Desktop App For Gmail On Macos

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Gmail is a well-known webmail service developed by Google that has over 1.5 billion users worldwide. But since Gmail is a webmail-only email service, that means it doesn't have a desktop email client. Often, it would be much more convenient to have a desktop email app for Gmail. You can get Gmail on your desktop through 3 key ways:

  1. Desktop App For Gmail On Macos Mac
  2. Desktop App For Gmail On Macos High Sierra
  3. Desktop App For Gmail On Macos Windows 10
  4. Does Gmail Have A Desktop App For Mac
  5. Desktop App For Gmail Mac
  • Downloading Shift
  • Creating a shortcut to Gmail
  • Using a separate desktop email client
  • Introducing the best Gmail email desktop client. Built for Gmail addicts! No need to set-up and learn another email application if you already know and love Gmail. Mailbox combines Gmail’s fast search, spam protection and endless storage with great Mac features. Mailbox for Gmail allows you to; Run Gmail in its own application.
  • Gmail for Mac is perfect for quickly accessing your Gmail account without ever needing to open a web browser. The app is fully feature packed and built for speed and ease of use.

Starting with macOS 10.14 Mojave, Apple has introduced a new security feature that ensures third-party applications work safely with your data. In short, you need to manually grant permission to your apps, so they can work with files on.

Is there a desktop app for Gmail?

No, Google does not make an official desktop email client for Gmail. That means many people are stuck using internet browser windows as the only way to access their Gmail account. Fortunately, there’s a better way — you can use Shift to manage Gmail on your desktop, whether you use a PC, Mac or use Linux.

What is the best desktop email client for Gmail?

Downloading Shift is the best way to get Gmail on your desktop. Shift is the easiest way to get a desktop app for Gmail since you don’t have to configure anything in Gmail before adding your Gmail account to Shift. It only takes a few quick steps to add a Gmail account to Shift:

  1. Click on the ‘+’ at the bottom of the left-hand sidebar.
  2. Click on ‘Add Account’ from the options that appear.
  3. Type in your Gmail account address.
  4. Click ‘Add’ and then ‘Done.’

Once you’ve added your Gmail account to Shift, your profile picture for your account will appear in the top left-hand corner in the sidebar. All of the Google services you use will also appear in the top right-hand corner of the top bar in Shift.

Desktop App For Gmail On Macos Mac

Using Shift as a desktop add for Gmail not only makes it easier to access your Gmail account, but it also makes it easier to manage multiple Gmail accounts. With Shift, you can add multiple Gmail accounts and then toggle between them without having to log in and out or set up forwarding between Gmail accounts. This will make all of your Gmail inboxes less cluttered since you won’t have multiple Gmail accounts being forwarded to one account. One tip to make it easier to navigate between multiple Gmail accounts in Shift is to make sure all of your accounts have distinct profile pictures so you can tell them apart at-a-glance.

How to get Gmail on your PC

In addition to downloading Shift, you can get Gmail on your desktop through other separate email clients as well. However, these options require more steps than using Shift as a desktop email client. Shift provides a gmail app for PC so you can manage as many gmail accounts as you want right from your desktop.

One other option is to download Outlook and then sync your Gmail account with Outlook. The process to sync your Gmail account with Outlook involves two main steps. First, you have set up IMAP in Gmail. Second, you have to add your Gmail account in Outlook. If you skip the first step, you won’t be able to sync your Gmail account to your Outlook account.

Set up IMAP in Gmail:

  1. In Gmail, click on the ‘⚙’ icon in the top right-hand corner.
  2. Click on ‘Settings’ in the drop-down menu.
  3. Click on ‘Forwarding and POP/IMAP.’
  4. Under ‘IMAP access’ choose ‘Enable IMAP.’
  5. Don’t forget to click on ‘Save Changes’ at the bottom of the page.

Add your Gmail account in Outlook:

  1. In Outlook, click on ‘File.’
  2. Choose ‘Add Account.’
  3. Add your Gmail account address in the window that opens and click ‘Connect.’
  4. Type in your Gmail password and click ‘Connect.’

You’re then all set up to use Outlook as a desktop email client for Gmail.

How to get Gmail on your Mac

You can download Shift for Mac to use as a desktop email client to get Gmail on your Mac. It’s the easiest way to get Gmail on your desktop if you use a Mac and don’t want to have to check your Gmail account in a browser tab.

There is also a Mail app built into macOS to get Gmail on your desktop with a Mac. It takes several steps to set up your Gmail account to work with the Mac Mail app:

  1. While on the Mail page, click ‘Add Account.’
  2. Choose ‘Google’ from the drop-down menu under ‘Choose a mail account provider.’
  3. Select ‘Continue’ and then click ‘Open Safari’ in the new box that will open.
  4. Enter your Gmail address and then select ‘Next.’
  5. You’ll then have to enter your password, select ‘Next,’ and enter the code you receive if you use two-factor authentication, and select ‘Next’ again.
  6. Select ‘Allow’ for the permissions.
  7. You can then also sync notes, contact and calendars in addition to your Gmail account.
  8. Your Gmail account will now appear in the left-hand sidebar of the Mail app under ‘Mailboxes.’

