Apple mail preview pane disappeared

The preview pane in Apple Mail can be a convenient feature, but when it disappears, it can be frustrating. Here are some steps to help you recover the preview pane in Apple Mail:

  1. Check the Mail preferences: Go to Mail > Preferences > Viewing. Make sure the "Preview" checkbox is selected. If it's not, select it to enable the preview pane.
  2. Check the mailbox settings: Go to Mail > Preferences > Accounts > [Your Account Name]. Click on the "Mailbox Behaviors" tab. Ensure that the "Show preview" option is selected for the mailbox you're using.
  3. Reset the Mail preferences: Sometimes, resetting the Mail preferences can resolve the issue. To do this, go to Mail > Preferences > General, and click on the "Reset" button at the bottom of the window. This will reset all Mail preferences to their default settings.
  4. Check for conflicts with other apps: If you're using other email clients or apps that also access your email accounts, they might be interfering with the preview pane. Try closing or quitting these apps to see if the preview pane reappears.
  5. Reinstall Mail: If none of the above steps work, you can try reinstalling Mail. Go to the App Store, search for "Mail", and click on the "Install" button. This will reinstall Mail and reset all its settings.
  6. Check for macOS updates: Ensure that your macOS is up to date, as updates often include bug fixes and improvements to Mail.
  7. Try a different mailbox: If the issue persists, try creating a new mailbox or switching to a different mailbox to see if the preview pane appears.
  8. Reset the NSEventThread: This is a more advanced troubleshooting step. To reset the NSEventThread, open the Terminal app and type the following command: defaults write com.apple.mail NSEventThread -bool false. Then, restart Mail.
  9. Recreate the Mail database: If all else fails, you can try recreating the Mail database. To do this, go to the Terminal app and type the following command: mv ~/Library/Mail/V2/MailData ~/Library/Mail/V2/MailData.bak. Then, restart Mail.

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