Gmail Reader

A Python script that authenticates via OAuth 2.0, retrieves the latest Gmail messages (subject, from, date, id, snippet), and saves them to a JSON file (e.g., emails.json). The access token is cached locally in token.json.

Features

• OAuth 2.0 authorization (token cached in token.json)
• Read-only scope: https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.readonly
• Fetches the latest 5 messages (adjust in code if needed)

Requirements

• Python 3.10+ (3.13 recommended)
• Dependencies from requirements.txt
• credentials.json (OAuth 2.0 client) in the project root

Installation

# Windows
python -m venv venv
venv\Scripts\activate

# macOS/Linux
python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate

pip install -r requirements.txt

Google Cloud Console setup

1. Go to Google Cloud Console.
2. Create a project (or select an existing one).
3. Enable Gmail API: "APIs & Services" → "Library" → search "Gmail API" → "Enable".
4. Open "APIs & Services" → "Credentials".
5. Click "Create credentials" → "OAuth client ID".
6. If prompted, configure the OAuth consent screen (minimum: app name and email).
7. Choose application type: "Desktop application" (for local script).
8. Download the JSON and save it as credentials.json.
9. Place credentials.json in the project root (next to main.py).

Run

python main.py

On the first run, a browser window will open for authorization. After successful authorization, a token will be saved to token.json.

Output

The script saves the latest messages to emails.json in JSON format with fields: subject, from, date, id, snippet.