How to add or remove rules in Outlook

Rules can be useful in categorizing your emails, but they can also be causing an issue where certain emails are either being deleted or sent to the wrong place.

How to check your rules in the web browser version of Outlook

1. Log into Outlook on your web browser of choice (Google Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, etc.).

2. Once you are in Outlook, click on the gear icon in the upper right corner of the page to open your Settings. Then select "View all Outlook settings" at the bottom of the Settings menu.
   
   

   Open

   

3. A window will pop up in the center of your screen. Make sure Mail > Rules is selected.
   
   

   Open

   

   
   On this menu you can do the following actions:

   1. Create a new rule for your email by clicking "Add new rule".

   2. Delete a rule by clicking on the trashcan icon towards the right of a given rule.

   3. Edit a rule by clicking on the pencil icon to the right of a given rule.

   4. Turn off a rule by clicking the switch icon to the left of a given rule (The purple icon with a circle in it in my sample image above).

How to check your rules on Outlook for Windows

1. Open Outlook on your desktop. Once there click "File" in the upper left, then click "Manage Rules and Alerts" as shown below:
   
   

2.  A new window should pop up listing your rules.
   
   

   
   On this menu you can do the following actions:

   1. Create a new rule by clicking the "New Rule" button towards the upper left.

   2. Delete a rule by clicking on it once to highlight it in blue as I have shown with my "New Account Notification List" rule above, then click the "Delete" button.

   3. Edit a rule by clicking on it once to highlight it in blue, then click "Change Rule", then click "Edit Rule Settings".

   4. Turn off a rule by clicking the checkbox to the left of that rule to remove the checkmark.

How to check your rules on Outlook for MacOS

1. Open Outlook on your Desktop. At the top bar, select “Tools”, then “Rules…”.
   
   

2. A new window should pop up displaying your email rules.
   
   

   On this menu you can do the following actions:

   1. Create a new rule by clicking the "New Rule" button towards the lower left.

   2. Delete a rule by clicking on the trashcan icon to the right of a given rule.

   3. Edit a rule by clicking on the pencil icon to the right of a given rule.

   4. Turn off a rule by clicking the switch icon to the left of a given rule (The blue icon with a circle in it in my sample image above).

Notes on creating or editing rules

If you are editing or creating a new rule, the rule will ask for a Condition and an Action. In my sample below, I have an action set up where if an email is sent to the New Account Notification List, I move it to a folder labeled "New Staff Accounts".

You can add additional Conditions or Actions within a rule, and you can also add exceptions to a rule where the Action may not apply.