This article is for people with visual or cognitive impairments who use a screen reader program such as Microsoft's Narrator, JAWS, or NVDA with the Microsoft 365 products. This article is part of the Microsoft 365 screen reader support content set where you can find more accessibility information on our apps. For general help, visit Microsoft Support home or Fixes or workarounds for recent office issues.

Use Outlook for Mac with your keyboard and VoiceOver, the built-in macOS screen reader, to zoom in, or enlarge, the text of an email and make it easier to read. You'll also learn how to zoom out and return to the original text size.

Decorative icon. Need instructions on how to zoom in or out in Outlook, but not using a screen reader? See Change the font sizes in Outlook for Mac.

Notes: 

  • New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

  • This topic assumes that you are using the built-in macOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, go to VoiceOver Getting Started Guide.

In this topic

Zoom in on an email in its own window

  1. In the message list, navigate to and open the email you want. The email opens in its own window.

  2. Do one of the following:

    • To increase the font size of the email, press Command+Plus sign (+).

    • To decrease the font size of the email, press Command+Minus sign (-).

Zoom in or out when composing an email

You can make the text larger or smaller when composing your outgoing email message. This is a temporary setting, and the text size returns to its default once you've sent the message.

  1. Place the cursor in the body of the email message you're composing.

  2. Press Control+Command+Z. You hear: "Zoom dialog."

  3. In the Zoom dialog box, do one of the following:

    • Press the Down arrow key until you hear the zoom value you want.

    • To use a custom zoom value, press the Tab key until you hear: "Percent, edit text." Type the value you want.

  4. Press Return to confirm and apply the value. The focus returns to your email.

Use the Zoom feature

With the Zoom feature of your Mac, you can use keyboard shortcuts to enlarge the content in any area of Outlook.

  1. To move the focus to the menu bar, press Control+Option+M. You hear: "Menu bar, Apple."

  2. To open the System Preferences dialog box, press Control+Option+Spacebar, press the Down arrow key until you hear "System preferences, ellipses," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.

  3. In the System Preferences dialog box, press the Tab key until you hear "Accessibility, button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. The Accessibility menu opens.

  4. Press the Tab key. You hear: "Entering accessibility features table, Overview, selected." To open the Zoom feature menu, press the Down arrow key until you hear: "Zoom."

  5. To use keyboard shortcuts to zoom content, press the Tab key until you hear "Use keyboard shortcuts to zoom, unchecked, checkbox," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar to select. You hear: "Checked, Use keyboard shortcuts to zoom, checkbox."

  6. To close the System Preferences dialog box, press Command+W.

  7. In Outlook, you can now do the following:

    • To magnify the view of your emails or calendars (zoom in), press Option+Command+Equal sign (=).

    • To shrink the view (zoom out), press Option+Command+Minus sign (-).

    • To toggle the zoom on and off, press Option+Command+8.

See also

Use a screen reader to zoom in or out in Outlook (Windows, Web, Mobile)

Use a screen reader to format text in your email in Outlook

Use a screen reader to insert a picture or image in an email in Outlook

Keyboard shortcuts for Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Mail

What's new in Microsoft 365 ​​​​​​​

Technical support for customers with disabilities

Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.

If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.

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