In 2022, Google rolled out a new interface for gmail. This new look, which does not revolutionize the appearance of Google's messaging, has nevertheless brought some new features. This is notably the case of a new column on the left of the inbox which allows quick access to Google Meet and Google Chat...
This sidebar takes up a bit of screen space and quite honestly, it's not useful for everyone! But the good news is that it's entirely possible to make it disappear and regain those few pixels you're missing!
The manipulation is relatively simple, but as is often the case, you have to rummage around a bit in the Gmail menus. So let's see together how to make this bar disappear quick access!
Hide Google Meet and Google Chat in Gmail
To hide this quick access sidebar to Google's social apps, start by logging into Gmail in your computer's web browser.
Once logged into your inbox, click on the small gear icon in the top right to access settings.
In the panel that opens, locate the “Apps in Gmail” section and click “Customize.”
A window will open in which you will have to deselect “Google Chat” and “Google Meet” then click on “OK” to confirm your choice.
Gmail will then prompt you to refresh the page to apply your choices. So click refresh and the page will reload. You will see that the sidebar disappeared and you will find a more classic view of Gmail as you can see below:
And there you have it, it's not more complicated than that! Google loves to use Gmail to advertise its other tools productivity. You might really find these services useful, but you might not want them to appear all the time in Gmail. Luckily, it's easy to hide these shortcuts!
