How to Set Reminder in Outlook [In-depth Guide 2024]

Written By Steven Arends

“Men more frequently require to be reminded than informed.” ― Samuel Johnson. With the most significant innovation and technological revolution, humans are getting more occupied day by day.

The to-do list of humans is rapidly increasing, and people often start to forget their tasks when under tremendous pressure. So nowadays, people often use different types of reminders to cope with this situation.

As Outlook is helping users to manage their emails, contacts, tasks, and files in one place, the necessity of a reminder was inevitable.how-to-set-reminder-in-outlook

The developer introduced the reminder feature in Outlook to set reminders for calendar appointments, email messages, and tasks. Go through this well-researched article to learn how to set reminders in Outlook.

Let’s begin!

What is a Reminder in Outlook?

The remainder is a unique Outlook feature reminding you of something with a pop-up message. In Outlook, there are several reminder systems depending on user needs.

Nowadays, people’s lives are full of work pressure and the time is very scheduled. When under too much pressure, we often forget some basics and must do work. The developers understood the problem and developed a system to remind us about important tasks.

Assume you have a client meeting in the evening and you totally forget about it, or you need to reply to an important email and aren’t even aware of this. The reminder feature can save you from this miserable condition.

Outlook offers a reminder feature to make user’s life easier and more peaceful by reminding them about important meetings, tasks, or emails.

Outlook users can easily set calendar appointments, email messages, or task reminders for important events.

Check out the easiest way how to Change the Inbox View in Outlook.

How to Set Reminders for Calendar Appointments

You can effortlessly set reminders for calendar appointments from the calendar navigation pane. Setting a reminder can help you to be alert about your essential task. To set reminders for calendar appointments, follow the instructions below.

Here are the steps to set reminders for calendar appointments:

  • Open Outlook application.
  • Navigate to the Calendar pane. navigate-to-calendar
  • Double-click on the coveted appointment that will open the appointment settings.
  • Find the Reminder in the Options group of the ribbon.
  • Select reminder time from the drop-down menu.
  • Click on None if you don’t want a reminder.
  • Save the changes by clicking Save & Close. reminder-options

Remember that when you set a reminder time of 15 minutes, you will get a reminder 15 minutes before the appointment begins.

Changing the default reminders time is very efficient as Outlook automatically sets reminders for all newly created appointments.

Here’s a complete guide on how to Change Outlook View HTML to Plain Text .

Change the Default Reminders Time

You can change the default reminder time to avoid any miscommunication. Follow the below methods to change the default reminders time in Outlook.

Here are the methods to change the default reminders time:

  • Navigate to File > Options.
  • Switch to the Calendar tab of the Outlook Options Window.
  • Set a new time from the drop-down box next to Default reminders. default-reminder
  • Save the changes by clicking OK.

Changing the default reminders time can be very handy and give you extra time to prepare for your next meetings or appointments.

Related guides: how to View Message Headers in Outlook.

Turn off Default Reminders

You can quickly turn off the default reminders feature when you don’t need any default reminders time. Go through the below steps to turn off the default reminders.

Here are the ways to turn off default reminders:

  • Go to File > Options.
  • Move to the Calendar tab of the Outlook Options Window.
  • Uncheck the Default reminders checkbox under Calendar Options. uncheck-default-reminder
  • Save the changes by clicking OK.

Following the above process will remove the default reminders from your Outlook. And you need to set reminders manually for every appointment you create.

Also related to this guide is how to Create an Outlook Rule to Manage Emails.

How to Show Reminders Over Other Programs

Setting your reminders to show over other applications can be very helpful even when you are working on any additional software. This feature will show you a notification over any other programs.

Quick Note: This feature is only available for Microsoft 365 subscribers who are using Version 1804 (Build 9226.2114) or higher. You will not find this feature in Outlook 2013, 2016, or 2019.

Following the instructions below, you can quickly set reminders to show over other programs or apps.

Here are the steps to show reminders over other programs:

  • Navigate to File > Options > Advanced.
  • Check the Show reminders on top of other windows from the Reminders section. reminders--section
  • Click OK to save the changes.

If you are a Microsoft 365 subscriber, don’t forget to use this great feature. It will eliminate the chances of missing any reminders.

Check out the easiest way to why Outlook not Marking Emails as Replied.

How to Set Reminders for Email Messages

Sometimes you may need to set a reminder for your email messages. It will eliminate the chance of forgetting the topic. You can easily set reminders for any email messages by following the methods below.

Here are the methods to set reminders for email messages:

  • Select Mail from the bottom of the screen.
  • Choose the email message you need to set reminders.
  • Navigate to Home > Follow Up > Add Reminder. add-reminders
  • Click on the drop-down box next to the Flag to box and choose the desired option from the list. change-the-flag
  • Choose the Start and Due date.
  • Ensure the Reminder box is checked.
  • Select the date and time you want to receive the reminder below the Reminder box. reminder-box
  • Click OK to save the changes.

Following the above process will help you to remind your email’s message. You can also set a specific sound for the reminder by clicking on the sound icon below the Reminder box.

How to Set Reminders for Tasks

When you set a task in Outlook, you may need to add a reminder for the task. That will help you to remind yourself about the task in time. Go through the below instructions to set reminders for tasks.

Here are the ways to set reminders for tasks in Outlook:

  • Open Outlook.
  • Click on the drop-down menu of the Follow Up button from the Home tab in the Tags group.
  • Select Add Reminder from the drop-down list.
  • Set the Flag to, Start Date, Due Date, Reminder time, and Reminder date according to your needs. set-reminder-for-task
  • Change the Sound.
  • Click OK to save the changes.

Following the above steps, you can set reminders for any tasks. You can also remove any flag or modify the date or time if needed.

Bottom Line

Outlook reminders options allow users to set a reminder for various tasks. There are default reminder options in Outlook to help the user, including email, task, and calendar reminders.

I have covered all possible ways to set a reminder in the Outlook application. You can easily set reminders by following the above methods.

Along with the setting reminder options, you can effortlessly modify or remove any reminders in Outlook. Additionally, you can set any custom sound to a reminder to better understand the message of the reminder.

Did you find this article engaging and accommodating? Don’t forget to leave your opinion in the comment below.

About The Author
Steven Arends is a computer science graduate and tech enthusiast with over 10 years of experience in the field. He has a vast collection of computer hardware and loves exploring the latest advancements. As a contributing author to 10Scopes, Steven shares his expertise to make the world of technology more accessible and easier to understand for all readers.

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