Google to roll out its new Gmail UI to more users

Google started rolling out an updated user interface for Gmail in February that brings Meet, Chat, and Spaces closer together and applies more of its Material You-style effects. Starting today, it will become opt-out instead of opt-in, so your account will switch to the new view by default very soon.

It's not a huge change, but as Google transitions through its current flavour-of-the-week messaging app and turns its Workspace suite into a better competitor to Office, it emphasises updated experiences more.

The updated UI collects buttons for Mail, Meeting, Spaces, and Chat into one list at the top of the left rail instead of displaying multiple conversations of each in one list. However, they're still easily accessible without having everything on screen at once. You can quickly jump to a conversation in any section as a list will appear when you hover over its icon.

And if you want to have one particular form of communication on screen without the others (like Gmail), it's a little easier to do that since Chat and the rest no longer appear under your inboxes and labels.

According to Google, you can choose which apps are included there in the Quick Settings menu, where you can go back to the old look if you prefer. Unlike the usual 15-day rollout for new features, Google says this is an "extended rollout," so while it's coming to Workspace and personal Gmail accounts alike, its interface could take longer than a few weeks to change on its own. Nevertheless, if you want to try it out, you should be able to subscribe (and unsubscribe) from the quick settings menu at this point, as long as you've already switched to Chat from Hangouts and put Chat in the menu on the left.