How to get Gmail Categories in macOS Mail app?
Solution 1:
Short answer: no.
Gmail works on a system of "labels", which is represented in IMAP (a protocol used by email clients to talk to email servers) with traditional folders.
The "tabs" you are referring to show up as "category:social", etc. in the search bar in Gmail when you click on them. There is no representation in Gmail's IMAP server for these categories, therefore Mail (and any other email client) is unaware of them.
Solution 2:
Unfortunately, Gmail doesn’t expose its “Categories” to IMAP. I'm using Mail.app as my email client, and I had the same desire to have my mail categorized with Gmail’s bayesian-or-whatever classifiers, so I found a fix.
This workaround uses filters to automatically apply labels to categories. Once labeled the old fashioned way, they can then be exposed to IMAP.
- Go to Gmail/Settings/Filters
- Using a search operator enter
category:[chosen category]in the “Has the words” field and click “Create filter with this search.“ - Check “Apply the label:” and select or create new label
- (optional) Check “Also apply filter to matching conversations.“
- Create filter
- Go to Gmail/Settings/Labels and show the label in IMAP
- (optional) Hide the label from label and message lists
This will link up your Gmail categories to your Mail.app.
Solution 3:
If the goal is to stop getting Promotions or Social polluting your Inbox... Yes.
I wouldn't call it elegant, but it's easy and it works.
IN GMAIL:
Create a new label: Under other labels, you may have to click More for + Create New Label . Call it "Promotions"
Settings, Filters & Blocked Addresses, Create a New Filter
Has the words: category:promotions
Create filter
Do this: Skip Inbox, Apply label "Promotions"
IN APPLE MAIL: Nothing... it will automatically get put into a new subfolder called "Promotions." The "new message" sound may still sound, but the promo message won't be polluting your Inbox and you can choose not have it show that you got the message in Preferences, General: New message notifications: Inbox only
Solution 4:
You can use the MailTags plugin for Apple mail. This post gives a good recipe for syncing not only labels but also categories (the tabs) in Google mail with Apple Mail.