Gemini in Gmail alternatives, and how to turn it off

The best Gemini in Gmail alternative is Alrighty if you want Claude, ChatGPT or another AI you choose to work in your Gmail, next to your iCloud and Outlook mail, with nothing sent until you click Send. Apple Mail with Apple Intelligence keeps your Gmail address and swaps Google's AI for Apple's. Claude's Gmail connector and ChatGPT's Gmail plugin bring those assistants to one Gmail account, in a chat window. Superhuman and Shortwave are AI mail apps for Gmail with AI from other companies. Fyxer adds drafts and sorting inside Gmail. Mimestream is the Gmail app for Mac with almost no AI. And if you only want Gemini gone, you can turn it off in Gmail's settings.

People search for this for three reasons: they want Gemini off, they don't want Google's AI reading their mail, or they want a different AI, often the one they already pay for. Most pages that rank for this search explain what Gemini does. They don't say how to turn it off, what else stops working when you do, or which AI company reads your Gmail in each alternative. This page answers all three.

How we checked

We read Google's own Gmail help and Workspace pages, and each other vendor's pricing, help and security pages, on November 4, 2026. Every fact about another product links to its source. For Alrighty, we read our own code. Where a page doesn't answer a question, we say "not stated" and don't guess. We did not test the tools. Alrighty is our app, and it's listed first.

How do I turn off Gemini in Gmail?

Turn off Smart features in Google Workspace. That's the setting Google says controls the option to "Ask Gemini to summarize content, create drafts, and find key information, along with other Google Workspace with Gemini features" (Google).

These steps match Gmail's settings as of November 2026:

1. On your computer, open Gmail.
2. At the top right, click Settings, then See all settings.
3. In the General tab, scroll to Google Workspace smart features.
4. Click Manage Workspace smart feature settings.
5. Turn off Smart features in Google Workspace.
6. At the bottom right, click Save.

Google says "Changes to smart feature settings apply across all devices and apps where you're signed in," so the Gmail app on your phone follows.

What else stops working when you turn it off?

Google turns off more than Gemini. With Smart features in Google Workspace off, you also lose flight and other events from Gmail in Calendar, and personalized search in products like Drive (same page).

A second setting, Turn on smart features in Gmail, Chat, and Meet, sits higher in the General tab. It isn't Gemini. It controls Gmail's category tabs (Primary, Social, Promotions), Smart Compose, Smart Reply and the summary cards for travel and packages. Leave it on unless you want those gone too.

Is Gemini on by default?

It depends on where you live. Google says "By default, smart feature settings are off if you live in" the European Economic Area, Japan, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Elsewhere, check the settings above. Google also says "When smart features are on, your data may be used to improve these features."

Does a different mail app turn Gemini off?

No. Gemini is a setting on your Google account, not in your mail app. Google lists Gemini's Gmail features on the web, iPhone and Android (Google), so reading Gmail in another app means you won't see them there. But the setting stays as it is until you change it in Gmail.

Gemini in Gmail alternatives at a glance

Tool	Price	Accounts	Which AI reads your Gmail	Sends without you
Alrighty	14-day trial with no card, then Free or Pro	Gmail, iCloud, Outlook	The AI you connect; built-in features use OpenAI, plus TypeSafe AI to sort	No, you click Send
Apple Mail + Apple Intelligence	Comes with macOS	Gmail and any account in Mail	Apple	Not stated; it suggests replies
Claude's Gmail connector	All Claude users	One Gmail account	Anthropic	No by default; it asks first
ChatGPT's Gmail plugin	Not stated on OpenAI's guide	Gmail, or Outlook	OpenAI	Not stated; it drafts
Superhuman	$25 a member a month, billed yearly	Gmail, Microsoft 365	Not named	Its assistant can, "if you want"
Shortwave	$30 a seat a month	Gmail	Anthropic's Claude models, plus its own open-source models	Not stated
Fyxer	Free; Pro $37 a month billed yearly	Gmail, Outlook	Not named	No
Mimestream	$49.99 a year	Gmail	None of its own; Apple's Writing Tools	No AI of its own
Gemini in Gmail	Free for some features, more on paid plans	Gmail	Google	Not stated

"Not stated" means the vendor's pages we read don't say. It does not mean the answer is bad.

Alrighty: best Gemini in Gmail alternative with the AI you choose

Alrighty is a mail app for Mac, Windows and Linux that takes Gmail with Sign in with Google, or an app password, and puts it in one inbox with your iCloud and Outlook accounts. Gemini works only in Gmail. Alrighty's AI works across every account you add.

