To set up out of office in Outlook on the web or the new Outlook for Windows, go to Settings → Accounts → Automatic replies, turn automatic replies on, set your start and end dates, write the message and click Save. In classic Outlook for Windows it is File → Automatic Replies. It takes about 2 minutes, and Outlook sends the reply once to each sender while it is on.
Updated 2026 · Checked against Microsoft Support documentation
Web, Outlook.com, Microsoft 365 and new Outlook: Settings (gear) → Accounts → Automatic replies (older layouts: Mail → Automatic replies). Classic Outlook for Windows: File → Automatic Replies → Send automatic replies. Mac: Tools → Automatic Replies. iPhone and Android app: profile icon → Settings → your account → Automatic Replies. Set dates so it turns itself off, and add one named contact for urgent matters.
| Outlook version | Path | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Outlook on the web, Outlook.com, Microsoft 365 | Settings (gear) → Accounts → Automatic replies | Older layouts show Mail → Automatic replies. Can also block your calendar and decline meetings for the period. |
| New Outlook for Windows | Settings → Accounts → Automatic replies | Same screen as Outlook on the web. |
| Classic Outlook for Windows | File → Automatic Replies | Needs a Microsoft 365, Exchange or Outlook.com account. POP/IMAP accounts use a rule instead (see below). |
| Outlook for Mac | Tools → Automatic Replies | Older builds label it Out of Office. Needs a Microsoft 365, Exchange or Outlook.com account. |
| Outlook app (iPhone, Android) | Profile icon → Settings (gear) → your account → Automatic Replies | Changes sync to web and desktop. |
Click the gear icon in the upper-right corner of Outlook web.
Click Accounts in the settings sidebar, then Automatic replies. On older layouts it sits under Mail instead.
Toggle "Turn on automatic replies". Check "Send replies only during a time period" and set start/end dates.
Optional: check "Block my calendar for this period" if you want meetings auto-declined while you're out.
Outlook lets you write separate messages for inside-organization and outside-organization senders. Use the rich-text editor, basic formatting (bold, links) works.
Include your OutOfOfficePro URL on its own line for emergencies. Senders tap, get the right person, and your reply is no longer just a passive notification.
Click Save. Automatic replies are now active. To stop them early, go back to the same screen and switch automatic replies off.
In Outlook desktop, click File in the top menu, then Automatic Replies (Out of Office).
If you don't see "Automatic Replies," your account is POP or IMAP, not Microsoft 365 or Exchange. Use the rule method below. On a Mac, the same setting is under Tools → Automatic Replies.
Click Send automatic replies. Check Only send during this time range and set start/end dates.
Two tabs: Inside My Organization (for colleagues) and Outside My Organization (for everyone else). Click each tab and write the appropriate message.
Done. Because the setting is stored on the mail server, it keeps working after you close Outlook and shows on your other devices.
For POP or IMAP accounts in classic Outlook, Microsoft's workaround is a rule: write your out-of-office message, save it as an Outlook Template (.oft), then go to Home → Rules → Manage Rules & Alerts → New Rule → Apply rule on messages I receive and choose the action reply using a specific template. Two limits: Outlook must stay open on your computer for the rule to run, and it replies once per sender per Outlook session.
Tap your profile icon in the upper-left, then the gear icon (Settings).
Pick the email account, then tap Automatic Replies.
Switch automatic replies on, choose the dates, type the message and tap the check mark to save.
Out of office until [return date]
Hello, Thank you for your email. I am out of office from [start date] until [return date] and will not be checking email during this time. For urgent matters, please go to [yourname].outofofficepro.com, you'll be routed to the right person automatically based on what you need. I will respond to your message in the order received upon my return. Best regards, [Your name]
Need a different tone? Generate one in 30 seconds with our free tool, formal, warm, playful, brief, or firm.
No. With a Microsoft 365, Exchange or Outlook.com account, Outlook sends your automatic reply once to each sender for as long as replies are on. Turning replies off and on again resets that list.
Outlook 365 is Outlook on the web or the new Outlook app: open Settings (gear) → Accounts → Automatic replies, switch it on, tick "Send replies only during a time period", set the dates, write the message and click Save.
Yes. Set a future start date and time. Outlook turns replies on and off by itself at those times.
Inside replies go to people in your organization; outside replies go to everyone else (clients, vendors). You can send a detailed inside message and a short outside one, or turn outside replies off.
Your account is probably POP or IMAP rather than Microsoft 365 or Exchange. Use a rule with the "reply using a specific template" action, which only runs while Outlook is open.
Yes, for work or school accounts. Teams and Outlook share the same automatic replies setting, so Teams shows your out-of-office message too.
General information, researched from the sources above; not legal, HR or tax advice.
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