There are also several third-party apps for Mac that you can use to get gmail on your desktop. This article explains four other options, in addition to the Mail app, (Go for Gmail, Kiwi for Gmail, Mailplane, and Wavebox) for downloadable desktop apps to get Gmail on your Mac.

How to create a desktop shortcut for Gmail

Shift is the fastest way to access Gmail directly on your desktop. It’s easy to download Shift and set up a Gmail account to create a desktop shortcut for Gmail.

You can also create a shortcut to individual Gmail accounts on your desktop with these steps:

  1. Open your Gmail account in the Chrome browser.
  2. Click on the three small vertical dots in the upper right-hand corner of Chrome browser.
  3. Click on “More tools” in the drop-down list.
  4. Select “Create shortcut.”
  5. Name the shortcut and click create. Clicking on this desktop shortcut will open the account in a web browser window.

This method of creating a desktop shortcut for Gmail will also work for other email services such as Mailbox.org or Fastmail, that only offer webmail and do not offer a downloadable desktop email client. Ultimately, this isn’t a true solution for getting Gmail on your desktop since the shortcut will just open an internet browser tab with your Gmail account. If you want to learn how to get Gmail on your desktop with a downloadable desktop email client, keep reading.

Is there a Gmail app for Windows?

Shift is a great option to use as a desktop email app for Gmail in Windows 10. Downloading Shift makes Gmail easily accessible on your Windows 10 desktop without having to open an internet browser tab.

However, there is also now an integrated app that comes with the operating system that you can use to get Gmail on your desktop. There are a few steps involved to set up your Gmail account in the Windows 10 desktop email app:

  1. Select the Windows Start button and enter ‘Mail’ into the search bar.
  2. Choose ‘Mail – Trusted Microsoft Store app.’
  3. Choose ‘Accounts,’ and then choose ‘+ Add account.’
  4. Choose ‘Google’ from the new window that opens.
  5. Type in your Gmail account address, choose ‘Next’ then enter your password and choose ‘Next.’ You will have to enter the code you receive if you use two-factor authentication for your Gmail account.
  6. Choose ‘Allow’ for the permissions.

You’ll then be all set up to access Gmail directly from the Windows 10 desktop mail app. This is another good option for a desktop app for Gmail, although it isn’t as easy to manage multiple email accounts with the Windows 10 email app as it is with Shift.

How to Manage Multiple Gmail Accounts on Desktop

For those that have multiple Gmail accounts, switching between them is easy on a mobile device, but can be a pain on desktop. With Shift, you can manage multiple Gmail accounts and easily switch between them without logging in and out, right from one beautiful desktop app.

What is a desktop email client?

A desktop email client, also known as a desktop email app, is a downloadable application that enables you to send and receive email on your desktop. It is different from a webmail application which only works to send and receive email directly within your internet browser window. With email clients, you can use multiple different email accounts within the same email client. For example, if you download Shift, you can use any email account including Gmail, Yahoo, or Outlook. This makes desktop email clients a great option for anyone looking to manage multiple email accounts more effectively.

Why use a desktop email client?

Using a separate desktop email client, rather than a browser window, is a great way to streamline your desktop workstation by reducing the number of tabs you have open. If you have too many browser tabs open, it can be hard to access your Gmail account quickly. All of that extra clutter from having too many tabs open just leads to wasting time, and reduces productivity. Using a desktop email client is also a great way to have a dedicated space for sending and responding to emails, rather than getting distracted by everything else that’s open in your internet browser.

Get started with Shift - the Gmail App for Desktop

There are quite a few different ways to get Gmail on your desktop. From downloading Shift, to creating a desktop shortcut, to using the Mac mail app, to downloading a separate desktop email client, there’s a method that will work for everyone. There are even multiple different desktop email clients to choose from, including Outlook and the integrated Windows 10 mail app.

One of the easiest options to get Gmail on desktop, though, is to download Shift. Try using Shift as a desktop app for Gmail today!

Contents
  • Requirements
  • Create a new project
    • Create and run
    • Distribution
  • macOS-specific support
    • Entitlements and the App Sandbox
  • Plugin support

Desktop support allows you to compile Flutter source codeto a native Windows, macOS, or Linux desktop app. Flutter’s desktopsupport also extends to plugins—you can install existing plugins that support the macOS or Linux platforms,or you can create your own.

