Switch Off, Relax: Home Office Edition

If you've been out of the office and have had an automatic Out of Office message set up in your absence, you'll need to remember to turn it off when you return to work. Here's a quick guide on how to do that in Microsoft Outlook.

For the Outlook Desktop App, open the Microsoft Outlook Desktop App and access the File Menu in the top left corner of the screen. Click on the Automatic Replies (Out of Office) section and from the menu, click on the Do not send automatic replies button.

For Outlook on your mobile device, open Settings and scroll down to Accounts & Passwords. Select the email account you want to stop the automatic reply from, scroll down and tap Automatic Reply and then turn it off.

Access Out of Office settings

To access and turn off your Out of Office settings in Microsoft Outlook, follow these steps:

For the Outlook Desktop App:

• Open the Microsoft Outlook Desktop App.
• Access the File Menu located in the top left corner of the screen.
• Click on the "Automatic Replies (Out of Office)" section.
• From the Automatic Replies menu, select the "Do not send automatic replies" option.

For Outlook on your Web Browser:

• Sign into the Outlook Web App using www.microsoft365.com and enter your Microsoft 365 username and password.
• From the Office 365 Launcher, choose "Outlook".
• Click on "Settings" (gear icon), and then click on "View All Outlook Settings".
• From the Settings menu, click on "Automatic Replies", which will load the Automatic Replies menu.
• From the Automatic Replies menu, click on the "Automatic replies on" radio button to disable Out of Office replies.

For Outlook on your Mobile Device:

• Open "Settings" and scroll down to "Accounts & Passwords".
• Select the email account for which you want to set an automatic reply.
• Scroll down and tap "Automatic Reply".
• Turn off the Automatic Reply setting.

Alternatively, you can follow these steps:

• Open the Outlook mobile app.
• In the top left corner, click on the Menu icon.
• In the bottom left corner, click on the "Settings" (gear) icon.
• Under "Accounts", select your Office 365 Account.
• Click on "Automatic Replies".
• Click on the slider to disable automatic replies.
• Click on the checkbox in the top right corner to save your changes.

Select 'Do Not Send Automatic Replies'

If you use the Microsoft Outlook Desktop App, start by opening the app and locating the File Menu in the top left corner of the screen. From there, click on the "Automatic Replies (Out of Office)" section. In the Automatic Replies menu, you will find the option to "Do not send automatic replies". Selecting this option will prevent your mailbox from sending automatic notifications to any incoming emails while you are away.

For Outlook on the web, the process is similar. First, sign in to Outlook on the web and choose "Settings" from the nav bar. Then, select "Automatic Replies" and choose the "Send automatic replies" option. If you haven't set a time period for your automatic replies, you can simply select "Don't send automatic replies" to turn off the feature.

On your mobile device, open the Outlook app and click on the Menu icon in the top left corner. Then, navigate to "Settings" and select your Office 365 account. From there, you can click on "Automatic Replies" and disable the feature by clicking on the slider. Remember to save your changes by clicking the checkbox in the top right corner.

By following these simple steps, you can easily turn off your automatic replies and ensure that your clients don't receive outdated notifications when you return to the office.

Click 'OK' to confirm changes

To turn off your out-of-office notifications on Microsoft Outlook, follow these steps:

For Outlook Desktop App:

• Open the Microsoft Outlook Desktop App.
• Access the File Menu in the top left corner of the screen.
• Click on the "Automatic Replies (Out of Office)" section.
• From the Automatic Replies menu, select the option to "Do not send automatic replies".

For Outlook on your Mobile Device:

• Open Settings and scroll down to "Accounts & Passwords."
• Select the email account for which you want to turn off the out-of-office notifications.
• Scroll down and tap "Automatic Reply."
• Toggle the Automatic Reply setting to the "Off" position.

For Outlook Web App:

• Sign into the Outlook Web App using www.microsoft365.com and your Microsoft 365 login credentials.
• From the Office 365 Launcher, choose "Outlook."
• Click on "Settings" (gear icon) and then click on "View All Outlook Settings."
• From the Settings menu, click on "Automatic Replies" to load the Automatic Replies menu.
• From the Automatic Replies menu, click on the radio button for "Automatic replies on" to disable Out of Office replies.

After making the desired changes, click "OK" to confirm and save your changes.

Schedule Out of Office replies

Scheduling out-of-office replies is a useful way to inform people that you are absent from work for an extended period. This can be done via Outlook or Gmail.

Scheduling Out-of-Office Replies on Outlook

If you are using Outlook, there are a few ways to set up automatic out-of-office replies. Firstly, ensure that you have an Office 365, Outlook.com, or Exchange account, as other services may not support this feature.

On the Outlook App

• Go to "Account Information" and select the relevant email address.
• Click on "Automatic Replies" and select the "Send automatic replies" option.
• Check the "Only send during this time range" option and use the "Start time" and "End time" pickers to choose your leave and return dates.
• Create a custom out-of-office message in the "Automatic replies" box.
• If you are setting this up for a work account, you will have the option to create different messages for "Inside My Organization" and "Outside My Organization".
• Select who will receive automatic replies during your time off: "My Contacts only" or "Anyone outside my organization".

On Outlook Web

• Open Outlook.com in your web browser and click on the gear button in the top-right corner.
• Click on "Automatic replies" and select the "Send automatic replies" option.
• Check the "Send replies only during this time period" option and use the "Start time" and "End time" pickers to choose your leave and return dates.
• Optionally, you can select additional options such as "Block my calendar for this period" or "Automatically decline new invitations for events during this period".
• Choose who will receive replies during your time away: "Send replies only to people in my Contact list" or "Send automatic replies to anyone who emails me".
• Create a custom out-of-office message in the text box.
• Click "OK" to save your settings.

Scheduling Out-of-Office Replies on Gmail

To set up out-of-office replies on Gmail:

• Click on "Settings", then "See all settings".
• Scroll down to "Vacation responder" and select "Vacation responder on".
• Fill in the first day, last day, subject line, and your custom message.
• Click "Save changes".

Additional Tips for Crafting Your Out-of-Office Message

• The dates of your absence
• The reason for your absence (optional)
• A point of contact for urgent requests
• Links or resources that may be helpful to the recipient in your absence

And some things to avoid:

• A lengthy message with too many details
• Specific times or false promises about when you or your point of contact will reply
• Grammatical errors and typos
• Including a point of contact without their permission

Set start and end dates

Setting start and end dates for your out-of-office message is a straightforward process. This feature is available on the Outlook desktop app, Outlook.com, the classic Mail app, and the new Outlook client on Windows 11.

To set a start and end date for your out-of-office message, follow these steps:

Step 1: Access the Out of Office Settings

To begin, open the Outlook program and click on "File" in the top-left corner. From the "Account Information" menu, select "Automatic Replies (Out of Office)" to access the Out of Office settings window.

Step 2: Select the "Send Out of Office Auto-Replies" Option

In the Out of Office settings window, you will see options to customize your automatic replies. Select the "Send Out of Office auto-replies" option to indicate that you want to send automatic replies during your absence.

Step 3: Set the Start and End Dates

In the text fields provided, enter the start and end dates for your out-of-office message. Be sure to also select the correct time zone to ensure that your automatic replies are sent and turned off at the appropriate times.

Step 4: Click "OK" to Confirm Changes

Once you have entered the start and end dates, click the "OK" or "Save" button to confirm your changes. This will activate your out-of-office message for the specified period, and it will be sent to anyone who emails you during that time.

By following these steps, you can ensure that your out-of-office message is only active for the duration of your absence, providing a seamless experience for both yourself and anyone trying to contact you.

Frequently asked questions