Email Summary — Gmail & Exchange

VerifiedSafe

Summarizes emails from your Gmail and Exchange accounts over a specified time period, categorizes them by action type (tasks, response needed, informational, other), and exports the summary to a local Markdown file. Ideal for generating daily digests, weekly reports, or quick overviews of recent emails without opening your inbox.

Sby Skills Guide Bot
ProductivityIntermediate
6/2/2026
Claude Code
#email-summary#email-digest#gmail#exchange#task-categorization

Recommended for

Automated summary

This skill summarizes emails from Gmail and Exchange accounts for a specified time period, categorizes them by action type, and saves the result to a local Markdown file.

Strengths

  • Automates email digest from multiple accounts
  • Clear categorization into tasks, responses, informational
  • Generates a well-structured Markdown file for easy review

Limitations

  • Requires prior MCP tool setup for Gmail and Exchange
  • Limited to 50 results per query
  • Does not handle attachments or complex signatures
When to use it

Use this skill to get a daily or weekly email roundup without opening your inbox.

When not to use it

Avoid this skill if you need real-time email analysis or if your accounts are not configured with the MCP tools.

Security analysis

Safe
Quality score95/100

The skill only reads emails from configured Gmail and Exchange accounts using MCP tools and writes a summary to a local markdown file; it does not execute any destructive commands, exfiltrate data, or disable safety features.

No concerns found

How this analysis is made

Examples

Weekly email summary
Summarize my emails from last week, categorize them into tasks, response needed, and informational, and save to a markdown file.
Daily digest
Get an email digest for today from all my accounts and save it.
Custom date range
Summarize emails from June 1 to June 7, 2025, from my Gmail and Exchange accounts.

name: email-summary description: > Summarize emails from Gmail and Exchange accounts for a specified time period and save to a local markdown file. Categorizes emails into actionable groups: Tasks, Response Needed, Informational, and Other. Use this skill whenever the user wants to: get an email digest, summarize recent emails, create an email report, review emails from a date range, or export email summaries. Triggers: "email summary", "summarize emails", "email digest", "email report", "what emails", "recent emails summary", "emails from last week", "email roundup".

Email Summary — Gmail & Exchange Integration

Summarize emails from configured Gmail and Exchange accounts, categorize them by action type, and save to a local markdown file in operations/emails/.

Available MCP Tools

Gmail Tools

| Tool | Purpose | |---|---| | mcp__gmail__gmail_list_accounts | List configured Gmail accounts | | mcp__gmail__gmail_search | Search emails with Gmail query syntax | | mcp__gmail__gmail_get_thread | Get full email thread by ID | | mcp__gmail__gmail_summarize | Get thread content formatted for summarization |

Exchange Tools

| Tool | Purpose | |---|---| | mcp__exchange__exchange_list_accounts | List configured Exchange accounts | | mcp__exchange__exchange_search | Search emails with KQL syntax | | mcp__exchange__exchange_get_message | Get full message details | | mcp__exchange__exchange_get_thread | Get conversation thread |

Workflow

1. Determine Time Period

Ask the user for the date range if not specified. Common patterns:

  • "today" → current date
  • "yesterday" → previous day
  • "this week" → Monday to today
  • "last week" → previous Monday to Sunday
  • "last 7 days" → rolling 7 days
  • Custom range: "from YYYY-MM-DD to YYYY-MM-DD"

2. List Available Accounts

mcp__gmail__gmail_list_accounts()
mcp__exchange__exchange_list_accounts()

Present the list and confirm which accounts to include (default: all).

3. Fetch Emails

Gmail (use date query syntax):

mcp__gmail__gmail_search(account="<name>", query="after:2026/01/01 before:2026/01/08", max_results=50, include_body=true)

Exchange (use KQL syntax):

mcp__exchange__exchange_search(account="<name>", query="received:2026-01-01..2026-01-07", max_results=50, include_body=true)

4. Categorize Each Email

Review each email and assign to ONE category:

| Category | Criteria | Examples | |---|---|---| | Tasks | Explicit action required, assignments, deadlines | "Please complete by Friday", "Action required", task assignments | | Response Needed | Awaiting your reply, questions directed at you | Direct questions, meeting requests pending response, approval requests | | Informational | FYI, newsletters, updates, notifications | Status updates, automated notifications, newsletters, announcements | | Other | Doesn't fit above categories | Spam, promotional, unclear intent |

5. Generate Summary Document

Filename convention: YYYY-MM-DD-email-summary.md (use end date of range)

Output location: operations/emails/

Markdown format:

# Email Summary: [Start Date] to [End Date]

**Generated:** YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM
**Accounts:** account1, account2, account3
**Total Emails:** N

---

## Tasks That Need To Be Done

| Source | From | Subject | Date | Details |
|--------|------|---------|------|---------|
| Gmail/Exchange | sender@example.com | Subject line | YYYY-MM-DD | Brief description of task required |

