Difficulty:: beginner
Tools:: gmail

Problem

Receipts arrive constantly, are read once, and are needed twice a year. Left in the inbox they are noise. Deleted, they are gone at tax time.

Trigger

Every incoming message, evaluated by Gmail on arrival.

Prerequisites

01A Gmail or Google Workspace account.
02Five minutes to read what the search matches before turning it on.

Steps

01
Create a label called Receipts gmail
02
Import the filter gmail
Settings > Filters and blocked addresses > Import filters, upload the file below, then select the filter and create it.
03
Apply it to existing mail once gmail
Search the same terms, select all, apply the label and archive. A filter only sees new mail.
04
Watch it for a week and tighten the terms
Anything wrongly filed tells you which word is too broad. no-reply is the usual culprit.

Payload · xml

<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?>
<feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:apps='http://schemas.google.com/apps/2006'>
  <title>Mail Filters</title>
  <entry>
    <category term='filter'></category>
    <title>Receipts</title>
    <apps:property name='hasTheWord' value='subject:(receipt OR invoice OR &quot;order confirmation&quot; OR &quot;your order&quot;) OR from:(billing OR receipts OR invoices OR no-reply)'/>
    <apps:property name='label' value='Receipts'/>
    <apps:property name='shouldArchive' value='true'/>
    <apps:property name='shouldNeverSpam' value='true'/>
    <apps:property name='sizeOperator' value='s_sl'/>
    <apps:property name='sizeUnit' value='s_smb'/>
  </entry>
</feed>

Failure modes

!The word invoice appears in a thread that matters and it is archived unread. Search label:Receipts to find it, then narrow the terms.
!Receipts that use none of these words are missed. Add senders as you notice them.
!The filter does not touch mail that arrived before it existed. Step 3 exists for that reason.
!shouldNeverSpam keeps these out of spam, which also means a fake receipt stays in the inbox. Read before clicking, always.

JSON-LD · HowTo

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "HowTo",
  "name": "File every receipt out of the inbox automatically",
  "description": "One Gmail filter labels anything that looks like a receipt or an invoice and archives it, so purchases stay searchable in one place and out of the inbox.",
  "url": "https://automationsanonymous.com/automations/file-every-receipt-out-of-the-inbox",
  "tool": [
    {
      "@type": "HowToTool",
      "name": "gmail",
      "url": "https://automationsanonymous.com/tools/gmail"
    }
  ],
  "step": [
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "position": 1,
      "name": "Create a label called Receipts",
      "text": "Create a label called Receipts",
      "url": "https://automationsanonymous.com/tools/gmail"
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "position": 2,
      "name": "Import the filter",
      "text": "Settings > Filters and blocked addresses > Import filters, upload the file below, then select the filter and create it.",
      "url": "https://automationsanonymous.com/tools/gmail"
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "position": 3,
      "name": "Apply it to existing mail once",
      "text": "Search the same terms, select all, apply the label and archive. A filter only sees new mail.",
      "url": "https://automationsanonymous.com/tools/gmail"
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "position": 4,
      "name": "Watch it for a week and tighten the terms",
      "text": "Anything wrongly filed tells you which word is too broad. no-reply is the usual culprit."
    }
  ],
  "datePublished": "2026-09-05T16:53:22.457Z"
}