• Your own AI reads your mail. A local MCP server on your computer lets Claude (the desktop app and Claude Code), ChatGPT's desktop app, Codex, Cursor, VS Code, OpenCode, Antigravity or a local model list, search and read your mail. It's off until you turn it on with Connect AI. The setup guide covers each one, and our guide to letting Claude read your email walks through Claude.
• It works in a window you watch. That AI can open a window of its own and work there: open mail, write replies, file messages. You can take over at any step. Nothing sends until you click Send.
• Reply drafts in your voice. Gemini's Help me write starts from a prompt. Alrighty's suggested reply starts from the conversation and from what you sent that person before, up to 12 of your sent emails. Click Shorten, Warmer or Formalize, or ask for a change in your own words.
• Answers from your mail. Ask a question and get the answer with the emails it came from. Search runs on your computer and matches meaning as well as words.

Which AI reads your Gmail. With your own AI, it's the assistant you connect, so a local model keeps everything on your computer. Alrighty's built-in features send only the emails they need to Alrighty's server, which asks a model. That's OpenAI's GPT-6.1 Terra for replies and answers, with storage at OpenAI turned off for the request, and Jev at TypeSafe AI for Clean up and sorting into groups. The built-in features don't use Claude. Signed out, nothing goes to Alrighty's server.

On by default. Partly. Your own AI is off until you connect it. Signed in, opening a reply starts a suggested draft by itself, and Clean up sorts senders in the background.

Price. A 14-day trial with no card, then a Free plan or Pro. Free has a small monthly AI allowance.

What it can't do. There's no iPhone or web app. It takes iCloud, Gmail and Outlook accounts only, not Yahoo, Fastmail or other IMAP. It has no calendar. It's a new app with no long track record. It doesn't change your Google account, so turn Gemini off in Gmail too if you want it off.

Pick it if you already use Claude or ChatGPT and want it working in your Gmail on your computer, with your other accounts and under your eye.

Apple Mail with Apple Intelligence: best for Gmail with Apple's AI instead of Google's

Apple Mail comes with macOS and adds Gmail accounts alongside iCloud and others (Apple). With Apple Intelligence on, "a short summary automatically appears under each unread email in your inbox," and "Apple Intelligence can suggest replies to emails you receive" (Apple).

Which AI reads your Gmail. Apple's, on a Mac that has Apple Intelligence. Your mail is still with Google, and Gemini's settings on your account don't change.

What it can't do. "Apple Intelligence on macOS 27 is not available in all languages or regions." Mail's search depends on Spotlight and can miss mail; see our Apple Mail search guide.

Pick it if you want summaries and reply suggestions for Gmail on your Mac, with no new app and no new company.

Claude's Gmail connector: best for Claude in one Gmail account

Anthropic's Google Workspace connectors (Gmail, Google Calendar and Google Drive) "are available for all users on Claude and Claude Desktop" (Anthropic). Claude can search and read your mail, draft emails, and send, reply and forward.

Sends without you. Not by default. "By default, Claude asks for your approval before each of these actions." On Team and Enterprise plans, owners decide whether members can let these actions run without asking each time.

Which AI reads your Gmail. Anthropic. It says "We do not train our models on your Gmail, Drive, or Calendar connector data."

What it can't do. It reaches only "the Google account you've connected," so iCloud and Outlook mail stay out. You work in a chat window, not a mail app. Our guide to email apps for Claude and ChatGPT compares this with the other ways in.

Pick it if you pay for Claude and want it to answer questions about one Gmail account.

ChatGPT's Gmail plugin: best for ChatGPT in one Gmail account

OpenAI's guide to managing your inbox has you connect Gmail or Outlook Email from the Plugins tab in ChatGPT Work. With Gmail, ChatGPT can "Search and triage Gmail threads, create reply drafts, and archive, label, or move messages to Trash when you explicitly ask." It can also "draft replies in your voice, and check for new email on a schedule" (OpenAI).

Sends without you. Not stated. The guide lists drafting, not sending, and its starter prompt tells ChatGPT not to send, archive or move mail without your approval.

Which AI reads your Gmail. OpenAI.

What it can't do. You work in a chat window, not a mail app. The guide doesn't mention iCloud.

Pick it if you pay for ChatGPT and want it to triage and draft in Gmail.

Superhuman: best Gemini alternative in a full Gmail app

Superhuman is a mail app on Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android, "Built for teams that use Gmail or Outlook" (Superhuman). Starter, at $25 a member a month billed yearly, includes Write with AI, Instant Reply and Auto Summarize. Business, at $33, adds Auto Drafts, Ask AI and the Superhuman Mail MCP, which connects your inbox to Claude, ChatGPT and other assistants (plans). Superhuman also sells an Email Assistant that "works inside Gmail or Outlook," "Starting at $12/month" (Superhuman).

Sends without you. It can. Its mail page says its AI drafts and, "if you want," sends "fully written emails on your behalf." The Email Assistant says "Nothing goes out without your approval."

