Why I use Superhuman

The email app I recommend to anyone who lives in Gmail, and how to try it in 15 minutes.

Written with AI: Claude Code drafted this guide from Superhuman's help pages and my own usage, and recorded the demo on my screen with fake emails.

People ask me what I use for email. The answer is Superhuman. It's a separate email app that sits on top of your Gmail (or Outlook) account. Your mail stays in Gmail. Superhuman is a faster way to read and clear it.

Since September 10 my Mac has logged about 15 hours in it, across 55 days of use, roughly 16 minutes a day. In September and October about 3,850 emails came through my inbox.

The short version

1. It's its own app. Email has its own window, so I don't go digging through browser tabs for the Gmail one.
2. Everything is a keyboard shortcut. J and K move down and up the list (the same keys Vim uses). Enter opens an email, Esc goes back.
3. It sorts your mail for you. Mail from real people goes in Important. Newsletters and notifications go in Other. You can add more splits, like Calendar or News.
4. Inbox zero is the default. E marks an email done, which in Gmail is an archive. One key per email, and the list empties.

The one idea behind it: you read each email once, then press one key to get rid of it.

Let your AI set it up

If you have Claude Code (Anthropic's AI agent that runs in your terminal, on a paid Claude plan), paste this into it. It will walk you through sign-up and settings and quiz you on the shortcuts.

Read https://www.matthandzel.com/guides/superhuman.md. It's a short beginner's guide to the Superhuman Mail email app (keyboard shortcuts, split inbox, inbox zero, and the Claude connector).

Then help me set it up:
1. Ask me which email account I want to use (Gmail / Google Workspace or Microsoft 365; Superhuman supports only those), whether it's a work account, and whether my employer has rules about third-party apps reading work email. If it's a work account, tell me to check with IT or my security person before connecting it, and stop until I say it's OK.
2. Don't sign me up for anything or enter payment details. Superhuman is paid (about $30 a month). Give me the sign-up link from the guide and wait while I do it myself.
3. Tell me how to install the Mac app (or Windows, iPhone, Android) and wait while I sign in. Sign-in is a Google or Microsoft permission screen, which I click myself.
4. Walk me through the settings in the guide's "Tune your splits" section, one at a time, with the exact menu path. Wait for me after each.
5. Teach me the six keys the guide says to learn first (J, K, Enter, Esc, E, H). Give me one tiny exercise for each (for example "press J three times, then K once"), and wait for me to confirm it worked.
6. If I want the Claude connector, check whether my plan includes it (the guide says it needs the Business plan) before giving me the setup command.
7. When we're done, give me a one-screen cheat sheet and tell me how to undo everything (uninstall, revoke Google access, cancel the subscription).

No Claude Code? Paste the same text into Claude or any chat AI and it will walk you through it.

Before you start

• An email account on Gmail, Google Workspace or Microsoft 365. Superhuman only supports those. No iCloud or generic IMAP.
• About $30 a month. There's no free tier for the email app (pricing). If someone sends you a referral link, you both get a month free (how referrals work). Mine is my referral link.
• On a work account, ask first. Superhuman reads and changes your whole mailbox. I wasn't sure how good it is for information security when I started, and your company may have rules about apps like this.
• 15 minutes for sign-up and the first settings. Superhuman's get started guide teaches the basics in about the same time.

Pick your level

Each level works on its own. Most people should do 1 and 2 and stop.

Level 1: Install it and learn six keys

What it is. Superhuman is a desktop app (Mac and Windows) plus phone apps. It shows your Gmail inbox, but every action has a single-key shortcut, and it opens fast.

Why I use it. I don't want to hunt through browser tabs for Gmail. Superhuman has its own window instead. And I really like the keyboard shortcuts: it's nice to just press J and K to move through the list.

Set it up (15 min):

1. Sign up at superhuman.com/mail (or with my referral link for a free month for both of us).
2. Download the app from the download page. On a Mac, open the file and drag Superhuman into Applications.
3. Open it and sign in with Google (or Microsoft). Click Allow on the permission screen.
4. Learn six keys first: J, K, Enter, Esc, E and H (all in the cheat sheet below). The bar at the bottom of the window also reminds you of a few.

Check it worked: press J three times and the highlighted row moves down three emails. Press K once and it moves back up. If nothing happens, click once on the email list so the window has focus.

Gotchas:

• Only J and K work like Vim. H sets a reminder (it snoozes the email) and L adds a label. Neither moves left or right. You can't change the shortcuts (help page).
• Superhuman lists the Vimium browser extension (and Loom and 1Password shortcuts) as things that can interfere with its keys (troubleshooting).
• In a list, Enter opens an email. Inside an email, Enter starts a reply-all. Press Esc first if you meant to go back.

Steal it? Yes, if most of your work happens over email.

