn’t a professional tool like, for example, Mailrelay, which is designed for sending bulk emails, newsletters and more, with no limits and to an unlimited number of email accounts.

Of course, using Gmail doesn’t make you any less professional, since professionalism doesn’t depend on which platforms you use. What matters is that whatever method you use to send your emails fits your needs, is easy to use and doesn’t eat up too much of your time.

Sending bulk emails with Gmail: Step by step

So, if you’re still set on using Gmail, here’s how:

1.- Sign in to Gmail

If you don’t have an account, create one for free.

2.- Group your contacts with a label

In Google Contacts, select the contacts and add a label to them, for example “Customers”. That way you can write to all of them at once.

3.- Click “Compose”

It’s the button at the top left. Write the subject and the message.

4.- Add the recipients in “Bcc”

Click “Bcc” and type the name of the label: Gmail will add all its contacts.

Using Bcc stops each recipient from seeing everyone else’s addresses, which matters for your contacts’ privacy.

5.- Review and send

Check that you’re not over the daily limit. With a personal account, it’s best not to go over about 500 recipients a day. If you go over it, Gmail may temporarily block sending.

How many emails can I send with Gmail?

If your company is small or you don’t have a large number of contacts, you shouldn’t have any problems, but if you go over this number and often need to send newsletters or emails to all your contacts, once they exceed 500 you could run into a problem. You’ll find the limits for Gmail and other providers in our post on sending limits.

So the question is clear: what should I do if I’m faced with this problem?

And the answer is simple: switch to an email platform specialized in marketing.

Disadvantages of sending bulk emails with Gmail

Yes, it’s free and easy to use, but it has several limitations that can make your life harder as your contact list grows.

🔴 You can only send 500 emails a day

If your database goes over that number, you’ll have to split your sends across several days, which can be a headache. With Google Workspace the limit goes up to 2,000, but if you need more, you’re better off using a specialized platform.

🚫 High risk of your emails ending up in spam

Gmail isn’t built for mass campaigns, and if you send a lot of emails at once, servers may flag them as spam.

Also, using an @gmail.com address for business doesn’t look very professional.

🤷‍♂️ Little personalization

You can personalize emails with tags like @name, but the process is cumbersome compared with email marketing tools, which let you automate and segment easily.

📩 No automation at all

Gmail only lets you schedule sends; you can’t create automated sequences, auto-reply to customers or send follow-ups without doing it manually.

🎨 Very basic design options

If you want to send professionally designed emails, you’ll need external tools or extensions, because Gmail’s editor is very limited.

Alternatives to sending bulk emails with Gmail

As you probably already know, and if you don’t, we’ll tell you, email marketing is simply sending emails to potential or current customers. A newsletter showcasing new products or services, for example, can be considered email marketing.

You’ve surely received emails from a store you’ve bought from before announcing sales or offering discounts; that’s email marketing too.

Knowing this, you should have an idea of what kind of platform you need for sending bulk emails. If you don’t exceed Gmail’s daily limit and prefer to stick with a free way of sending emails, Gmail will be your best friend. Otherwise, here are some email marketing platforms we recommend:

1.- Mailrelay

2.- Brevo

3.- Mailchimp

4.- Acumbamail

5.- Mailjet

To find out which tool best fits your needs, we have two comparisons: Mailrelay vs Sendinblue vs Mailchimp and Mailrelay vs Acumbamail vs Mailjet.

Email marketing is one of the best ways to win customers and also to retain them, since you can send them your latest news and build connections, and even future purchases or partnerships. We understand that the current economic situation is complicated, but investing some money sometimes pays off in results.

With Gmail you can send emails for free, but if your company grows you’ll have to reconsider using a different kind of platform.

Another thing to keep in mind is that bulk emails sent from Gmail go through a different authentication process than those sent from email marketing platforms. What this means is that emails sent from Gmail can be automatically flagged as spam.

We don’t want to discourage you from using Gmail: to start with, it’s the simplest and cheapest option, and you’ll always have time to switch platforms in the future if your company grows or you decide to expand much further.

Benefits of using a bulk email tool instead of sending emails with Gmail

Specialized tools like Mailrelay don’t just make your life easier, they also help you improve the deliverability, personalization and automation of your campaigns.

Here are a few reasons why it’s worth it:

📩 Your emails reach the inbox (and not spam)

With Gmail, your bulk sends are more likely to end up in spam. Mailrelay, on the other hand, uses advanced protocols like SPF and DKIM to make sure your emails reach their recipients properly.

📊 You get real-time statistics

Want to know how many people open your emails or click your links?

With Gmail, that’s impossible. Mailrelay gives you detailed statistics so you can measure the impact of each campaign and improve your strategies.

✅ You comply with data protection regulations

The GDPR requires users to give their consent and to be able to unsubscribe easily.

With Mailrelay, this process is automatic: it manages unsubscribes, removes inactive contacts and saves you from having to do it manually.

🎨 Professionally designed emails without the hassle

If you want your emails to have an attractive design, Gmail falls short.

Mailrelay lets you create emails with customizable templates and an editor, so you don’t need any technical knowledge.

🎯 Smart segmentation for greater impact

You can group your contacts by interests, purchase history or previous interactions.

That way, each person receives a relevant message, increasing your open and conversion rates.

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Advanced personalization

You can even include dynamic content based on the user’s profile, strengthening your connection with your customers.

⏳ Automation that saves you time

With Gmail, everything is manual. With Mailrelay, you can schedule automated sends for welcome emails, reminders or promotions without having to lift a finger.

🛠 A/B testing and continuous optimization

Mailrelay lets you run A/B tests to compare versions of an email and find out which one works best.

It also uses artificial intelligence to improve the results of each campaign.

💰 It doesn’t have to cost you anything.

Mailrelay offers a free account that you can create and use for as long as you like, with a larger free sending volume.

If you want to see all the differences in detail, we have a full comparison between Gmail and Mailrelay, since sending this way can increase your spam rate in email marketing.

Frequently asked questions about sending bulk emails with Gmail

How many emails can I send per day with Gmail?

With a free account, about 500 recipients a day. With Google Workspace the limit goes up to about 2,000. If you go over them, Gmail blocks sending for a while.

Should I put the recipients in Cc or Bcc?

In Bcc. That way nobody sees the other people’s addresses. If you use Cc, you share all your contacts’ email addresses, and that can be a data protection problem.

Does Gmail have mail merge?

Yes, but only on some paid Google Workspace accounts. It lets you personalize each email with the contact’s name. It isn’t available on the free Gmail account.

Can my account be blocked for sending bulk emails?

Yes. If many recipients mark your email as spam, or if you send a lot of emails at once, Google may limit your account. To send to large lists, it’s safer to use an email marketing tool.

What does the GDPR say about bulk emails?

You can only send commercial emails to people who have given you their permission or are your customers. Also, every email must include an easy way to unsubscribe. Gmail doesn’t add it on its own; an email marketing platform does.

If money isn’t the issue, why not use a better-suited tool?

Jose Argudo

CMO at Mailrelay. Writes about email marketing, copywriting and conversion for small businesses and entrepreneurs.

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