# How Often Do You Check Your Email? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 21, 2010, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989 "2010-12-21T19:18:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/1 "2010-12-21T19:18:03Z")
I’m talking about your primary email account, the one you use the most. I was talking to a friend the other day, and she asked me about something and I told her that I’d sent her an email about it around two weeks ago. She said, “Yeah, I guess I should check my email. I haven’t checked it in a few weeks.” I was :eek:! I check my email many times a day, plus it comes to my Blackberry. It’s the main way I communicate with some people. So am I weird? How often do you check yours? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/2 "2010-12-21T19:19:26Z")
Whenever my computer goes “DING!” meaning an email has come in. In other words, continuously throughout the day. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/3 "2010-12-21T19:22:08Z")
It depends on my Ebay activity. I usually have one or two things going on there and I’ll check my mail at least twice a day during such times. When I have nothing going on with Ebay then maybe once a week. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/4 "2010-12-21T19:26:44Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > It depends on my Ebay activity. I usually have one or two things going on there and I’ll check my mail at least twice a day during such times. When I have nothing going on with Ebay then maybe once a week. Don’t you miss out on things if you do this, though? I get quite a few party and other event invitations via email, and if I checked it just once a week, I would miss the events. I’ve also gotten a few job offers or at least considerations via email–serious ones. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/5 "2010-12-21T19:31:51Z")
I’m connected to Gmail 24/7: it’s always open in a tab whenever I’m on a computer, and new mail also pushes to my Droid. Same with my work email. I don’t have to actually _check_ for messages, because I’ll see/hear if there’s a new one, but the “three or more times a day” option seemed to fit the best. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/6 "2010-12-21T19:32:26Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Whenever my computer goes “DING!” meaning an email has come in. In other words, continuously throughout the day. This. Could be 20 times a day, could be 0. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/7 "2010-12-21T19:43:23Z")
For me it would be three or more times, I guess. In Firefox, I just have a tab open that’s signed in to my e-mail and when I get a new one, the title part of the tab updates. So I’m just sort of constantly checking my e-mail. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/8 "2010-12-21T19:47:13Z")
Good lord - 3 or more times a day is the low point. On weekends. Or vacation. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/9 "2010-12-21T19:48:55Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > I’m connected to Gmail 24/7: it’s always open in a tab whenever I’m on a computer, and new mail also pushes to my Droid. Same with my work email. I don’t have to actually _check_ for messages, because I’ll see/hear if there’s a new one, but the “three or more times a day” option seemed to fit the best. Same here. There really ought to be an option for continuous email access. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/10 "2010-12-21T19:48:57Z")
My email is all POP so all my various accounts come to my computer and are immediately deleted from the server. I check every 15 minutes while I’m at work (all my accounts, not just work accounts, as I work from home), sometimes more if I’m waiting on something. Since I got an iPod Touch, I’ve pretty much stopped using my desktop computer between 5 PM Friday and 9 AM Monday. But the computer stays on and it keeps checking mail. So I can’t access my mail from the Touch as it’s already been downloaded. I am amazed that I am able to go so long without caring about my email, but with texting and Facebook, there’s little need to communicate with me via email, unless we work together. In which case, I’ll hit you back on Monday. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/11 "2010-12-21T19:50:38Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > Same here. There really ought to be an option for continuous email access. I didn’t think of this because I don’t have sound that lets me know when I get a new email. I keep mine open all day–whenever my computer is on, my email is on, so all I have to do is refresh. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/12 "2010-12-21T19:51:39Z")
Rarely. If I’ve asked someone to email me something, I’ll check to see if it’s been received. If I email someone for some information, I’ll check for a response some time within the next 24 hours. I’ll only email someone if I can’t reach them by telephone. And I don’t like leaving voicemails and waiting for them to respond, so I don’t do that. I just don’t place a very high value on the concept of “staying connected.” And I’m quite happy that the nature of my work permits me to carry on with this approach. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/13 "2010-12-21T19:52:57Z")
I think polls like this are interesting because they reveal more information about the pollster than the polled. In this case, it’s pretty clear that the OP doesn’t have the same relationship to the internet that I (and from the looks of it most of the respondents) have. Like several others, I continually check email. The question is like asking “how often do you check if someone’s calling you”. I don’t have to, because there’s an immediate notification. **Zipper** , you can set up your email client to leave messages on the server so you can get them from multiple devices. If you want to, that is. It sounds like you like the system as it is. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/14 "2010-12-21T19:53:20Z")
Well, for personal email, only about once a day. I’m blocked from Gmail at work, and therefore only check in the evening, or about mid-day on weekends. Typically. Although I do go a few days in a row without checking, sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/15 "2010-12-21T19:54:37Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > The question is like asking “how often do you check if someone’s calling you”. Well put. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gilliver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/5fc32e/32.png) [@Gilliver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gilliver)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/16 "2010-12-21T19:56:46Z")
I am like your friend. I check my email maybe two times a month if I get around to it. Nobody really communicates with me that way. I go in and clear out the junk mail and read anything that is personal and respond if necessary. ---
**Author:** ![NinetyWt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@NinetyWt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinetyWt)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/17 "2010-12-21T19:57:22Z")
Another one who is always logged into email. A great deal of my work is conducted via email, with various drawings and document attachments being passed back and forth. I could not keep up this volume of business without being constantly on the alert for new emails. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/18 "2010-12-21T19:57:37Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > **Zipper** , you can set up your email client to leave messages on the server so you can get them from multiple devices. If you want to, that is. It sounds like you like the system as it is. Yeah, I leave the email the server if I’m going on vacation, and use Gmail to check from my Touch. Otherwise, I like not being able to access it because it’s “in my office.” And the office door is closed 🙂 You gotta set stuff up like that when you’ve been working from home for 10 years. Otherwise, you can never quite get away. ---
**Author:** ![Mops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mops/32/16494_2.png) [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/19 "2010-12-21T20:01:57Z")
\>\> 3 times/day. I get my personal e-mail account pushed to my mobile. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2010, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989/20 "2010-12-21T20:04:19Z")
I keep gmail open at work. No one minds, and sometimes it’s even useful. So that’s pretty much all day. Once I get home, though, all bets are off. I am primarily a console-game player so there have been evenings when I don’t even turn on my computer. But even on the weekends I usually check at least once…though I have gone a day or two without. I don’t generally answer e-mail on the weekends, though. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-check-your-email/564989.md?page=2)