Which AI reads your Gmail. The pages we read don't name the model vendor.

What it can't do. No iCloud, Yahoo or other IMAP. Plans bundle Mail with Grammarly, Docs and Go. See our Superhuman alternatives.

Pick it if you want a faster Gmail app with AI built in, and you'll pay per seat.

Shortwave: best Gemini alternative for AI search in Gmail

Shortwave is a mail app for Gmail with AI search, summaries, filters and replies. It names its models: "Choose between Basic (Claude Haiku 4.5), Standard (Claude Sonnet 4.6), Advanced (Claude Sonnet 4.6 with adaptive thinking)," up to Claude Opus 4.6 (pricing). Business is $30 a seat a month, with a 14-day free trial.

Which AI reads your Gmail. Its security page says "besides Google Cloud, we only use OpenAI, Anthropic, and Pinecone," that "The vast majority of our AI workloads use open source models that run on hardware we control," and that "Your data will never be used to train third-party LLMs." It also says "All Shortwave data is stored in Google Cloud's highly secure & compliant data centers," so your mail is stored with Shortwave too.

What it can't do. Gmail and Google Workspace only. Microsoft 365 and Exchange are "not supported at this time" (Shortwave). There's no unified inbox by default. See our Shortwave alternatives.

Pick it if you want Claude models doing AI search in Gmail and accept a cloud-based app.

Fyxer: best for drafts and sorting inside Gmail, no new app

Fyxer works inside your Gmail or Outlook inbox. "Fyxer securely connects to Gmail and Outlook in seconds" (Fyxer). Pro adds "Replies drafted in your tone and automatic labeling" for $37 a person a month billed yearly, or $49 monthly. "The Free plan doesn't sort your inbox for you" (pricing).

Sends without you. No. "Fyxer drafts replies in your inbox, and you decide what gets sent."

Which AI reads your Gmail. Not named. Fyxer says "Your data is never used to train third-party models like OpenAI" (security).

What it can't do. Gmail and Outlook only, and it's credit-based. See our Fyxer alternatives.

Pick it if you want reply drafts waiting in the Gmail you already use.

Mimestream: best Gmail app for Mac with almost no AI

If you want less AI rather than a different one, Mimestream is a native Mac app for Gmail at $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year (pricing). It "only stores your data and tokens on your device" (Mimestream). Its home page lists no AI of its own. It supports Apple Intelligence's Writing Tools, which come from macOS (releases).

What it can't do. Google accounts only. Our email apps without AI page has more options.

Pick it if you want Gmail on your Mac with no new AI company at all.

How to choose

• Claude, ChatGPT or a local model in Gmail, iCloud and Outlook together, nothing sent without you: Alrighty.
• Gmail with Apple's AI instead of Google's: Apple Mail with Apple Intelligence.
• Claude for one Gmail account, in a chat: Claude's Gmail connector.
• ChatGPT for one Gmail account, in a chat: ChatGPT's Gmail plugin.
• A faster Gmail app with AI built in: Superhuman.
• AI search in Gmail on Claude models: Shortwave.
• Drafts inside Gmail, no new app: Fyxer.
• Gmail on a Mac with almost no AI: Mimestream.
• Gemini gone, nothing else changed: turn off Smart features in Google Workspace in Gmail.

For every AI assistant compared side by side, see the best AI email assistants. For reply drafts alone, see the AI email reply generators. To see the rest of what Alrighty does, read its features.

Questions

How do I get rid of Gemini in Gmail?

Open Gmail on a computer, click Settings, then See all settings. In General, under Google Workspace smart features, click Manage Workspace smart feature settings, turn off Smart features in Google Workspace, and click Save. The change applies on every device where you're signed in.

Will turning off Gemini remove my Promotions tab?

Not if you turn off only Smart features in Google Workspace. The tabs belong to the other setting, Turn on smart features in Gmail, Chat, and Meet. Turning that one off also removes Smart Compose, Smart Reply and the summary cards above emails.

Does Gemini read my emails?

When you use a Gemini feature, Gemini reads the mail it needs, inside Google. Google says it uses "automated tools to remove personally identifiable information (PII) from data subsets used to train Gemini" (Google). It does not say your mail is never used for training.

Can I use Claude or ChatGPT instead of Gemini in Gmail?

Yes. Claude's Gmail connector and ChatGPT's Gmail plugin each reach one Gmail account from a chat window. Alrighty lets Claude, ChatGPT and other assistants read Gmail, iCloud and Outlook together on your computer, and work in a mail window you watch.

Is Gemini in Gmail free?

Partly. For personal Gmail accounts without a paid plan, Google says "availability is currently limited to the US," except conversation summaries, which are global. AI Inbox and other features need a Google AI Plus, Pro or Ultra plan, or an eligible Google Workspace plan (Google).