Home → Admin Manual → Mail Rules → Understanding and Using Mail Rules

9.1. Understanding and Using Mail Rules

Updated: May 12 2026, 02:53 PM

What Is a Mail Rule?

Mail Rules in HelpSpot are a type of automation used to process new inbound emails. Much like rules in Outlook or Apple Mail, Mail Rules scan incoming messages for specific email-based conditions—such as addresses in the To, From, or CC fields, or specific words in the email subject or body—and perform automated actions in response.

Mail Rules are particularly useful for real-time email triage, letting you instantly route or respond to requests based on the content and metadata of incoming emails.

⚠️ Important: Mail Rules only apply to new email requests. They do not apply to updates on existing requests, nor to requests submitted via the portal or API.

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When to Use Mail Rules

Use Mail Rules when:

• You need to take action based on email header values such as To, From, CC, or Subject.

• You want to automatically assign or categorize emails as they arrive.

• You need to send immediate replies to certain types of messages.

• You’re routing emails from VIP senders or specific domains to particular staff or queues.

• You require fast, real-time processing of incoming emails (Mail Rules are somewhat faster than Triggers, especially in installations with many different automations configured).

Examples:

• Assign emails that contain “urgent” in the subject line to a priority queue.

• Automatically reply with a Knowledge Book article when an email body contains “reset password.”

• Route all emails from @bigclient.com to a dedicated account manager.

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How Mail Rules Differ from Triggers and Automation Rules

Feature	Mail Rules	Triggers	Automation Rules
Works on new requests	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	❌ No (used for periodic checks only)
Works on updates	❌ No	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Searches email headers	✅ Yes (To, From, Subject, etc.)	❌ No (works on request fields only)	❌ No (works on request fields only)
Runs in real time	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	❌ No (runs on schedule)
Best use cases	Email triage, routing, VIP handling	Workflow updates on status/category/etc.	Escalation, reminders, follow-up scheduling

Key Differentiator: If you need to search email metadata (like the full contents of a “To” or “From” field), Mail Rules are your only option.

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How to Use Mail Rules

1. Navigate to Admin → Automation → Mail Rules in your HelpSpot instance.

2. Click “Create New Rule.”

3. Define your conditions using email fields:

   • From

   • To

   • CC

   • Subject

   • Body

   • Attachment presence

4. Choose condition logic: Contains, Does Not Contain, Equals, etc.

   Note: When searching headers like “To,” use “Contains” rather than “Is.” Email headers often contain names and formatting (e.g., "Ian Landsman" <ian@domain.com>) that make exact matches unreliable.

5. Specify the action(s):

   • Assign to a user

   • Set status, priority, or category

   • Send a custom email response

   • Add tags or custom field values

6. Save and test your rule.

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Best Practices

• Use Mail Rules for speed in large-scale environments—especially for basic routing and auto-responses.

• Reserve Triggers for changes to existing requests (like workflow updates or escalations).

• Avoid overlapping logic between Mail Rules and Triggers to keep automation clear and predictable.

• Log your rules and review them periodically to ensure they align with current business needs.

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Summary

Mail Rules are the go-to solution for automating how new incoming emails are handled in HelpSpot. They’re fast, flexible, and uniquely equipped to evaluate email-specific conditions like sender, recipient, subject, and body content. Use Mail Rules when you need to take immediate action on new messages, especially in email-heavy environments or high-priority workflows.

Knowledge Tags

Mail Rules  /