Have you ever wished for a time machine to go back in the past to unsend a message you’ve already sent?
Well, in Outlook, you don’t need a time machine; you can just add delay to your email and change or modify your message even after pressing the Send button.
No more forgetting birthdays or anniversaries. Using Outlook, you can schedule your message and be the first to wish your friends, family, and coworkers.
In this article, I’ve explained how to delay or schedule an email, as well as all the emails you send out using the Outlook app on Windows, Mac, and the web browser.
Let’s get started!
How to Delay or Schedule Emails in Outlook for Windows
Putting delays to your emails can help you double-check if you’ve provided the correct information and attached the right files. Also, rechecking your grammar won’t hurt.
You can add a delay or schedule an email you are sending out or set this delay as a default to all emails.
Here’s how to delay an email and set it as a rule for all emails on Windows:
Delay the Delivery of a Message in Outlook
Follow the steps below to delay a delivery message:
- Launch Outlook.
- Select New Email under the Home tab.
- Compose your message.
- Move to the Options tab and select Delay Delivery.
- Make sure Do not deliver before is checked.
- Set the date and time of the email delivery and click the Close button.
- Select Send, and the email will go in the Outbox folder.
If you want to change the scheduled time, just open the email from Outbox, go to Options > Delay Delivery and update the delivery time.
In case you want to immediately send an email scheduled to be delivered later, again open the email from Outbox, go to Options > Delay Delivery and uncheck Do not deliver before, and select Send for instant delivery.
Check out our separate post on Outlook not Marking Emails as Replied
Delaying All Email Messages with a Rule
Here’s how to add delay to all messages in Outlook:
- Move to the File tab in Outlook.
- Select Manage Rules & Alerts from Info in the left sidebar.
- Click New Rule under the Email Rules tab.
- Select Apply rule on messages I send and click Next.
- Don’t check any boxes under Step 1: Select condition(s) and just click Next.
- Select Yes to apply the new rule for all emails.
- Check the defer delivery by a number of minutes and click a number of.
- Choose the email delay time from 1 minute to 120 minutes, and select OK.
- Select Next on the Rules Wizard window.
- Choose any exceptions if you want and click Next.
- Type a name under Specify a name for this rule.
- Check Turn on this rule.
- Click the Finish button and select OK to apply the rule.
From now on, after composing a message in Outlook, when you click Send, the email will go to the Outbox and remain there until the delayed time is over.
And when the time is over, the email will be sent automatically.
Check out our expert-recommended guide on how to Automatically Forward Emails in Outlook
How to Delay or Schedule Emails in Outlook for Mac
To delay email delivery and cancel a scheduled email using Mac, you need to have at least an Outlook 2016 or Microsoft Office 365 subscription.
Also, your Exchange account must be on Exchange 2016 and later or on Microsoft 365.
Here’s how to delay an email and cancel a delayed email on Mac:
Schedule a message to be sent later
Follow the steps below to schedule a message:
- Launch Outlook on your Mac and select New Email.
- Compose your message.
- Click the dropdown button beside Send and choose Send Later.
- Put the date and time of the email delivery.
- Click Send, and the email will move to Drafts.
Cancel a message scheduled to be sent later
Follow the steps below to cancel a scheduled message:
- Open the email you want to cancel from Drafts.
- Choose Cancel Send.
- Click Yes to confirm your decision.
You can also modify the message and change the delivery time from Drafts.
Here’s a complete guide on how to Block a Sender by Email Address in Outlook
How to Schedule an Outlook email on the web Browser
Putting delays or scheduling emails is not restricted to the Outlook app version only; you can use this feature on the Outlook web version using your browser as well.
But in the Outlook browser, you cannot set a new rule to automatically delay every email you send out like you can on the desktop app. You have to select the date and time of delivery separately for each email.
Here are the steps to delay an Outlook email on the browser:
- Open your browser and go to Outlook Live.
- Select New message at the top left corner.
- Compose your email.
- Click the dropdown icon beside Send and select Send later.
- Select Customised time.
- Choose the date and time of delivery and click Send.
After these steps, you can find the email in the Drafts folder.
Follow our guide on how to Turn off Outlook’s Junk Email Filter
What Happens if Outlook is not Running or there is No Internet at the Scheduled Time?
If Outlook is not open or you are not signed in to the account on which the email was scheduled, the email won’t be delivered. The next time you open Outlook with the correct account, the email will be sent right away.
If your device is not connected to the internet at the scheduled delivery time and Outlook is running, it will try to deliver the message and will obviously fail as there is no internet connection. You will get a Send/Receive progress error.
When your device gets connected to the internet again, Outlook will send the message immediately.
If you are running Outlook in offline mode, it won’t be able to send any scheduled emails either. The emails will be sent when you go online.
Also related to this guide how to Create an Outlook Rule to Manage Emails
FAQs
How do I delay sending an email in Outlook 2022?
To delay sending an email in Outlook, open Outlook, go to Options > More Options > Delay Delivery, check Do not deliver before, and set the email delivery time.
Will scheduled email send if computer is off?
No, Outlook cannot send a scheduled email if the computer is turned off. The scheduled email will be sent when your computer is turned on and Outlook is open and running.
Where do I find scheduled emails in Outlook?
In the Outlook desktop app for Windows, the scheduled emails will go in the Outbox folder, and for Outlook on the web browser and the Outlook app for Mac, the scheduled emails will go in Drafts.
Here’s a complete guide on how to Add Signature in Outlook 365
Final Thoughts
Outlook has this incredible ability to delay a message for a minute to schedule messages years in the future. And here, I’ve explained how to do just that on Windows, Mac, and the web browser.
It’ll help you re-check your message for any kind of typos and wrong grammar and fix them. You can also ensure that every file is attached correctly before the scheduling time ends.
Let me know if you have any questions regarding Outlook or other apps. See you in the comment section.
