Yes — but only within a narrow window. Most email platforms hold your message for 5-30 seconds before actually sending it. During that brief delay, you can cancel. After that, the email lives on the recipient’s server, outside your control.
“Unsending” isn’t really retracting a delivered message. It’s canceling a queued one. Once transmission completes, your options shrink dramatically.
Here’s what works:
- Undo Send (Gmail, Apple Mail, Proton Mail) — cancels before delivery
- Recall (Outlook) — attempts deletion after delivery
- Revocation (Canary Mail) — blocks access to encrypted messages
- Deletion — removes your copy only
How does the undo send feature actually work?
When you click send, your email doesn’t immediately fly to the recipient. The platform holds it in a queue for a preset delay. During this window, an “Undo” button appears — clicking it pulls the message back into draft form.
The moment that window closes, the email transmits. No take-backs.
| Platform | Default delay | Maximum delay |
| Gmail | 5 seconds | 30 seconds |
| Apple Mail | 10 seconds | 30 seconds |
| Proton Mail | 10 seconds | 20 seconds |
| Outlook | None (requires rule) | Custom |
Extend your delay to the maximum in settings. Thirty seconds feels long when waiting — but it’s enough to catch most “oh no” moments.
Can you recall an email in Outlook after delivery?
Outlook offers something other platforms don’t — server-side recall that attempts to delete a message after delivery (strict conditions apply).
Requirements
- Recipient hasn’t opened the email yet
- Mobile devices haven’t synced the message
- Both sender and recipient use the same Exchange organization
Limitations
- Fails for external recipients (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.)
- May notify the recipient of your recall attempt
- Fails if the message was read
For internal corporate emails, recall sometimes works. For anything else, unreliable.
What’s the difference between unsending and deleting?
These terms sound similar but operate differently.
| Action | What it does | Affects recipient? |
| Unsend | Cancels queued message | No — never arrives |
| Recall | Requests server delete unread message | Sometimes |
| Delete | Removes email from your Sent folder | No — they keep their copy |
Deleting a sent email organizes your inbox. It does nothing to the recipient’s copy.
Which platforms let you unsend emails?
Not all email services offer the same protections.
| Platform | Undo Send | Recall | Revocation |
| Gmail | ✓ (5-30 sec) | ✗ | ✗ |
| Outlook | ✓ (with rule) | ✓ (internal only) | ✗ |
| Apple Mail | ✓ (10-30 sec) | ✗ | ✗ |
| Proton Mail | ✓ (0-20 sec) | ✗ | ✓ (password-protected) |
| Canary Mail | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ (SecureSend) |
| Yahoo Mail | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
Yahoo Mail offers no unsend capabilities. Once sent, gone.
What should you do if you missed the window?
When technical options fail, communication becomes the fix.
Recovery options
- Send a brief follow-up correcting the error
- Keep it concise — avoid over-apologizing
- For minor typos in bulk campaigns, silence is sometimes smarter (corrections draw attention)
A simple “Please disregard my previous email — here’s the correct version” handles most situations. Recipients rarely notice minor errors anyway.
How can you prevent email mistakes?
Prevention beats recovery. A few settings changes reduce the need to unsend anything.
Technical safeguards
- Enable missing attachment warnings
- Extend undo delay to maximum (30 seconds)
- Use scheduled send for high-stakes messages
Workflow habits
- Add recipients last (prevents accidental early sends)
- Double-check the “To” field before sending
- Draft sensitive emails offline first
For high-volume senders, mistakes in mass campaigns affect thousands — and potentially damage sender reputation with ISPs tracking engagement metrics.
The real question — are your emails reaching inboxes?
The irony is that many messages never reach the inbox in the first place. Before stressing over whether recipients saw your typo, confirm your emails actually arrive.
EmailWarmup.com helps senders land in the primary inbox:
- Free email deliverability test across 50+ providers
- Personalized email warmup matching your sending patterns
- 24/7 human support from deliverability specialists
If emails aren’t reaching inboxes, unsend features are the least of your problems.
Schedule a free consultation with an email deliverability consultant today!
Frequently asked questions
Here are some commonly asked questions on this topic:
No. Undo windows max out at 30 seconds. After the email leaves your server, unsending isn’t possible. Outlook’s recall can be attempted later, but only works for unread internal messages on the same Exchange server — success isn’t guaranteed.
No. Deleting from your Sent folder removes your copy only. The recipient’s copy remains unaffected. The only way to remove a delivered email is successful recall (Outlook internal) or revocation (Canary SecureSend, Proton password-protected).
Yes, if using Apple Mail on iOS 16+. The default window is 10 seconds, adjustable to 30 seconds in Settings → Apps → Mail → Undo Send Delay. Third-party apps may offer different capabilities.
Common reasons include the recipient already opening it, the recipient using a different provider (Gmail, Yahoo), the mobile device syncing before recall, or the recipient not being on the same Exchange organization.
No. Gmail’s maximum window is 30 seconds. Once closed, the email is transmitted permanently. Gmail offers no recall or revocation for delivered messages.
