How to see the source of a message in Gmail

See hidden details in Gmail emails

The email you see in Gmail isn't really what the original email looked like, at least not as the email program interprets it when it's received. Instead, there is a hidden source code that you can click to view some additional information not included in the regular message.

The source code of the email displays the email header information, and usually also displays HTML code that controls how the message is displayed. This means you can see when the message was received, the server that sent it, and more.

Note: You can only view the full source code of an email if you are using the desktop version of Gmail or Inbox. The Gmail mobile app doesn't support viewing raw messages.

How to View the Source Code of a Gmail Message

Open the message for which you want to view the source code.

Find the top of the email where the subject, sender details and timestamp are. On the right is the reply button, followed by a small down arrow - click that arrow to see a new menu.

Select Show Original from this menu to open a new tab showing the source code of the email.

To download the original message as a TXT file, you can use the Download Original button. Alternatively, click Copy to clipboard to copy all the text so you can paste it anywhere.

How to View the Source Code of an Inbox Email

If you use Gmail's inbox, follow these steps:

Open the email.

Find the three-dot stacked menu button in the upper right corner of Mail. Note that there are two of these buttons, but the button you're looking for is at the top of the message itself, not the menu above the message. In other words, open the one located next to the email date.

Select Show original to open the source code in a new tab.

Just like in Gmail, you can download the full message to your computer as a text document, or copy the content to the clipboard.