### Task Details

#### [Subject Line]
- **From:** sender@example.com
- **Date:** YYYY-MM-DD
- **Account:** Gmail (account-name) / Exchange (account-name)
- **Action Required:** [Clear description of what needs to be done]
- **Deadline:** [If mentioned]

---

## Response Needed

| Source | From | Subject | Date | Details |
|--------|------|---------|------|---------|
| Gmail/Exchange | sender@example.com | Subject line | YYYY-MM-DD | What response is needed |

### Response Details

#### [Subject Line]
- **From:** sender@example.com
- **Date:** YYYY-MM-DD
- **Account:** Gmail (account-name) / Exchange (account-name)
- **Question/Request:** [What they're asking]

---

## Informational

| Source | From | Subject | Date | Summary |
|--------|------|---------|------|---------|
| Gmail/Exchange | sender@example.com | Subject line | YYYY-MM-DD | One-line summary |

---

## Other

| Source | From | Subject | Date | Notes |
|--------|------|---------|------|-------|
| Gmail/Exchange | sender@example.com | Subject line | YYYY-MM-DD | Why categorized here |

---

## Statistics

- **Tasks:** N emails
- **Response Needed:** N emails
- **Informational:** N emails
- **Other:** N emails

6. Save and Confirm

Write the file to operations/emails/YYYY-MM-DD-email-summary.md and confirm the path to the user.

Date Query Reference

Gmail Query Syntax

  • after:YYYY/MM/DD — emails after date
  • before:YYYY/MM/DD — emails before date
  • newer_than:7d — last 7 days
  • older_than:1d — older than 1 day

Exchange KQL Syntax

  • received:YYYY-MM-DD — specific date
  • received:YYYY-MM-DD..YYYY-MM-DD — date range
  • received>=YYYY-MM-DD — on or after date

Tips

  • Large volumes: If >50 emails, summarize in batches and combine.
  • Priority emails: Check importance:high (Exchange) or is:important (Gmail) first.
  • Thread context: Use gmail_get_thread or exchange_get_thread for full conversation context when categorization is unclear.
  • Deduplication: Emails may appear in multiple searches; dedupe by message ID.

Error Handling

  • Account not found → Run list accounts and verify configuration.
  • No emails in range → Confirm date format and expand range.
  • MCP not connected → Check MCP server configuration.

From the file to a first result

The download contains exactly the content displayed on this page. This copy may differ from the latest version in the source repository.

View the source and supporting files

This download contains SKILL.md only. Any scripts, references, templates and dependencies are not included. Get the required files from the source, preserving their directory structure, before continuing.

1. Download the file

Download SKILL.md

From the root of a test project, save the file as .skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj/SKILL.md, or use the command below. This folder is for inspecting the skill before installation.

Command for macOS/Linux or WSL: requires a POSIX shell and curl. On Windows without WSL, use the download button and create the folder manually.

mkdir -p '.skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj' && curl --fail --show-error --location 'https://skills-guides.com/api/skills/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj/download' --output '.skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj/SKILL.md.part' && mv '.skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj/SKILL.md.part' '.skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj/SKILL.md'

2. Check prerequisites

Read SKILL.md before using it. If it references scripts or external services, inspect them and prepare the required access in your test environment.

No recognized prerequisites section in this file. This does not mean it is self-contained: libraries, tools and access requirements may be mentioned elsewhere in the content or source repository.

The platforms on this page are catalog indications. The paths below follow tool documentation; they do not prove this skill has been run in those tools. No minimum tool version is confirmed for this listing.

3. Load the skill

After inspection, copy the complete folder into your project using one of the commands below, then open a new tool session. The command stops if a folder with the same name already exists: compare the files before replacing it.

Claude Code
test -f '.skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj/SKILL.md' && test -s '.skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj/SKILL.md' && mkdir -p '.claude/skills' && test ! -e '.claude/skills/email-summary' && cp -R '.skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj' '.claude/skills/email-summary'

OpenSkills

OpenSkills must already be installed. The local install/read procedure is checked with OpenSkills 1.5.0, which requires Node.js ≥ 20.6.0. Catalog slugs are not resolved automatically.

Official OpenSkills installation
openskills install './.skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj'

openskills read 'email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj'

Reading should display the installed file content and its base directory. It does not run the skill or install its dependencies.

For an agent that reads AGENTS.md, then sync the index. This command changes AGENTS.md: review the diff before using it.

openskills sync

Manual method or another tool: attach SKILL.md to a conversation, or open it in an agent that can read files. Include any required supporting resources. No universal folder is recognized by every tool.

4. Try a first task

Use a short, synthetic input: an API endpoint, a small document or an interface brief. In a new conversation, attach the file or give the agent its path, then adapt this request:

Read .skill-downloads/email-summary-gmail-exchange-mm5t8agj/SKILL.md and apply its instructions to this example: [describe a test input]. Identify any missing files, dependencies or access. Produce the result requested by the skill without inventing data or running unreviewed scripts.

Expected result: output matching the skill instructions, or a precise list of missing prerequisites. A read confirmation alone does not validate a first use. If an external resource is unavailable, that path remains untested.

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