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How to Set Out of Office in Outlook
Automatic replies in every version of Outlook, plus the part nobody plans for: the two hundred emails waiting when you get back.
Try it with your OutlookOutlook's way: automatic replies
- 1Outlook on the web: Settings → Mail → Automatic replies.
- 2Classic desktop: File → Automatic Replies (Out of Office).
- 3Set a start and end time so it turns itself off.
- 4Write a separate message for senders outside your organisation — internal and external replies are configured separately.
The problem
- ✕Everyone gets the same reply regardless of how urgent their message is
- ✕Nothing is triaged while you are away
- ✕You return to the entire backlog with no idea what actually matters
- ✕Anything that went quiet while you were out stays quiet
What Clarity does about the return
- 1Set your automatic reply in Outlook exactly as above — Clarity does not replace it.
- 2While you are away, Clarity keeps categorising what arrives by what it actually is.
- 3It tracks which threads are waiting on you and which went silent.
- 4Your first morning back, the brief tells you what needs answering, in order.
What changes
- ✓The backlog arrives sorted, not as a wall
- ✓Threads that went quiet are surfaced, not buried
- ✓Drafts ready for the replies that matter
- ✓Works alongside Outlook's own automatic replies
Who runs into this
Founder
Two weeks off, twelve hundred emails, no idea where to start.
Consultant
Client enquiries arrived during leave and went cold waiting.
Anyone on holiday
Spends the first day back reading rather than working.
Frequently asked questions
How do I set out of office in new Outlook?
Settings → Mail → Automatic replies. Turn it on, set a start and end time, and write your message. Tick the option to reply to people outside your organisation if you want external senders to get one too.
Can I send different replies internally and externally?
Yes. Outlook keeps the two messages separate — one for your organisation, one for outside it — and the external one is off by default.
Will automatic replies go to everyone who emails me?
Each sender receives it once per out-of-office period, not on every message. External replies only go out if you explicitly enable them.
What happens to the emails that arrive while I am away?
Outlook just stacks them. Clarity keeps categorising and tracking them while you are gone, so your first morning back starts with a brief of what needs you rather than the raw pile.
Looking for Microsoft's own documentation? Microsoft's automatic replies documentation
More Outlook guides
Daily Email Summary
A morning brief of what needs your attention — prioritized by urgency, noise filtered out.
Auto-Categorise Emails with AI
Stop building rules by hand. Clarity reads every email and applies the right Outlook category.
How to Recall an Email in Outlook
When recall works, when it fails, and what to do when it is already too late.
What it costs you
Roughly 9.1 hours a week
Estimate2.8 hrs of that we could cover
The rest stays yours — it is not repeatable.
106 hrs
a year, if the low end of the range holds
137
threads went quiet and nothing told you
Last 90 days · your own mail · illustrative figures
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