How to Delete All Email at Once on Yahoo Mail

Want to get away from it all—or at least get it all away from you? Find out here how to clean up your account and delete all email at once on Yahoo Mail.

First, 2592 Characters

and not one iota more had to suffice for any email when email was initially conceived: on the CTSS computer at MIT, that made one record on disk, and that was all you (generously, given how crammed computer storage space was) got when Tom Van Vleck threw together the MAIL program in 1965.

Now you seem to have 2592×1965 emails of sheer unlimited size cramming your Yahoo Mail inbox and folders? How about getting rid of it all?

How to Delete All Email at Once on Yahoo Mail

Delete Absolutely All Emails

Using an Email Program

To remove all emails in a Yahoo Mail account using a local email program:

1. Set up Yahoo Mail using IMAP in an email client such as Thunderbird, macOS Mail or Microsoft Outlook.
2. Delete all emails (and, as you see fit, custom folders) in the email program.

Using the Web Interface (Currently Not Available)

 
Note: There is currently no straightforward way to delete all emails in Yahoo Mail using the web interface.
 

To purge all mail from your Yahoo Mail account using classic Yahoo Mail:

1. Make sure your account is set to use classic Yahoo Mail. (See below)
   Note: There is currently no straightforward way to delete all mail in the latest browser-based version of Yahoo Mail or in the Yahoo Mail apps for iOS and Android.
   In bulk: You can always set up Yahoo Mail as an IMAP account in an email program, however, and delete messages in bulk there.
2. Click the search magnifying glass icon in front of the search field in classic Yahoo Mail.
3. Select Inbox under Search in | All mail.
4. Type from:@ in the search field.
5. Click Search Mail.
6. Click the selection checkbox on top of search results to select all emails.
   Yahoo Mail keyboard shortcut: You can also press Ctrl A (Windows and GNU/Linux) or Command A (Mac) to select all messages.
7. Click Delete.
8. Repeat for Archive, Sent, Drafts and other folders you may be using.
   Note: While you can try searching All Mail for from:@, I have found this to search erratically and miss messages while going through the folders individually should leave nothing behind.
9. Empty your Yahoo Mail Trash folder to finally purge all messages from your account.

Delete All Emails in a Yahoo Mail Folder

To delete all emails in a custom Yahoo Mail folder:

1. Hover with the mouse cursor over the folder you want to empty.
   Note: The following only works for folders that appear under Folders in your Yahoo Mail’s folder list. (Do click Show next to Folders if the list is currently hidden.)
   Important: Deleting all messages will not work for standard Yahoo Mail folders—including Inbox, Sent and Archive.
2. Select the downward-pointed triangle (▼) that appears next to its name.
3. Now choose Delete all emails from the context menu that has appeared.
4. Click OK in the Delete all emails dialog box.
5. Optionally, empty the Trash folder.

How to Delete All Email on Yahoo: FAQ

How can I switch my Yahoo Mail account to use the classic interface?

To switch to Yahoo Mail classic:

1. Click the Settings Menu gear icon () in Yahoo Mail.
2. Select Switch to classic Mail from the sheet that has appeared.
   Note: Select More Settings followed by Switch to classic Mail if you do not see the switching item on the initial screen.
3. Click Switch back to classic Mail if prompted.

To switch back to the latest version of Yahoo Mail:

1. Follow the One click away from your upgraded Inbox link that appears at the bottom of classic Yahoo Mail.

(How to delete all email in Yahoo Mail tested in a desktop browser; updated February 2024)