Level 2: Clear to zero

What it is. Superhuman calls archiving Done. Pressing E removes the email from your inbox. In Gmail it moves to All Mail, so it's still there and still searchable (Mark Done). Only # deletes. If someone replies, the thread comes back to your inbox.

Why I use it. Superhuman pushes you to archive anything you're done with, and it only takes one key. Whatever is left in the inbox is something I still need to do.

Set it up:

1. Open your inbox and work top to bottom. For each email: reply, press H to be reminded later, or press E.
2. If you start with thousands of old emails, open the command menu (Cmd+K), type Get Me To Zero, and it archives the older ones in bulk. You can undo that for 7 days from Cmd+K, then Bulk Actions.
3. Made a mistake? Press Z right away to undo.

Check it worked: press E on one email and it disappears with a "Marked as Done · Undo" note in the corner. Press G, then E, to see your Done mail.

Steal it? Yes. This habit is most of the value.

Level 3: Tune your splits

What it is. A split is a tab across the top of your inbox. The defaults are Important (mail from people) and Other (lists, receipts, notifications). Press Tab and Shift+Tab to move between them. Superhuman also auto-labels mail as Marketing, News, Pitch (cold outreach) or Social, and sends those to Other (Auto Labels).

Why I use it. I want to know what I actually need to reply to. Important is short and full of people. Other can wait until I have a spare minute. I also have Calendar and News splits, so invites and newsletters don't mix in with real mail.

Set it up (10 min):

1. Click the gear (Settings), then Split Inbox Library. Add Calendar and News if they fit how you work (default splits).
2. For your own split, go to Settings, then Split Inbox Library, then Build Your Own. Give it a name and a rule like from:@yourcompany.com (custom splits).
3. Reorder or remove splits under Settings, then Split Inbox.

Check it worked: press Tab and the next split's tab lights up.

Gotchas: on Gmail, Superhuman's Important split follows Gmail's Primary category, so Gmail's "smart features" need to stay on.

Steal it? Maybe. The defaults are good. Add splits only once you notice a kind of mail getting in the way.

Level 4: Connect Claude

What it is. Superhuman has an official connector (an "MCP server") that lets Claude search, read and draft your email (setup guide). It needs the Business plan (about $40 a month) with Ask AI turned on.

Why I use it. With it connected, Claude can find and read emails for me without me opening the app.

Set it up (5 min):

• In the Claude app: Settings, then Connectors, then add Superhuman Mail and sign in.
• In Claude Code, paste this into Terminal:

claude mcp add --transport http superhuman-mail https://mcp.mail.superhuman.com/mcp

Check it worked: ask Claude "what are the three newest emails in my Important split?" and it should list them.

Steal it? If you already use Claude every day and you're on the Business plan.

Questions people ask me

Can my employer pay for it? Ask. A lot of places have a software or productivity budget, and $30 a month is easy to justify if you spend hours a week in email. I'd buy it if yours does.

Is it safe for work email? Superhuman gets full access to your mailbox. Check with your IT or security person before you connect a work account.

Does it work with Outlook? Yes, Microsoft 365 accounts work. iCloud and generic IMAP don't.

Is there something cheaper? Superhuman also sells Email Assistant, which works inside normal Gmail with no new app. It sorts mail into labels like Respond and FYI and drafts replies, for about $15 a month, or $12 a month billed yearly (Email Assistant). You don't get the keyboard-first app, which is the main reason I use Superhuman.

How do I undo it? Delete the app (on a Mac, drag it to the Trash). Then remove Superhuman's access in your Google account permissions. Cancelling billing is a separate step: Cmd+K, then Cancel Subscription (how to cancel). Your mail, labels and archived ("Done") emails stay in Gmail. Splits, reminders and snippets go away (what syncs to Gmail).

Is there a Vim mode? No. J and K, / for search and the "G then a letter" jumps feel like Vim, but you can't rebind keys.

If something isn't working

• Keys do nothing: click once inside the email list so the window has focus, then try again.
• An email is in the wrong split: move it to the right one. On Gmail, check that smart features are on.
• You archived something by mistake: press Z right away, or press G then E to find it in Done and press Shift+E to bring it back.
• Anything else: paste what you see into Claude and ask.

Cheat sheet

The full list is in Superhuman's shortcut sheet (PDF), or press Cmd+K and type Shortcuts.

Words you might not know

• Vim: a text editor where you move with letter keys (H, J, K, L) instead of the arrow keys. Superhuman borrows J and K from it.
• Inbox zero: clearing your inbox every day, so whatever's in it is something you still need to do.
• Split: a tab in Superhuman's inbox that holds one kind of mail.
• Archive / Done: taking an email out of the inbox without deleting it.
• MCP: a standard way to connect an AI like Claude to an app, so it can read and act in that app for you.

If you try it, tell me what you think.