Our Tips For Outlook
Here are some of our favorite usability tips for Outlook (Classic):
Stop Marking Messages Read
By default, Outlook automatically marks messages as read.
File > Options > Mail > Outlook Panes > Reading Pane (button): uncheck Mark item as read when viewed in the Reading Pane, and/or Mark item as read when selection changes.
You can then right click and Mark as Read, or just click on the vertical blue next to each message in your Inbox to toggle that marker.
Combine Calendars
Multiple calendars can be scrunched up tight! To display all at once, on the Calendar page click View, then in the Arrangement section click on Overlay to enable that feature. Now calendars will all display within a single month view, and there are now arrows in the calendar title bar to separate or combine if desired.
Display Third Party Calendars
This one is handy to show a school calendar or other external calendar. On the Calendar page, right click My Calendars > Add Calendar > From Internet. Paste in the URL provided for a .ics file such as https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/LONGIDHERE%40group.calendar.google.com/public/basic.ics. Outlook will now update its display as the online calendar changes.
This can also be done with a SharePoint group calendar at work. Open that calendar in SharePoint, click the Calendar tab in the ribbon > Connect & Export > Connect to Outlook.
Delay Sending
Writing a message but prefer it sends at 8:00 tomorrow morning? In the message editor click Options > Delay Delivery, and set Do not deliver before to a date/time of your choosing. Either Outlook needs to be open at that time, or Microsoft 365/Exchange must be used.
Quick-Create Calendar Appointments, Tasks, or Contacts
Drag an email to the Calendar icon on the left vertical bar, and Outlook will start creating an appointment for you with the contents of the email.
Drag to the Contacts icon to create a new contact for the sender.
Bonus tip: You can drag a contact to the Email icon to create a new message. Or Calendar or Tasks.
Save Time with Favorite Folders
Right click any folder in your folder list and Add to Favorites will save it at the top of the page.
Bonus tip: you can also drag folders up and down in the folder list.
Shortcut Keys
Outlook has a handful, such as:
Ctrl+1: switch to Email
Ctrl+2: switch to Calendar
Ctrl+Shift+M: create new email
Use Multiple Monitors
Right click a calendar and choose Open in New Window to do just that.
Automatically Delete Old Messages
Right click, say, Deleted Items and open its Properties. On the AutoArchive tab, set Archive this folder using these settings to Clean out items older than [6] months and select Permanently delete old items. If archiving is not enabled (it is not by default) Outlook will offer to enable it with instructions to modify settings. This is done in File > Options > Advanced > AutoArchive Settings. There you may want to uncheck all options except the "run every __ days" option, so only messages in Deleted Items are archived/deleted.
Microsoft 365 has other methods for deleting or storing/archiving old messages.
July 2026
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