How to Bcc in Outlook: Every Version, and How to Show Bcc Every Time
You want to copy someone on an email without the other recipients seeing it, or send one message to many people without sharing their addresses. That is what the Bcc line is for. Outlook hides it by default, and where you turn it on depends on which Outlook you have open.
In short: in a new email, look at the end of the To line and select Bcc. That works in new Outlook, Outlook on the web, Outlook for Mac and the iPhone app. In classic Outlook, select Options > Bcc, and the box then stays on for every new email. To show it every time on the web, use Options > Show Bcc; on a Mac, Outlook > Settings > Composing > Show BCC field by default. In new Outlook, Options > Show fields > Show Bcc turns it on. People in Bcc get the email, and nobody else can see them. Only you can, later, by opening the message in Sent Items. Outlook has no setting to Bcc someone automatically. Cc stands for carbon copy and Bcc for blind carbon copy: every recipient can see who is on the Cc line, but not who is on the Bcc line.
How to Bcc in Outlook: Each Version at a Glance
| Outlook | Add Bcc to one email | Show Bcc every time |
|---|---|---|
| New Outlook for Windows | Bcc at the end of the To line | Options > Show fields > Show Bcc (Microsoft doesn’t say whether it stays on) |
| Classic Outlook for Windows | Options > Bcc | Turn it on once: it stays on until you turn it off |
| Outlook on the web / Outlook.com | Bcc at the end of the To line | Options > Show Bcc |
| Outlook for Mac | Bcc at the end of the To line | Show BCC field by default in Settings |
| Outlook for iPhone | Bcc at the end of the To line | No setting described by Microsoft |
| Outlook for Android | No steps from Microsoft | No setting described by Microsoft |
How to Bcc in New Outlook for Windows
- Open a new email, or reply to one.
- At the end of the To line, select Bcc. The Bcc box appears.
- Add the people you want to copy privately, then write and send the email.
Microsoft’s Bcc article for Windows gives a second route that turns the field on from the toolbar: in a new message or reply, go to Options > Show fields and select Show Bcc. The article doesn’t say whether the field then stays on for later emails. If neither matches your screen, you may be in classic Outlook.
How to Bcc in Classic Outlook
- Start a new email or a reply.
- If the message opens in its own window, select the Options tab, then Bcc. If you are writing in the reading pane, select Bcc on the ribbon.
- If you can’t see Bcc, select the ellipsis (...) at the right end of the ribbon, then Bcc.
- Add the recipients in the Bcc box, write the message and select Send.
In classic Outlook you only do this once. Microsoft says that once Bcc is on, the box shows on every new message until you turn it off with the same button. A dark background on the button means it is on, a light one means off.
How to Bcc in Outlook on the Web and Outlook.com
- Start a new email.
- At the end of the To line, select Bcc. The Bcc box appears.
- Add the recipients and send.
To make the box show every time, open the Options tab in the message toolbar and tick Show Bcc. These steps were checked in Outlook.com with a personal account in November 2026. Microsoft’s Add Bcc to a message article lists Outlook on the web but gives no steps for it, so a work or school account may lay the toolbar out differently.
How to Bcc in Outlook for Mac
- Create a new email.
- At the end of the To line, select Bcc.
- Add the recipients in the Bcc box, write the message and select Send.
To show Bcc on every email, Microsoft’s Mac article says to select the Outlook menu, then Settings, then Composing, and turn on Show BCC field by default.
How to Bcc in the Outlook App (iPhone and Android)
On iPhone, Microsoft’s steps match the desktop: open a new message or a reply, select Bcc at the right end of the To line, and add the people you want on the Bcc line. Microsoft describes no setting to keep it showing. As of November 2026, Microsoft’s Bcc articles give no steps for Outlook for Android.
What Bcc Recipients Can and Can’t See
- Nobody sees the Bcc line except you. Microsoft says other recipients can’t see the addresses on the Bcc line, and only the sender can see Bcc names, in Sent Items. That includes the other Bcc recipients, so people you Bcc don’t see each other.
- Bcc hides only the Bcc line. The To and Cc lines are on the email as usual.
- Replies from To and Cc skip Bcc. A Microsoft 365 blog post notes that when someone on To or Cc replies, people on Bcc don’t get the reply (a 2012 post; Microsoft’s current help pages don’t cover this).
