Use a screen reader to organize your inbox in new Outlook

In this topic

• Automatically move messages to folders

• Create a rule to automatically handle future emails

• Filter messages

• Archive emails

• Flag emails

• Pin or unpin emails

• Hide an email until a given date and time

• Mark emails as read or unread

Automatically move messages to folders

You can use the sweep feature to move emails received from a specific sender to a specific folder. You can, for example, move all messages from the sender that are currently in your inbox, or always move messages older than 10 days.

1. Press the Tab key until you hear "Message list," followed by the email details.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you find a message from the sender whose messages you want to move, and then press Enter.

3. Press F6 until you hear "Ribbon tabs," and then press H to open the Home tab.

4. Press S, P to open the Sweep messages dialog box. It contains a list of rules to control the sweep action. Your screen reader announces the default option. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the option you want. 

   Note: The selected option will be applied to all the emails received from the specified sender.

5. Press the Tab key once to move the focus to the Move to drop-down menu. Press Spacebar to open the menu, and then press the Down arrow key until you find the destination folder you want.

6. Press Enter to confirm the destination and then press the Tab key once. You hear: "OK." Press Enter. A dialog box opens, announcing the success of the sweep operation.

7. Press the Tab key until you hear "OK," and then press Enter to finish the set-up.

Create a rule to automatically handle future emails

You can create rules that automatically handle incoming messages, for example, to move all messages from a given sender or set of senders to a specific folder. The rule is applied to all future messages.

1. Press the Tab key until you hear "Message list," followed by the email details.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you find a message you want to base the rule on, and then press Enter.

3. Press F6 until you hear "Ribbon tabs," and then press H to open the Home tab.

4. Press R, L to open the Rules menu. The focus is on the Create rule option. Press Enter to open the Create a rule dialog box. You hear: "Select a folder."

5. Press Spacebar and then press the Down arrow key to select a specific folder. When you hear the folder you want, press Enter.

6. Press the Tab key until you hear "OK," then press Enter to open the Your rule was created dialog box.

7. Press the Tab key until you hear "OK," then press Enter to finish creating the rule.

Filter messages

Use filters to find a message based on one of the built-in searches.

1. Press the Tab key until you hear "Message list," followed by the email details. Then press Shift+Tab once. You hear: "Filter."

2. Press Enter to open the list of filter options. Then do one of the following:

   • With Narrator and NVDA, press the Down arrow key until you reach the filter you want.

   • With JAWS, press Ctrl+Down arrow key until you reach the filter you want.

   Note: JAWS does not announce the filter submenu options. However, the options work when selected.

3. Do one of the following:

   • After finding the filter you want, press Enter.

   • If you select the Sort filter, it has further options you must choose from, for example, Date, From, and Size. Press Spacebar, and then press the Down arrow key to browse the options. When you find the one you want, press Enter.

The selected filter is applied to the inbox.

Archive emails

If you want to keep your inbox clean, but don't want to delete certain emails, you can archive the emails you don't need at the moment. Unlike deleted messages, archived messages can be searched. 

1. Press the Tab key until you hear "Message list," followed by the email details.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you find the message you want to archive, and then press Backspace. The selected message is moved to the Archive folder.

Flag emails

Flag email messages to track responses to messages that you send. You can also make sure that you follow up on messages that you receive. In either case, you can include a reminder alert. 

1. Press the Tab key until you hear "Message list," followed by the email details.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you find a message you want to flag, and then press Enter.

3. Press F6 until you hear: "Ribbon tabs." Press H to open the Home tab, then press U to open the list of Flag/Unflag options.

4. Press the Down arrow key to select an option. Press Enter when you hear the option you want. The selected message is flagged.

Pin or unpin emails

Pin emails to stick them at the top of your inbox so that you never miss any important emails. You can unpin the emails after you have replied or followed up on them.

1. Press the Tab key until you hear "Message list," followed by the email details.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the message you want to pin, and then press Enter. 

3. Press F6 until you hear: "Ribbon tabs." Press H to open the Home tab, then press Y. The selected message is pinned to the top of your inbox.

Hide an email until a given date and time

Choose a date and time to respond to an email at your convenience by using the Snooze feature. Outlook will hide the email until the time selected by you and show it as a new email, so that you can respond to it at the correct time.

1. Press the Tab key until you hear "Message list," followed by the email details.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the message you want to snooze, and then press Enter. 

3. Press F6 until you hear: "Ribbon tabs." Press H to open the Home tab, then press S, Z to open the group of snooze options.

4. Press the Down arrow key to select the date and time. The email message will disappear from the inbox until the time you have selected.

   Tip: To customize the snooze date and time according to your needs, select Choose a date from the options.

Mark emails as read or unread

To make it easier to find the emails you still need to respond to, you can mark them as unread or read.

1. Press the Tab key until you hear "Message list," followed by the email details.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key to select the message that you want to mark, and then press Ctrl+Q to mark it as read, or press Ctrl+U to mark it as unread.

See also

Use a screen reader to migrate your settings to new Outlook

Use a screen reader with My Day in new 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

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.