Alphabetical folders in Mail MacBook Pro

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Alphabetical folders in Mail MacBook Pro

I stopped using Mail in my MacBook Pro as it was frustrating when I created a new folder and, rather than "slotting in" alphabetically with my existing folders, they were just added at the bottom of the list.

I started using Outlook, which is fine and all my folders are alphabetical, but there's just something about it I don't like so want to revert back to the Mail app but still the folders I added in the Mail app itself are at the bottom of the list. (Subsequent folders I created in Outlook are showing alphabetically).

Please, is there any way I can make Mail sort my folders alphabetically? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

MacBook Pro 15", macOS 10.14

Posted on Jul 2, 2019 12:07 AM

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Answer 1

Tractorgirl Author

Level 1

50 points

Jul 4, 2019 6:44 AM in response to Tractorgirl

Edit:

Actually, I can't move them like that.

Say I've got folders called Apple, Banana, Pear, Raspberry and Zucchini

At the moment they are showing like this:

Inbox

Banana
Pear
Zucchini
Apple
Raspberry

I obviously want it to be like this:

Inbox

Apple
Banana
Pear
Raspberry
Zucchini

However, If I try to move Apple to above Banana, it won't let me, it makes Apple a sub folder of Banana. Similarly I can't slot Raspberry in between Pear and Zucchini and it becomes a subfolder of Pear so it now looks like this:

Inbox

Banana
- Apple
Pear
- Raspberry
Zucchini

Funnily enough, if I *do* change them and make Raspberry a subfolder of Pear, then when I go back to Outlook, it has been moved on there as well. But if I then change it from within Outlook to how it should be, it *doesn't* get changed within MacOS Mail.

I give up. I'm sticking with Outlook!!!!

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Answer 2

Tractorgirl Author

Level 1

50 points

Jul 4, 2019 7:59 AM in response to Barney-15E

Thanks for trying to help, Barney. No, the fruits were to depict the folders I've created. I only have the one account. Mail isn't designed to have subfolders?? What am I meant to do then, have all my emails as one long list?

This is the same account (which I call CA Live) on, firstly, the Mail app and secondly, Outlook. You can see all the same files, but they are sorted perfectly alphabetically in Outlook and not Mail. And I don't understand why, when it's the same account. Surely the settings should be the same whatever you're viewing it in? On my iPhone, it's is the "correct" way in both the Mail and the Outlook apps.

Am I stressing too much over this?????

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Answer 3

Tractorgirl Author

Level 1

50 points

Jul 4, 2019 12:24 AM in response to Barney-15E

i have obviously tried that but although it will allow me to move the “rogue folders” further up, it won’t let me put them right at the top which is where they need to be.

My folders show up perfectly alphabetically in Outlook on my MacBook as well as in the iOS Mail apps on my iPhone and iPad. It’s only the 2 most recently added folders that are affected in MacOS Mail and not any older ones. There must be an “automatic” way of doing it.

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Answer 4

Barney-15E

Level 10

116,782 points

Jul 4, 2019 6:43 AM in response to Tractorgirl

You can't put anything at the top, only the top of the account. The top section is for the standard email folders. Have you tried dragging a whole account around? You can't remove folders from the account grouping, but you can move the whole account.

If you have ones you use a lot, put them in the Favorites Bar. You can also put folders in the favorites, so it can act as a dropdown menu of mailboxes. View Menu > Show Favorites Bar.

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Answer 5

Barney-15E

Level 10

116,782 points

Jul 4, 2019 6:58 AM in response to Tractorgirl

Are your fruit actually accounts, or are they folders you have somehow managed to get into your Inbox?

You should be able to move the account folders around. I don't know about regular mailboxes that are not the Inboxes of the account. Mail isn't designed to have subfolders of the Inbox, but it is possible to make it show up like that. I can only guess that support for something not designed to work wouldn't work well.

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Answer 6

Barney-15E

Level 10

116,782 points

Jul 4, 2019 8:14 AM in response to Tractorgirl

It isn't designed to have subfolders inside the Inbox. The Inbox is the Inbox, nothing more. But, it does display them if that is how you have set up your account.

You will not be able to create new subfolders of Inbox in Mail. You would have to do that in your Email provider's web portal.

All of the folders you have in your Inbox should be down under CA Live.

Most email accounts have these standard folders:

Inbox

Sent

Draft

Spam

Deleted

You could then create new custom folders as you have, but they would be at the same level as Inbox, not inside Inbox.

It sort of works as you see with your account, but Mail doesn't support creating folders inside those main folders.

I don't know why you cannot move the folders around inside the Inbox, except as I alluded that it just doesn't understand and has no method of constructing the relationships for display.

Essentially, everything you see in the Mail interface is generated by indexing all the accounts, folders, messages, etc into a database. The database would maintain that ordering you see in the interface, but if they didn't expect to have folders inside the inbox, they may not have created the database in such a way that they could track the folders in the inbox. Just guessing. It may just be you have something amiss and it should work, but I don't really know.

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Answer 7

Tractorgirl Author

Level 1

50 points

Jul 8, 2019 11:49 AM in response to Barney-15E

Me again! Another quick query. So, I'm back using the Mail apps on MacBook, iPad and iPhone ... Whoo hoo!!

I'm noticing though, that when I delete or move an email on my iPhone, virtually immediately the same thing happens on my Mac.

But if I delete or move an email on my Mac, nothing happens on my iPhone.

I'm sure there's a box I've not ticked, or something marked Yes when it should be No, but I'm ****** if I can work it out. Any ideas??

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Answer 8

Barney-15E

Level 10

116,782 points

Jul 8, 2019 2:16 PM in response to Tractorgirl

What kind of account is it? That may have something to do with it. I only have experience with true IMAP accounts. Exchange and Gmail are not true IMAP, they just pretend to be on the internet.

The only thing I can think of is what you are using for Trash. In the Mail Preferences, Accounts, Mailbox Behaviors, you can set your Trash to use the server folder or the On My Mac folder. I would think it should work either way.

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