How to Schedule an Email in Outlook: Every Version, and What Happens If Your Computer Is Off
You wrote an email now and want it to arrive later. Every current Outlook has a way to do this, though not for every account type, and the button and the rules differ by version. In classic Outlook, the email may not leave on time if Outlook is closed.
In short: in new Outlook, Outlook on the web and Outlook.com, open the dropdown next to Send, select Schedule send, pick a time and select Send. The email waits in Drafts. Outlook for Mac works almost the same way, and Microsoft says the email goes out even if Outlook isn’t open. In classic Outlook, go to Options > Delay Delivery, tick Do not deliver before, set the time and select Send. The email waits in your Outbox, and in Cached Exchange Mode it won’t go unless Outlook is running at that time. New Outlook and Outlook for Mac don’t offer scheduling for IMAP or POP accounts. Microsoft doesn’t say whether new Outlook or the web must stay open, so test it before you rely on it.
Outlook Schedule Email Options in Each Version
| Outlook | Feature | Where it waits | Must Outlook stay open? |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Outlook for Windows | Schedule send | Drafts | Microsoft doesn’t say |
| Outlook on the web, Outlook.com | Schedule send | Drafts | Microsoft doesn’t say |
| Classic Outlook for Windows | Delay Delivery | Outbox | Yes, unless it’s an Exchange account in online mode |
| Outlook for Mac | Schedule send (Send Later in older versions) | Drafts | No |
| Outlook for iOS and Android | Schedule Send, in the new-message toolbar | Not documented | Not documented |
How to Schedule an Email in New Outlook, Outlook on the Web and Outlook.com
- Write your email.
- Select the dropdown next to Send, then select Schedule send. As of November 2026, Outlook on the web with a personal account kept that dropdown locked until the email had a recipient.
- Choose one of the suggested times and select Send, or choose a custom time and select Send.
The email stays in your Drafts folder until that time, according to Microsoft’s delay or schedule article. If you don’t see Schedule send in Outlook for Windows, you may be on classic Outlook, which doesn’t have that feature and uses Delay Delivery instead.
How to Delay Delivery of an Email in Classic Outlook
- In your new email, select the Options tab, then Delay Delivery. It’s in the More Options group.
- In the Properties window, under Delivery options, tick Do not deliver before and choose the date and time.
- Select Close, then Send.
The email waits in your Outbox. Microsoft’s troubleshooting article gives this path. Its delay or schedule article reaches the same box another way: the Message Options arrow in the Tags group, or on the simplified ribbon, the Options tab, then More commands.
How to Schedule an Email in Outlook for Mac
These steps come from Microsoft’s Mac article. Older versions call the feature Send Later.
- Write your email and add at least one recipient on the To line.
- Click the dropdown arrow on the Send button, then select Schedule send.
- Enter a date and time, then select OK.
Microsoft lists a Microsoft 365 subscription, Outlook 2019 for Mac or Outlook 2021 for Mac, and the article also applies to Outlook 2024 for Mac. Check under Outlook > About Outlook.
How to Schedule an Email in the Outlook App (iPhone and Android)
No Microsoft how-to article turned up for this, so treat these steps as a guide.
- Start a new email in the app.
- In the new email’s toolbar, tap …. On newer versions, extra toolbar items may sit behind the + icon.
- Tap Schedule Send and choose a time.
Microsoft’s release notes record the feature for Android in July 2023. For iPhone, only Microsoft’s community forum confirms it: a moderator said so in 2023 and a user reports it working, though another moderator denied it in 2024. If the option is missing, try outlook.com in your phone’s browser. A Microsoft forum moderator suggested it to someone who could schedule only one email in the Android app.
Don’t confuse this with Microsoft’s “Schedule” swipe action in the app. That hides an email you received until later. It doesn’t send anything.
Does Outlook Have to Stay Open? What Happens If Your Computer Is Off
- Classic Outlook: plan on yes. Microsoft says Outlook must be online and connected. In Cached Exchange Mode, the email is held in the local Outbox, not on the server, so it won’t go unless Outlook is running at that time. If your computer is off, the email misses its time. Microsoft doesn’t say when it leaves after that, so check your Outbox when you next open Outlook.
- Outlook for Mac: no. Microsoft says the email is sent even if Outlook isn’t open on your computer.
- New Outlook and Outlook on the web: Microsoft’s articles don’t say. An accepted answer on its Q&A forum in April 2026 says Exchange sends it with your browser closed, for Microsoft 365 and Exchange mailboxes. Before you rely on it for something important, schedule a test email to yourself and close Outlook.
- iPhone and Android: not documented. A community moderator said in 2023 that the app’s scheduled emails are held and sent by the Exchange mail server.
Classic Outlook has one way around this. Microsoft says the problem doesn’t occur in online mode, so you can turn off Cached Exchange Mode and set the delay after that. A community moderator adds that this doesn’t work with Outlook.com, IMAP or POP accounts, and that an email already in the Outbox isn’t covered: move it to Drafts first, switch, then send it again from Drafts. The same answer gives the path: File > Account Settings > Account Settings, select your email, Change, untick Use Cached Exchange Mode, and restart Outlook. Recall also doesn’t work in online mode.
How to Change or Cancel a Scheduled Email
- New Outlook: open the email in Drafts and select Cancel send. Then select Send to send it now. Microsoft doesn’t describe changing the time or deleting it. After Cancel send, you can try Schedule send again.