- A Bcc recipient who selects Reply All gives themselves away. Microsoft’s reply article says Reply All goes to the sender and everyone on To and Cc, so they all see that this person got the email. A plain Reply goes only to you. If you Bcc someone, tell them to reply rather than select Reply All.
Bcc doesn’t work on meeting invitations. Microsoft says there is no way to add a true Bcc recipient to a meeting request. In new Outlook and Outlook on the web, Response options > Hide attendee list keeps attendees from seeing each other instead. Classic Outlook for Windows doesn’t have that option.
How to See Whom You Bcc’d in Sent Items
- Open Sent Items and select the message.
- Look at the header in the reading pane. The Bcc line is listed there.
- If you see a count such as +11, there are more recipients. Expand the header to see them all. On a Mac, select more to expand it.
In classic Outlook, the Bcc line can be missing from the Sent Items copy when you sent to a very large number of Bcc addresses from an Online mode profile. Microsoft’s troubleshooting article explains the workarounds.
If you file sent mail into folders, the Bcc line moves with it. See how to file sent emails in Outlook.
When to Use Bcc Instead of a Contact List
A contact group (a personal distribution list) in the To or Cc line lets everyone on it see the other addresses. Bcc keeps them private. Microsoft’s steps for classic Outlook are to put your own address in To and the contact group in Bcc.
Use Bcc when:
- the recipients don’t know each other, such as an announcement to many outside contacts;
- you want to stop a Reply All chain: reply once and move the list to Bcc, a tip from Microsoft’s Windows article;
- you want to make it harder for anyone to copy the addresses from your email.
Use the To or Cc line instead when the recipients should see each other or reply to the group. Microsoft’s Windows article also warns against Bcc in these cases:
- Company distribution lists: recipients’ rules that look for the list’s name in To or Cc won’t match.
- Large mailings: Bcc addresses count toward your provider’s recipient limit, and many junk filters flag mail that uses Bcc. Make sure Bcc recipients expect your email, or use a mail merge from Word.
To build a list to use this way, see how to create a distribution list in Outlook.
Can You Automatically Bcc Yourself or Someone Else?
Not with a setting. As of November 2026, none of Microsoft’s Outlook articles describe a way to add a Bcc to every email you send.
- Classic Outlook: Microsoft documents a rule that adds a Cc, not a Bcc. Its automatic Cc article uses Rules > Manage Rules & Alerts > New Rule > Apply rule on messages I send with the action Cc the message to people or public group. Everyone sees a Cc. It is a client-only rule, so it runs only on that computer and only while Outlook is running.
- New Outlook, the web, Mac and mobile: Microsoft describes no automatic Bcc or Cc.
- Work or school accounts: an Exchange Online admin can create a mail flow rule with the action Add recipients > to the Bcc box. The original recipients aren’t told and can’t see the added address. The rule adds it to every message it matches, so it is your IT team’s decision, not a personal setting.
If you want a copy of your own email, you already have one in Sent Items. To send copies of mail you receive to another address, see how to auto-forward emails in Outlook.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the Bcc button in Outlook?
In new Outlook, Outlook on the web, Outlook for Mac and the iPhone app, it is at the end of the To line in a new email. In classic Outlook, it is on the Options tab of the message, or on the ribbon when you write in the reading pane.
How do I make Bcc show every time in Outlook?
In classic Outlook, turn on Bcc once and it stays on. In Outlook on the web, tick Options > Show Bcc. On a Mac, go to Outlook > Settings > Composing and turn on Show BCC field by default. In new Outlook, Options > Show fields > Show Bcc turns it on, but Microsoft doesn’t say whether it stays on for later emails.
Can Bcc recipients see each other?
No. Only the sender can see the Bcc line, in Sent Items. Each Bcc recipient sees the To and Cc lines but not the other people in Bcc.
What happens if a Bcc recipient selects Reply All?
The reply goes to you and to everyone on the To and Cc lines, who then know that person received the email. A plain Reply goes only to you. Replies from To and Cc recipients don’t reach the Bcc recipients.
How can I see whom I Bcc’d in Outlook?
Open the message in Sent Items and look at the header in the reading pane. A count such as +11 means more recipients are hidden; expand the header to see them.
Can I Bcc myself automatically in Outlook?
Outlook has no setting for it. Classic Outlook can add an automatic Cc with a rule, which everyone sees. With a work account, an admin can add a Bcc with an Exchange mail flow rule. Your own copy is already in Sent Items.