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How to export Gmail to an .mbox file with Google Takeout

5 min read · Updated 2026-05-30

Gmail doesn't have a one-click “download my email” button, but Google Takeout does the same job. Takeout packages your mail into a standard .mbox archive — the exact format sub-hunt.com reads. The whole export happens on Google's side; you just choose what to include and wait for the download link.

An .mbox file is a plain-text archive that concatenates every message in a mailbox, one after another, in the format mail clients have used for decades. Gmail's Takeout export gives you a single .mbox containing the messages you selected, headers and bodies intact. That's all sub-hunt needs to find your subscriptions — and because the parsing happens in your browser, the file never has to leave your computer after you download it.

Export your Gmail with Google Takeout

You'll need to be signed in to the Google account whose mail you want to scan. The export runs on Google's servers, so you can close the tab while it works.

  1. Open Google Takeout. Go to takeout.google.com and sign in if prompted. Takeout is Google's official data-export tool and covers every Google product, not just Gmail.
  2. Deselect everything, then pick Mail only. Click “Deselect all” at the top of the product list, scroll down to Mail, and tick its checkbox. Exporting Mail alone keeps the download small and the export fast.
  3. Choose which labels to include (optional). Under Mail, click “All Mail data included” to pick specific labels — for example just Inbox, or a “Receipts” label. For a complete subscription sweep, leaving “All Mail” selected catches receipts buried in Archive and Promotions.
  4. Click Next step and set the delivery method. Choose “Send download link via email,” frequency “Export once,” and file type “.zip.” Leave the size at 2 GB unless your mailbox is enormous; larger sizes just mean fewer files.
  5. Click Create export. Google starts assembling the archive. For a small mailbox this takes a few minutes; for years of mail it can take hours, occasionally a day or two. You'll get an email when it's ready.
  6. Download the .zip and locate the .mbox. Open the link from Google's email and download the archive. Inside you'll find Takeout/Mail/All mail Including Spam and Trash.mbox (the name varies with your label choice).

Good to know

  • You can drop the Takeout .zip straight onto sub-hunt — it reads the .mbox inside, so there's no need to unzip first.
  • Very large mailboxes are split into several numbered .zip files. Each contains part of your mail; scan them one at a time.
  • The download link expires after about a week. If you miss it, just run the export again.
  • Takeout exports a copy. Nothing is deleted from Gmail, and creating an export changes nothing in your account.

Frequently asked questions

  • How long does a Gmail Takeout export take?
    Anywhere from a couple of minutes to a day or more, depending on how much mail you have. Small inboxes are usually ready within ten minutes; multi-gigabyte archives queue for longer. Google emails you the moment it's done.
  • Will exporting delete or change my email?
    No. Takeout creates a downloadable copy of your data. Your Gmail account, labels, and messages are untouched.
  • Do I need to unzip the file before scanning?
    No. sub-hunt accepts the Takeout .zip directly and reads the .mbox inside it. You can unzip it yourself if you prefer, then drop the .mbox in instead.
  • Is my email safe when I scan it?
    Yes. Once you've downloaded the file, sub-hunt parses it entirely inside your browser. Nothing is uploaded — you can confirm by watching your browser's Network tab stay quiet during a scan.

Ready to scan your inbox?

Once you have your .mbox file, drop it into sub-hunt.com. Everything is parsed in your browser — nothing is uploaded.

Open the scanner

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