Summary

Email rules automatically sort, flag, or move incoming messages based on conditions you define. This article explains how to create and manage rules so your inbox stays organized without manual effort.

Before You Start

• A Microsoft 365 mailbox. The steps differ between Classic and New Outlook — to check which one you are running, see Understanding Outlook Versions — Classic vs. New vs. Web.

Instructions

1. Create a Rule from the Ribbon (Classic Outlook)

Build a rule from scratch using the Rules wizard.

1. Open Outlook and go to the Home tab.
2. Click Rules > Manage Rules & Alerts.
3. Click New Rule.
4. Under Start from a blank rule, select Apply rule on messages I receive and click Next.
5. Choose your condition (e.g., from people or public group, with specific words in the subject) and click the underlined value in the lower pane to define it.
6. Click Next and choose an action (e.g., move it to the specified folder, flag message).
7. Click Next to add any exceptions, then Next again.
8. Name the rule, check Turn on this rule, and click Finish.
9. Click Apply > OK to save.

2. Create a Rule from an Existing Email (Quick Method)

Use a message you already received as the starting point.

1. Right-click the email in your inbox.
2. Select Rules > Create Rule.
3. Check the conditions you want (e.g., From, Subject contains).
4. Check Move the item to folder and select a destination folder. If you have not created the folder yet, see How to Create and Manage Outlook Folders.
5. Click OK, then OK again on the confirmation dialog.

3. Create a Rule in New Outlook or Outlook on the Web

New Outlook uses a streamlined rules interface in Settings.

1. Click the Settings gear icon in the top-right corner.
2. Go to Mail > Rules.
3. Click Add new rule.
4. Enter a Name for the rule.
5. Under Add a condition, choose a condition (e.g., From, Subject includes).
6. Under Add an action, choose what happens (e.g., Move to, Mark as read).
7. Click Save. The rule applies to mail that arrives from this point on; to run it against messages already in your inbox, see How to Manually Run Inbox Rules in the New Outlook.

4. Edit or Delete a Rule

Manage existing rules from the same location where they were created.

Classic Outlook:

1. Go to Home > Rules > Manage Rules & Alerts.
2. Select a rule and click Change Rule to edit, or Delete to remove it.
3. Click Apply > OK.

New Outlook / Web:

1. Go to Settings > Mail > Rules.
2. Click the pencil icon to edit or the trash icon to delete a rule.

Troubleshooting

TIP

Rules run in the order they appear in the list. If two rules conflict, the one higher in the list takes priority. Use the Move Up / Move Down arrows to reorder.

Symptom / Error	Potential Cause	Solution
Rule not triggering on new emails	Rule set to run on send only	Edit the rule and verify it applies to messages I receive, not messages I send.
Emails not moving to the correct folder	Multiple conflicting rules	Open Manage Rules & Alerts and check for overlapping conditions. Disable or reorder rules.
Rule works in Outlook but not on phone	Client-only rule	Rules using conditions like on this computer only run only in desktop Outlook. Recreate the rule in Outlook on the Web for server-side execution.

Related Articles

• How to Fix Outlook Rules Not Working or Running Automatically
• How to Create an Email Signature in Outlook
• How to Set Up an Out-of-Office Reply in Outlook
• Understanding Outlook Versions — Classic vs. New vs. Web

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