Setting an Away Message in Gmail (Out of Office AutoReply)

An away message, also known as an out-of-office autoreply, informs senders that you're unavailable and when they can expect a response. Gmail allows you to easily set up a custom message to automatically respond to incoming emails while you're away.

Here's how to set an away message in Gmail:

Open Gmail.
Click the Settings gear icon in the top right corner.
Select See all settings.
Scroll down to the Vacation responder section.
Turn on the Vacation responder switch.
Set the date range for your absence. You can choose specific dates or leave the last day blank for an indefinite duration.
Compose your away message in the provided field.
- Briefly explain your absence and when you expect to return.
- Include information on how long it might take you to respond to urgent emails (optional).
- You can customize the message formatting with bold, italics, or even insert an image.
(Optional) Check the box "Only send a response to emails from my contacts" if you only want your contacts to receive your away message.
Click Save Changes at the bottom of the page.

Turning off your away message:

On your computer, you'll see a banner across your inbox displaying the subject of your away message. Click End now to turn it off.
In the mobile app, navigate back to Settings > Vacation responder and toggle the switch off.

Additional tips:

Keep your message concise and professional.
Consider including alternate contact information for urgent matters.
Test your away message by sending yourself an email to ensure it works correctly.

By following these steps, you can easily set up an informative away message in Gmail, letting senders know about your absence and managing their expectations regarding email response times.