# Combine PM inbox and sent items
**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997
**Category:** Feature
**Tags:** personal-messages
**Created:** [January 8, 2026, 6:46pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997 "2026-01-08T18:46:50Z")
**Posts on this page:** 8
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Jonathan5](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Jonathan5)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2026, 6:46pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997/1 "2026-01-08T18:46:50Z")
Continuing the discussion from [Add an "all messages" option as default in /my/messages](https://meta.discourse.org/t/add-an-all-messages-option-as-default-in-my-messages/374015)
I don’t use messages much but it would be easier to find messages if they were displayed more like a public category – showing the latest sent and received messages on one page.
If this is already possible then I’ll move this to #Support!
Thanks.
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### Author:  [@Jonathan5](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Jonathan5)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2026, 9:36pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997/2 "2026-01-08T21:36:44Z")
I have just noticed (because, maybe coincidentally, someone liked it just now) that I asked essentially the same thing back in 2022!
> [@Ability to view messages as if they were in their own category](https://meta.discourse.org/t/ability-to-view-messages-as-if-they-were-in-their-own-category/240639):
>
> I wasn’t sure whether to put this in support or as a feature request. My aim is to get rid of the separate inbox and sent-box, so that everything just appears in one place. So when you send a message, it’ll appear alongside the ones with replies (and other messages received). Is this possible?
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### Author:  [@Moin](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Moin)
#### Post date: [January 8, 2026, 9:42pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997/3 "2026-01-08T21:42:49Z")
There is also this topic from 2020
> [@ALL messages list on /u/\/messages route](https://meta.discourse.org/t/all-messages-list-on-u-username-messages-route/167425):
>
> I’ve felt this almost from the first day of using Discourse but now when I’m using PMs heavily, I realize that sometimes I want to view All the PMs regardless of who started the convo(i.e. Inbox or Sent) coz sometimes you don’t remember who started the convo. I think there should be an All option where you can view All PMs you’re a part of.
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### Author:  [@mcwumbly](https://meta.discourse.org/u/mcwumbly)
#### Post date: [January 9, 2026, 1:58am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997/4 "2026-01-09T01:58:30Z")
I want this too.
Will start a new topic.
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### Author:  [@nathank](https://meta.discourse.org/u/nathank)
#### Post date: [January 9, 2026, 4:12am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997/5 "2026-01-09T04:12:02Z")
The current behaviour mimics an email client, which I guess makes sense in an email-centric world.
However, our ‘Messages’ are just really private forum topics which are made to look like messages. I think that this is why the silo between sent / received jars somewhat here.
Certainly, I’d prefer to have all messages visible by default, but perhaps having filters so I can narrow down between sent / received / and per user (or group).
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### Author:  [@Jonathan5](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Jonathan5)
#### Post date: [January 11, 2026, 10:30am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997/6 "2026-01-11T10:30:43Z")
> [@nathank](#):
>
> The current behaviour mimics an email client, which I guess makes sense in an email-centric world.
“Latest” is different to my email inbox in that once someone replies to a message I’ve sent, and I reply back, my _own_ reply appears in Latest. Maybe it’s the same if your email client uses “threaded conversations” – I hate that too.
There are also other tabs I don’t use – New, Unread and Archive. I’ve only noticed now that the automated messages go straight to Archive.
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### Author:  [@nathank](https://meta.discourse.org/u/nathank)
#### Post date: [January 12, 2026, 3:59am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997/7 "2026-01-12T03:59:21Z")
> [@Jonathan5](#):
>
> Maybe it’s the same if your email client uses “threaded conversations” – I hate that too.
Yeah, I use Gmail with threaded conversations (which I quite like). And it does behave the same as that.
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### Author:  [@thoka](https://meta.discourse.org/u/thoka)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2026, 10:13am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/combine-pm-inbox-and-sent-items/392997/10 "2026-02-16T10:13:39Z")
Here is another feature request in that direction:
> [@Marrying groups and categories](https://meta.discourse.org/t/marrying-groups-and-categories/312269):
>
> I am slowly working on adapting Discourse as a communication solution for the school community of a progressive education school. In contrast to the mostly informal communities for which Discourse seems optimized, this community is based on a very formal structure. This requires a number of adjustments. Roughly speaking, due to the formal setting (all areas are restricted) as opposed to the informal setting (almost all areas are freely accessible), there is a weakening of Discourse’s highly v…