Apple mail not indexing

The frustration of Apple Mail not indexing! Don't worry, I'm here to help you troubleshoot the issue.

Indexing is an essential process in Apple Mail that helps you quickly find specific emails. If it's not indexing, you might experience slow search performance or difficulty finding emails. Let's go through some steps to resolve the issue:

Step 1: Check for updates

Ensure your Mac is running the latest version of macOS and Apple Mail. Sometimes, updates can resolve indexing issues.

Step 2: Restart Apple Mail

Quit Apple Mail, then relaunch it. This simple step can often resolve indexing issues.

Step 3: Check for corrupted databases

Corrupted databases can cause indexing issues. To check and repair databases:

  1. Go to ~/Library/Mail/V2/MailData (or ~/Library/Mail/V3/MailData for macOS Catalina or later).
  2. Look for files with .mbox or .mboxindex extensions.
  3. Move these files to the Trash. This will force Apple Mail to rebuild the databases.

Step 4: Rebuild the index

To rebuild the index:

  1. Go to Apple Menu > System Preferences > Mail, Contacts, Calendars.
  2. Click on Accounts and select your email account.
  3. Click on Advanced and then IMAP (if you're using IMAP).
  4. Click on Rebuild next to Index.

Step 5: Check for disk space

Low disk space can cause indexing issues. Ensure you have enough free space on your startup disk.

Step 6: Disable and re-enable indexing

Try disabling indexing and then re-enabling it:

  1. Go to Apple Menu > System Preferences > Mail, Contacts, Calendars.
  2. Click on Accounts and select your email account.
  3. Click on Advanced and then IMAP (if you're using IMAP).
  4. Uncheck Index and then re-check it.

Step 7: Reset Apple Mail

If none of the above steps work, you can try resetting Apple Mail:

  1. Go to Apple Menu > System Preferences > Mail, Contacts, Calendars.
  2. Click on Accounts and select your email account.
  3. Click on Advanced and then Reset next to Mail.

Step 8: Reinstall Apple Mail

As a last resort, you can try reinstalling Apple Mail:

  1. Go to Applications folder and drag Apple Mail to the Trash.
  2. Empty the Trash.
  3. Go to the App Store and reinstall Apple Mail.

If none of these steps resolve the issue, you may want to consider seeking assistance from Apple Support or a professional IT expert.

I hope these steps help you resolve the indexing issue in Apple Mail!