Why people end up with several inboxes
Nobody plans it. An attorney joins a firm and keeps the address her old clients know. A consultant has one account per client engagement because each agency insists on it. A founder has the company address, the investor-facing address, and the Gmail that is on every account he opened before the company existed. Each one is still live because somebody important still writes to it.
The cost is not the time to check them. It is the question you cannot answer quickly: did that come in, and where?
The usual fixes, and where they break
There are three common workarounds. Each helps, and each has a failure that shows up at the worst time.
- Forward everything to one account. Gmail can reply from the address a message was sent to once you set up Send mail as, but search, labels, and any AI summary now see one blended inbox and lose track of where a message really lives. Google began retiring Gmailify and POP fetching of other accounts in January 2026 and points people to forwarding instead, so more mail is ending up in one blended inbox.
- One mail app with several accounts. Better, because replies stay on the right account. But search, rules, and any AI summary still run per account, so "did it come in" is still several searches.
- A shared inbox tool for the team. Right for a support queue, heavy for one person's own mail, and it does not touch your personal account at all.
What changes when the assistant reads all of them
An assistant that is connected to every account can answer the question you actually have. You ask whether the payoff letter, the signed agreement, or the revised figures came back, and it checks everywhere and tells you which inbox it landed in. It learns which address each counterpart uses and drafts the reply from that one. And the morning brief covers the whole desk, so a client who wrote to the wrong address is in the same short list as everyone else.
This is the main reason people with one inbox and people with three have such different experiences of AI email tools. Most tools are built for one.
How Aura handles several accounts
Aura connects Google Workspace accounts and treats them as one desk. Plans are sized by how many you connect: one on Basic at $20 a month, two on Plus at $99, three on Pro at $199, and five on Max at $299. You text Aura from your phone, or call it on Pro and Max, and it answers across all of them.
Accounts stay separate where it matters. A reply goes out from the account the thread lives in unless you say otherwise. Calendars from each account are read together so a meeting on one does not get double-booked on another. And nothing is sent from any account without your approval.
Setting it up without making a mess
Three steps. One: sign up, connect your main work account, and live with it for a few days. Two: add the second account from Integrations. Three: tell Aura in plain words what each account is for: "the firm address is for client matters, the gmail is personal but three old clients still use it, flag those". That one sentence does more than any rule you could write in a mail client.
If an account belongs to an employer or an agency, check their policy before you connect it. Aura asks Google for access through the standard consent screen, and an administrator can see and revoke it like any other connected app.
What it does not cover yet
Aura connects Google Workspace and Gmail accounts today. It does not connect Microsoft 365 or Outlook mailboxes as inboxes it manages, so a mixed Google and Microsoft setup will only be half covered. If that is you, talk to the team about current options before you sign up.
Ways to manage several email accounts
| Forwarding | One mail app | AI assistant across accounts | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Read everything in one place | Yes | Yes | You do not have to, it reads for you |
| Replies go from the right address | After setting up Send mail as | Yes | Yes, drafted from the account the thread lives in |
| "Did it come in, and where?" | One search, mixed results | One search per account | Ask by text, it checks every account |
| One daily brief across accounts | No | No | Yes |
| Follow-ups tracked across accounts | No | No | Yes |
Questions, answered
Can one AI assistant manage multiple email accounts?+
Yes. Aura connects up to five Google Workspace or Gmail accounts, depending on the plan, and works across them as one desk: one brief, one list of follow-ups, and replies drafted from the right address.
How many email accounts can I connect?+
One on Aura Basic, two on Plus, three on Pro, and five on Max.
Will replies come from the correct address?+
Yes. Aura drafts the reply from the account the thread lives in, and learns which address each person uses. Nothing sends until you approve it.
Can I mix work and personal Gmail?+
Yes. Many people connect a work account and a personal one that clients still use. Tell Aura what each is for and it will flag work mail that lands in the personal account.
Does it work with Outlook or Microsoft 365?+
Not today. Aura connects Google Workspace and Gmail accounts. If you run a mix, talk to the team about current options.
Is this better than forwarding all my mail to one inbox?+
If you want to be told what came in and where, yes. Forwarding lets you read in one place, but search and summaries lose track of which account a message belongs to. Google now recommends forwarding in place of Gmailify and POP fetching, so expect more blended inboxes, not fewer.
Does my employer see that I connected an assistant?+
A Google Workspace administrator can see and revoke connected apps, including Aura, the same as any other app. Check your organization's policy before connecting a managed account.