Warning:Alpha! This page covers desktop support, which is available as alpha-quality features in the Flutter dev channel. Support still has notable feature gaps, including accessibility support.

Note: To compile a desktop app, you must build the app on the targeted platform: build a Windows app on Windows, a macOS app on macOS, and a Linux app on Linux. If you experience a problem that hasn’t yet been reported, please file an issue and include “desktop:macos/linux/windows” (whichever platform is appropriate) in the title.

Requirements

To create a Flutter app with desktop support, you need thefollowing software:

  • Flutter SDK. See theFlutter SDK installation instructions.
  • Optional: An IDE that supports Flutter.You can install Android Studio, IntelliJ IDEA,or Visual Studio Code andinstall the Flutter and Dart pluginsto enable language support and tools for refactoring,running, debugging, and reloading your desktop appwithin an editor. See setting up an editorfor more details.

Additional Windows requirements

For Windows desktop development,you need the following in addition to the Flutter SDK:

  • Visual Studio 2019 (not to be confused with Visual Studio Code)with the “Desktop development with C++” workload installed,including all of its default components

Additional macOS requirements

For macOS desktop development,you need the following in addition to the Flutter SDK:

  • CocoaPods if you use plugins

Additional Linux requirements

For Linux desktop development,you need the following in addition to the Flutter SDK:

  • libblkid
  • liblzma

The easiest way to install the Flutter SDK along with thesedependencies is by using snapd.For more information, see Installing snapd.

Once you have snapd, you can install Flutter using the Snap Store,or at the command line:

If snapd is unavailable on the Linux distro you’re using,you might use the following command:

Create a new project

You can use the following stepsto create a new project with desktop support.

Set up

At the command line, perform the following commands tomake sure that you have the latest desktop support and thatit’s enabled. If you see “flutter: command not found”,then make sure that you have installed theFlutter SDK and that it’s in your path.

Where <platform> is windows, macos, or linux:

To ensure that desktop is installed,list the devices available.You should see something like the following(you’ll see Windows, macOS, or Linux,depending on which platforms you’ve enabled):

You might also run flutter doctor to see if there areany unresolved issues. It should look something likethe following on Windows:

On macOS, you might see something like the following:

On Linux, you might see something like the following:

If flutter doctor finds problems for a platform you don’tsupport, you can ignore those warnings. You don’t haveto install Android Studio and the Android SDK,for example, if you’re writing a Linux desktop app.

After enabling desktop support, restart your IDE.You should now see windows (desktop), macOS (desktop), or linux (desktop) in the device pulldown.

Note: You only need to execute flutter config --enable-<platform>-desktop once. You can always check the status of your configuration using the no-argument flutter config command.

Desktop App For Gmail On Macos High Sierra

Create and run

Creating a new project with desktop support is no differentthan creating a new Flutter project for other platforms.

Once you’ve configured your environment for desktopsupport, you can create and run a desktop app eitherin the IDE or from the command line.

IDE

After you’ve configured your environment to supportdesktop, make sure you restart the IDE if it wasalready running.

Create a new app in your IDE and it automaticallycreates iOS, Android, and desktop versions of your app.(And web, too, if you’ve enabled web support.)From the device pulldown, select windows (desktop),macOS (desktop), or linux (desktop)and run your app to see it launch on the desktop.

Command line

To create a new app that includes desktop support(in addition to mobile support), run the following commands,substituting myapp with the name of your project:

To launch your app from the command line,enter one of the following commands from the topof the package:

Note: If there aren’t any other connected devices, the -d <platform> tag is optional.

Build a release app

To generate a release build run one of the following commands:

Distribution

In general, we don’t recommend releasing a desktop app untildesktop support is stable.There are not yet full instructions, or tooling support,for making distributable applications. However,here is some information about how to use the currentbuild output on other machines for testing purposes.

Windows

The executable can be found in your project underbuildwindowsrunner<build mode>.In addition to that executable, you need the following:

  • From the same directory:
    • all the .dll files
    • the data directory
  • The Visual C++ redistributables.You can use any of the methods shown in thedeployment example walkthroughs on the Microsoft site.If you use the application-local option, you need to copy:
    • msvcp140.dll
    • vcruntime140.dll
    • vcruntime140_1.dll

Place the DLL files in a directory next to the executableand the other DLLs, and bundle them together in a zip file.

macOS

The .app is self-contained, and can be distributed as-is.

Linux

For information on publishing a Linux app to theSnap Store, seeBuild and release a Linux desktop app.

As the tooling solidifies, stay tuned for updates on other waysto distribute a Linux desktop app.

Add desktop support to an existing Flutter app

To add desktop support to an existing Flutter project,run the following command in a terminal from theroot project directory:

This adds the necessary desktop files and directories to yourexisting Flutter project.

macOS-specific support

The following information applies only to macOS development.