- Outlook on the web and Outlook.com: Microsoft’s pages differ. The delay or schedule article says to open the email in Drafts and select Cancel send, then Send. The web article says to select the Edit pencil icon, then Send Now. Use whichever your screen shows.
- Classic Outlook: open the email in your Outbox and open the same options window. To send it now, clear Do not deliver before, select Close, then Send. Microsoft describes only that. To change the time, you can try a new date and time in that box. To stop it, move it to Drafts to keep the text, or delete it.
- Outlook for Mac: open the email in Drafts, select Cancel Send, then Yes. It reopens so you can send it now or schedule it again.
- iPhone and Android: Microsoft doesn’t document this.
In classic Outlook, press Send again after opening a waiting email. Microsoft’s troubleshooting article, written for Exchange 2013 mailboxes in online mode, warns that one you open and close without sending won’t go at its time. If Send is missing, close the email and reopen it.
Which Accounts Can’t Schedule Email
- New Outlook: Schedule send isn’t available for IMAP or POP accounts, according to the delay or schedule article.
- Outlook for Mac: it needs an Exchange account, such as Outlook.com hosted on Microsoft 365, or Exchange 2016 CU5 or later. It doesn’t work with IMAP or POP accounts such as Gmail, Yahoo or iCloud.
- Classic Outlook: Microsoft’s pages differ. One page limits the single-email delay to Exchange accounts and offers the rule below to everyone. The delay or schedule article lists no account limit. If the single delay doesn’t work for your account, the rule below can only hold all your email for up to two hours; it can’t send one email at a time you choose.
- iPhone and Android: a community moderator said in 2023 that third-party accounts such as Gmail weren’t supported. That may have changed.
Schedule Send Suggestions in Work Accounts
Some work accounts get a Viva Insights prompt when recipients are outside their working hours or out of office, or when you’re outside yours. It needs any Outlook rule that delays your messages to be off. Microsoft’s separate article gives different details:
- The email waits in Drafts on the web, but in Sent Items in Outlook for Windows. Look there if it isn’t in Drafts.
- Open it and select Send now to send it early, or Don’t send to move it to Deleted Items.
- You can’t schedule delivery to distribution lists or Microsoft 365 groups.
How to Delay All Email With a Rule
In classic Outlook, a rule can hold everything you send for up to 120 minutes:
- Select File > Manage Rules & Alerts > New Rule.
- Under Start from a blank rule, select Apply rule on messages I send, then Next.
- Leave the conditions empty and select Next. When the confirmation appears, select Yes so the rule covers all your mail.
- Tick defer delivery by a number of minutes, select the underlined a number of, enter the minutes (1 to 120), then select OK.
- Select Finish, then OK when Outlook warns that this is a client-side rule.
Each email then waits in the Outbox. Outlook warns that this is a client-side rule, so Outlook must stay open for the whole delay.
Microsoft says these rules aren’t available in Outlook for Mac. For new Outlook, its comparison page marks the delay send rule as “Partially available” (status updated April 2026), but links only to the delay or schedule article, whose new Outlook steps cover single emails.
Schedule Send vs. Undo Send
Scheduling sets a date and time for one email. Undo Send holds every email you send for a short time, so you can stop one you regret. It has to be on before you send, and classic Outlook doesn’t have it.
For the steps and each version’s limits, see how to recall an email in Outlook and use Undo Send.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will a scheduled email send if my computer is off?
On a Mac, probably: Microsoft says it goes even if Outlook isn’t open, though it doesn’t mention the computer being off. In classic Outlook in Cached Exchange Mode, no: the email stays in the local Outbox unless Outlook is running at that time. Microsoft doesn’t say for new Outlook or the web, so test it with an email to yourself first.
Where do scheduled emails go in Outlook?
In new Outlook, Outlook on the web, Outlook.com and Outlook for Mac, a scheduled email waits in Drafts. In classic Outlook, it waits in the Outbox. If you accepted a Viva Insights suggestion in Outlook for Windows, look in Sent Items.
How do I cancel a scheduled email in Outlook?
In new Outlook and on a Mac, open it in Drafts and select Cancel send. On a Mac, confirm with Yes. Outlook on the web may show Cancel send or the Edit pencil icon with Send Now, depending on your screen. In classic Outlook, open it in the Outbox and clear Do not deliver before to send it now, or move it to Drafts to stop it.
Why don’t I see Schedule send in Outlook?
Classic Outlook doesn’t have it; use Options > Delay Delivery instead. New Outlook and Outlook for Mac don’t offer it for IMAP or POP accounts, and Microsoft names Gmail, Yahoo and iCloud on the Mac. On a phone, update the app or use outlook.com in your browser.
Can I schedule an email from the Outlook mobile app?
Microsoft’s release notes say Android gained this in July 2023, through the … menu in a new email. For iPhone, only forum answers confirm it, and one moderator denied it in 2024. No Microsoft how-to article turned up for either, so look for Schedule Send in the new-message toolbar.
Can I delay all my outgoing email in Outlook?
In classic Outlook, yes: a rule using defer delivery by a number of minutes holds each email for up to 120 minutes, and Outlook must stay open for that time. Microsoft says Outlook for Mac has no such rule, and it gives no steps for new Outlook or the web.