It’s Gmail’s Archive button. Selecting it removes a message from your Inbox but keeps it in All Mail, so you can find it later. It does not delete the message.
What the Gmail box-and-arrow icon does
The box with a downward arrow is the Archive action. Gmail makes Archive available for a selected message and for a message opened from the Inbox. The toolbar may also include actions such as Delete, Report spam, Mark as unread, and Move to; its exact layout can vary. Identify the button by its Archive function rather than by a promised screen position. Google’s toolbar guide describes the available actions and layout options.
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Archiving clears the message from the Inbox without removing it from your mail. As Google explains, “When you archive a message, it no longer appears in your inbox, but you can still find it under the ‘All mail’ label.” Google’s archive instructions cover where archived messages remain and how to manage them.
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Archive and Delete are separate Gmail actions. Archive removes a message from the Inbox and leaves it available in All Mail. Delete moves a message to Trash. If you want to keep a message but clear it from the Inbox, choose Archive; if you want it in Trash, choose Delete. Google’s organization guide explains the distinction.
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How to find an archived email
Browse All Mail
In Gmail, open All Mail to browse messages that are no longer in the Inbox, including archived messages.
Search for archived messages
Enter in:archive in Gmail’s search box to find archived mail. Google documents both methods in its archive help page.
How to move an archived email back to your Inbox
Select the message and choose Move to Inbox. This returns it to the Inbox without treating Archive as a deletion. If someone replies to an archived conversation, Google says that conversation returns to the Inbox. The exact controls can differ by device and interaction mode; Google also documents archive actions for Android and for screen-reader and keyboard users in its archive instructions and screen-reader guide.
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