Entitlements and the App Sandbox

macOS builds are configured by default to be signed,and sandboxed with App Sandbox.This means that if you want to confer specificcapabilities or services on your macOS app,such as the following:

Does gmail have a desktop app for mac
  • Accessing the internet
  • Capturing movies and images from the built-in camera
  • Accessing files

Then you must set up specific entitlements in Xcode.The following section tells you how to do this.

Setting up entitlements

Managing sandbox settings is done in themacos/Runner/*.entitlements files. When editingthese files, you shouldn’t remove the originalRunner-DebugProfile.entitlements exceptions(that support incoming network connections and JIT),as they’re necessary for the debug and profilemodes to function correctly.

If you’re used to managing entitlement files throughthe Xcode capabilities UI, be aware that the capabilitieseditor updates only one of the two files or,in some cases, it creates a whole new entitlementsfile and switches the project to use it for all configurations.Either scenario causes issues. We recommend that youedit the files directly. Unless you have a very specificreason, you should always make identical changes to both files.

If you keep the App Sandbox enabled (which is required if youplan to distribute your app in the App Store), you need to manageentitlements for your application when you add certain pluginsor other native functionality. For instance, using thefile_chooser plugin requires adding either thecom.apple.security.files.user-selected.read-only orcom.apple.security.files.user-selected.read-write entitlement.Another common entitlement is com.apple.security.network.client,which you must add if you make any network requests.

Without the com.apple.security.network.client entitlement,for example, network requests will fail with a message such as:

Important: The com.apple.security.network.server entitlement, which allows incoming network connections, is enabled by default only for debug and profile builds to enable communications between Flutter tools and a running app. If you need to allow incoming network requests in your application, you must add the com.apple.security.network.server entitlement to Runner-Release.entitlements as well, otherwise your app will work correctly for debug or profile testing, but will fail with release builds.

For more information on these topics,see App Sandbox and Entitlementson the Apple Developer site.

Hardened runtime

If you choose to distribute your application outsideof the App Store, you need to notarize your applicationfor compatibility with macOS 10.15+.This requires enabling the Hardened Runtime option.Once you have enabled it, you need a valid signingcertificate in order to build.

By default, the entitlements file allows JIT for debug builds but,as with App Sandbox, you may need to manage other entitlements.If you have both App Sandbox and Hardened Runtime enabled,you may need to add multiple entitlements for the same resource.For instance, microphone access would require bothcom.apple.security.device.audio-input (for Hardened Runtime)and com.apple.security.device.microphone (for App Sandbox).

For more information on this topic,see Hardened Runtime on the Apple Developer site.

Plugin support

Flutter on the desktop supports using and creating plugins.

Using a plugin

To use a plugin that supports desktop,follow the steps for plugins in using packages.Flutter automatically adds the necessary native codeto your project, as with iOS or Android.

We recommend the following plugins, which have beenupdated to work for desktop apps:

Use the following links to find all packages on pub.devthat support desktop apps. These links lists all packages,not just plugin packages. (Remember that plugin packages,or plugins, provide an interface to platform-specific services.)

Writing a plugin

Desktop App For Gmail On Macos Windows 10

When you start building your own plugins,you’ll want to keep federation in mind.Federation is the ability to define several different packages,each targeted at a different set of platforms,brought together into a single plugin for ease of use by developers.For example, the Windows implementation of the url_launcher is reallyurl_launcher_windows, but a Flutter developer can simply add theurl_launcher package to their pubspec.yaml as a dependency and thebuild process pulls in the correct implementation based on the target platform.Federation is handy because different teams with different expertisecan build plugin implementations for different platforms.You can add a new platform implementation to anyendorsed federated plugin on pub.dev, so long as you coordinatethis effort with the original plugin author.

Does Gmail Have A Desktop App For Mac

For more information, including information about endorsed plugins,see the following resources:

  • Developing packages and plugins, particularly theFederated plugins section.
  • How to write a Flutter web plugin, part 2,covers the structure of federated plugins andcontains information applicable to desktopplugins.
  • Modern Flutter Plugin Development coversrecent enhancements to Flutter’s plugin support.
Desktop App For Gmail On Macos

Desktop App For Gmail Mac

Samples and codelabs

Write a Flutter desktop application
A codelab that walks you through buildinga desktop app that integrates the GitHubGraphQL API with your Flutter app.

You can run the following samples as desktop apps,as well as download and inspect the source code tolearn more about Flutter desktop support.

Flutter Gallery running web app, repo
A samples project hosted on GitHub to help developersevaluate and use Flutter. The Gallery consists of acollection of Material design widgets, behaviors,and vignettes implemented with Flutter.You can clone the project and run Gallery as a desktop appby following the instructions provided in the README.
Photo Search app
A sample app built as a desktop application thatuses the following desktop-supported plugins: