Summary

Room Finder in Outlook helps you locate and book available conference rooms when scheduling a meeting. Instead of guessing which rooms are free, Room Finder shows real-time availability so you can reserve the right space directly from the calendar invite. This article walks you through booking a room in both the desktop and web versions of Outlook.

Before You Start

• Microsoft Outlook desktop app or Outlook on the web.
• Your organisation must have conference rooms configured in Exchange/Microsoft 365.
• No admin rights required.

Instructions

1. Open Room Finder When Creating a Meeting (Desktop App)

Access Room Finder from a new meeting invitation.

1. Open Outlook and go to the Calendar.
2. Click New Meeting on the ribbon.
3. In the meeting window, click the Room Finder button on the ribbon (under the Meeting or Options tab).
4. The Room Finder pane appears on the right side of the meeting window.

2. Search for an Available Room

Find a room that fits your time slot and capacity needs.

1. In the Room Finder pane, select a Building or Room list from the dropdown.
2. Available rooms for your selected meeting time display below.
3. Rooms marked with a green checkmark are available; rooms with a red X are booked.
4. Optionally, filter by:
   • Capacity — Number of seats needed.
   • Features — Projector, whiteboard, video conferencing, etc. (if configured by your IT team).

3. Add a Room to Your Meeting

Reserve the room by adding it to the invite.

1. Click the desired room in the Room Finder list.
2. The room is added to the Location field of your meeting.
3. The room also appears as an attendee in the To field (resource mailbox).
4. Complete the remaining meeting details (subject, attendees, agenda).
5. Click Send to send the invitation and reserve the room.

4. Book a Room in Outlook on the Web

Use Room Finder in your browser.

1. Open Outlook on the web (outlook.office.com) and go to the Calendar.
2. Click New event.
3. Click the Search for a room or location field.
4. Type the building name or click Browse with Room Finder.
5. Select an available room from the results.
6. Complete the event details and click Save (or Send if there are attendees).

5. Check Room Availability Before Booking

Preview room schedules to find open slots.

1. In a new meeting window, click the Scheduling Assistant tab.
2. The scheduling grid shows your attendees' and rooms' availability side by side.
3. Grey or blue blocks indicate busy times; white blocks indicate availability.
4. Adjust the meeting time until all attendees and the room are available.

Troubleshooting

INFO

Room Finder relies on room mailboxes configured by your IT department. If no rooms appear, your organisation may not have room mailboxes set up, or they may be organised under a different room list than expected.

Symptom / Error	Potential Cause	Solution
No rooms appear in Room Finder	Room lists not configured	This needs admin access. Raise a ticket saying: "Please confirm our conference rooms have room mailboxes and that those mailboxes are added to a room list, so they appear in Room Finder."
Room shows as available but booking is declined	Approval needed, or the room's own booking rules rejected it	A decline arriving within seconds came from the room's rules, not a person — a clash, a length or lead-time limit, or a recurring series it will not take. Fix a Meeting Room That Keeps Declining Your Invites matches the wording of the decline to its cause.
Room Finder button is missing	Outlook version or mode issue	Ensure you are in Calendar view creating a Meeting (not an Appointment). In older Outlook, try View > Room Finder.

Related Articles

• Fix a Meeting Room That Keeps Declining Your Invites
• How to Create a Calendar Event in Outlook
• How to Set Out of Office in Outlook

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