Summary

This article walks you through the most common reasons Outlook search stops working and how to fix each one — from checking your search scope to rebuilding the search index. Most steps take less than five minutes and require no administrator rights.

In this guide

• 1. Check the Search Scope
• 2. Close and Reopen Outlook
• 3. Check the Indexing Status
• 4. Rebuild the Outlook Search Index
• 5. Verify the Windows Search Service Is Running
• 6. Run the Microsoft Office Repair Tool
• 7. Use Outlook on the Web as a Workaround
• 8. When to Contact IT

Before You Start

• Microsoft Outlook desktop app or New Outlook for Windows.
• A working internet connection (needed for Steps 7 and 8).

Instructions

1. Check the Search Scope

Outlook searches within a specific scope by default. If the scope is set to the current folder, emails in other folders will not appear in results.

1. Click the Search bar at the top of the Outlook window.
2. Look at the search scope options that appear below the search bar — they typically include Current Folder, Current Mailbox, All Mailboxes, and All Outlook Items.
3. Select Current Mailbox to search across all folders in your account.
4. Re-enter your search query and check whether the missing emails now appear.
5. If you frequently need to search your entire mailbox, you can change the default scope:
   • Classic Outlook: Go to File > Options > Search > set Include results only from to Current Mailbox.
   • New Outlook: The default scope is already Current Mailbox.

2. Close and Reopen Outlook

A temporary glitch in the search process can sometimes be cleared by restarting the application.

1. Close Outlook completely — do not leave it minimized in the taskbar or system tray.
2. If Outlook does not close cleanly, press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager, find Microsoft Outlook in the list, and click End Task.
3. Wait 10 seconds, then reopen Outlook.
4. Try your search again.

3. Check the Indexing Status

Outlook relies on the Windows Search Index to find emails quickly. If the index is incomplete or outdated, search results will be missing or inaccurate.

1. Classic Outlook: Go to File > Options > Search > click Indexing Options.
2. Alternative method: Press Win + S, type Indexing Options, and open it from the Start menu.
3. In the Indexing Options window, look at the status line at the top:
   • "Indexing complete" means the index is up to date — proceed to Step 4 if search still fails.
   • "Indexing in progress" or a count of remaining items means the index is still building — wait for it to finish before testing search again. This can take several hours on a large mailbox.
4. Confirm that Microsoft Outlook is listed under Included Locations. If it is not listed:
   • Click Modify.
   • Check the box next to Microsoft Outlook.
   • Click OK.

4. Rebuild the Outlook Search Index

If the index is complete but search still returns wrong or incomplete results, the index itself may be corrupted. Rebuilding it forces Windows to re-scan every email.

1. Open Indexing Options (press Win + S, type Indexing Options).
2. Click Advanced.
3. In the Advanced Options window, click the Rebuild button under Troubleshooting.
4. A warning appears: Rebuilding the index might take a long time to complete. Click OK.
5. Close the window. The rebuild runs in the background.
6. Wait for the rebuild to complete — this can take anywhere from 15 minutes to several hours depending on your mailbox size. The Indexing Options window will show progress.
7. Do not restart your computer during the rebuild. Once the status returns to "Indexing complete", test your search again.

5. Verify the Windows Search Service Is Running

Outlook desktop relies on the Windows Search service. If this service is stopped or disabled, search will not function at all.

1. Press Win + R, type services.msc, and press Enter.
2. Scroll down to Windows Search in the list.
3. Check the Status column:
   • If it says Running, the service is working — proceed to Step 6.
   • If it is blank (stopped), right-click Windows Search and select Start.
4. Check the Startup Type column — it will be set to Automatic (Delayed Start). If it says Disabled:
   • Right-click Windows Search > Properties.
   • Change Startup type to Automatic (Delayed Start).
   • Click Apply > OK.
   • Right-click the service again and click Start.
5. Return to Outlook and test search.

6. Run the Microsoft Office Repair Tool

If search still fails after rebuilding the index, the Outlook application itself may have a corrupted component.

1. Close Outlook completely.
2. Press Win + S, type Apps & features (Windows 10) or Installed apps (Windows 11), and open it.
3. Find Microsoft 365 (Office) in the list.
4. Click the three dots (⋯) next to it (Windows 11) or click Modify (Windows 10).
5. Select Quick Repair and click Repair. This runs in a few minutes and does not require internet.
6. Once complete, open Outlook and test search.
7. If Quick Repair does not fix the issue, repeat the steps above but select Online Repair instead. This reinstalls Office components and takes longer but is more thorough. It requires an internet connection.

7. Use Outlook on the Web as a Workaround

Outlook on the web keeps searching while the desktop index rebuilds.

If you need to find an email urgently while troubleshooting the desktop app, Outlook on the web has its own independent search that does not rely on the Windows Search Index.

1. Open a browser and go to https://outlook.office.com.
2. Sign in with your work email and password.
3. Use the search bar at the top to find your email.
4. Outlook on the web searches the server directly, so it will find emails regardless of any desktop indexing issues. If the email does not appear there either, it was moved, filtered, or deleted rather than left out of the index — see How to Fix Missing or Disappeared Emails in Outlook.

8. When to Contact IT

IT's first question will be whether the fault is on your machine or in your mailbox, so answer it in the ticket. Say whether search works at https://outlook.office.com (Step 7), and what the indexing status in Step 3 reported.

Contact your IT helpdesk if:

• You have tried all steps above — including a full index rebuild and Online Repair — and search still returns no results.
• The Windows Search service will not start, or you receive an error message when attempting to start it (this may require administrator rights).
• Search fails for all users in your team or organization — this may indicate a Microsoft 365 service issue.
• You see Something went wrong and your search couldn't be completed with an error code — provide the error code to your IT team.

Troubleshooting

DANGER

If search works in Outlook on the web but not in the desktop app, the problem is local to your computer — focus on Steps 3 through 6. If search fails in both, the issue may be server-side and requires IT.

Symptom / Error	Potential Cause	Solution
"No results found" for emails that exist	Search scope set to current folder only	Change the scope to Current Mailbox (Step 1).
Only recent emails appear in results	Search index is incomplete or rebuilding	Check indexing status (Step 3) and wait for completion.
Search bar is greyed out	Windows Search service is stopped	Start the Windows Search service (Step 5).
"Search results may be incomplete" banner	Index is still building or corrupted	Wait for indexing to finish, or rebuild the index (Step 4).
Search works on web but not desktop	Local index or Outlook installation issue	Rebuild the index (Step 4), then run Office Repair (Step 6).
"Something went wrong" error during search	Corrupted Office component	Run Quick Repair, then Online Repair if needed (Step 6).
Search stops working after a Windows update	Update reset search indexing settings	Re-add Microsoft Outlook to indexed locations (Step 3).

Related Articles

• How to Fix Outlook Not Receiving Emails
• How to Fix Outlook Not Opening or Crashing on Startup
• How to Use Focused Inbox in Outlook
• How to Use Find and Replace in Office
• How to Clean Up Email Conversations in Outlook

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