Gmail plus addressing lets you create unlimited aliases with a single inbox.

How plus addressing works

Gmail plus addressing (sometimes called sub-addressing or the plus trick) takes advantage of a simple rule: everything between the + sign and the @ sign is ignored during mail delivery but preserved in the message headers.

If your address is alice@gmail.com, all of the following land in the same inbox:

• alice+shopping@gmail.com
• alice+github@gmail.com
• alice+newsletters@gmail.com
• alice+anything.you.want@gmail.com

There is no limit to the number of plus aliases you can use, and you do not need to register or configure them in advance. Simply use a new tag wherever you type your email address and Gmail handles the rest.

Step-by-step: using plus addresses

1. Pick a meaningful tag. Keep it short and descriptive. Good examples: +amazon, +work, +promo. Avoid special characters other than dots and hyphens inside the tag.
2. Enter the tagged address on the signup form. Type yourname+amazon@gmail.com in the email field. Most sites accept this as a valid address.
3. Create a Gmail filter. Go to Settings > Filters and Blocked Addresses > Create a new filter. In the "To" field, enter the plus address. Choose an action: apply a label, skip the inbox, mark as read, or forward.
4. Monitor and adjust. Over time you can update the filter action, or if a service starts sending spam, delete the filter and block the tag entirely.

Practical examples

Which services block plus addresses

Not every website accepts the + character in email fields. Some strip it during validation, while others reject the address outright. Here is a general breakdown:

• Usually accept plus addresses: Google, GitHub, Amazon, Stripe, Slack, LinkedIn, Dropbox, and most developer-facing SaaS tools.
• Sometimes block plus addresses: Some banking sites, government portals, older e-commerce platforms, and services that use strict email validation regexes that reject the + character.
• Deliberately block plus addresses: A few services specifically strip or reject the + portion to prevent users from creating multiple trial accounts.

When a service blocks your plus address, the Gmail dot trick is a practical alternative. Because dot variations look like regular email addresses, they pass virtually every validation check. Use our Gmail Dot Variations Generator to create them.

Plus addressing vs the dot trick

Both features route mail to the same inbox, but they differ in important ways:

• Readability: Plus tags like +shopping are self-documenting. Dot variations like a.lice vs al.ice are harder to tell apart at a glance.
• Filter precision: Filtering on a plus tag is exact. Filtering on a dot variation requires matching the full To: address string.
• Volume of variations: For a 10-character username, the dot trick produces 512 permutations. Plus addressing is unlimited because you invent the tag.
• Acceptance rate: Dot variations pass nearly every validation check because they look like normal addresses. Plus addresses are blocked by some websites.
• Combining both: You can use dots and a plus tag together. a.lice+shop@gmail.com delivers to the same inbox as alice@gmail.com.

Plus addressing in Google Workspace

Plus addressing works in Google Workspace by default, but administrators can disable it through routing rules. If you are on a company or school account and plus addresses bounce, ask your IT team whether sub-addressing has been turned off at the admin level.

When plus addressing is enabled on Workspace, the same filtering and organizational strategies work exactly as they do on personal Gmail. The only difference is that the admin controls whether the feature is available.

Sending from a plus address

Gmail lets you add a plus address as a "Send mail as" identity so that recipients see the tagged version in their inbox:

1. Open Gmail and go to Settings > Accounts and Import > Send mail as.
2. Click "Add another email address" and enter your plus address (e.g., alice+work@gmail.com).
3. Uncheck "Treat as an alias" if you want a completely separate sending identity, or leave it checked to share the same inbox.
4. Verify the address when prompted. Gmail sends a confirmation link to your own inbox since the plus address routes there.

Once configured, you can choose the plus address in the "From" dropdown when composing a new message.

Security and privacy considerations

Plus addressing is not a security feature. Anyone who knows your base address can guess the pattern. If your tagged address leaks in a data breach, an attacker can trivially strip the +tag portion to reach your primary inbox.

That said, plus tags are useful for tracking data leaks. If you gave alice+acmestore@gmail.com only to Acme Store and you start receiving spam at that exact address, you know Acme either sold your data or suffered a breach.

Generate aliases with dots and plus tags

For maximum flexibility, combine dot variations with plus tags. The Gmail Dot Variations Generator creates every dot permutation of your username. You can then append your own plus tags to any variation for a virtually limitless set of unique addresses that all route to one inbox.