Log Out of Gmail
Knowing how to log out of your Gmail account is essential if you use public computers. Your Gmail account can contain a lot of sensitive information, and signing out will help protect it. You can also sign out of the Gmail app on mobile devices, but the process is a little more complex.
Contents
[hide]Steps
Gmail or Inbox Website
- Open the Gmail or Inbox website. Since you're logged in, it should take you straight to your inbox. Your account may automatically redirect you to Inbox, but the process is the same.
- Click your profile image in the upper-right corner. You'll see your basic profile information, as well as any other accounts that may be logged in. If you need to log out of one of these other accounts, select it now.
- Click "Sign Out." You will be logged out of the account and taken to the account login screen.
- Remove your account from the "Choose an account" page. If your account appears in the list of available accounts, and you want to remove it, click "Remove" and then click the "X" next to your account. This is especially useful on public computers.
- Sign out remotely. If you've accidentally left your account signed in to a computer that you don't have access to, log into your Gmail account and scroll to the bottom of your inbox. Click the "Details" link and then click "Sign out all other web sessions." This will sign you out everywhere.
- If you're using Inbox, you'll need to click the "Gmail" link in the menu to open the Gmail interface first.
Gmail App (Android)
- Understand the limitations. Because of the way that Android stores your accounts, there is no way to sign out of the Gmail app without completely removing that Google account from the device. There are a few workarounds that you can use depending on what you want to do.
- Add another account to check other email. If you want to see another Gmail account's email in your Gmail app, you can add another account to the app. You'll be able to easily switch back and forth between them.
- Tap the Menu button (☰) and tap the arrow next to your account name at the top.
- Select "Add account" and choose the type of email account you want to add. You can add accounts from services other than Gmail.
- Enter in your account information to add it. You can switch between the accounts by tapping the profile pictures at the top of the Gmail menu.
- Lock your device with a passcode to protect your email. If you wanted to log out to protect your email in case your device is lost or stolen, you'll be better off with a passcode lock.
- Open the Settings app and tap "Security."
- Tap the "Screen lock" option and select "PIN" or "Password." These are the two most secure options.
- Create a PIN or password. This will be required whenever your screen is locked, protecting your email.
- Remove the account from your Android device if you want to completely log out. If you absolutely want to log out of Gmail on your Android device, you'll need to remove the account completely. Removing an account will remove any associated data as well, such as contacts, and will sign you out of all Google apps. Be aware that this may require you to reset your device completely if you're removing the original account you set your device up with.
- Open the Settings app and select "Accounts."
- Tap the Google account that you want to remove.
- Tap the Menu button (⋮) and select "Remove account." If you don't see the "Remove account" option, you're trying to remove the account that you used to set up the device. In order to remove this account, you'll need to perform a factory reset. This will completely wipe the device. See Reset-Your-Android-Phone for detailed instructions.
Gmail App (iOS)
- Tap the Menu button (☰). If you want to log out of the Gmail app, you can either remove your account from the device entirely, or just disable it in Gmail. Removing the account entirely will sign you out of any other Google apps, such as Search or YouTube. Disabling the account in Gmail will just remove it from the Gmail app, keeping you signed in for your other Google apps.
- Tap the "Manage Accounts" option. This will allow you to adjust your account settings.
- Sign out of your account. There are two ways you can sign out of Gmail from this menu, with different effects:
- To just disable your Gmail account in the Gmail app, toggle the account Off in the "Manage Accounts" menu. You will still stay signed in to any other Google apps on the device.
- To remove your account entirely, tap "Edit" in the upper-right corner and then tap "Remove" for the account you want to delete. You will be signed out of all Google apps.
