To streamline your Outlook emails and keep your inbox organized, you can create rules (also known as email rules or filters) to automatically sort, prioritize, or take specific actions on incoming emails. Here’s how you can create rules in Outlook:
1. Open Outlook: Launch the Outlook desktop app or access Outlook online (Outlook.com) in your web browser.
2. Go to the Home tab: In Outlook for Windows, click on the “File” tab and select “Manage Rules & Alerts.” In Outlook for Mac, go to the “Tools” menu and choose “Rules.”
3. Click “New Rule”: This will open the “Rules and Alerts” dialog box.
4. Choose a template or start from scratch: You can select a template from the list or create a custom rule. For more advanced rules, choose “Apply rule on messages I receive.”
5. Define the conditions: Specify the conditions that should trigger the rule. For example, you can set rules based on sender, recipient, subject, or keywords.
6. Click “Next”: This will take you to the next step.
7. Choose the action(s): Decide what action should be taken when an email matches your conditions. Options include moving to a folder, marking as read, forwarding, or deleting.
8. Click “Next”: Again, proceed to the next step.
9. Specify exceptions (optional): You can exclude certain emails from the rule by defining exceptions. If you don’t want exceptions, you can skip this step.
10. Name your rule: Give your rule a descriptive name.
11. Review and finish: Review your rule settings, make sure they’re correct, and click “Finish” or “Apply” to save the rule.
12. Apply the rule: After creating the rule, Outlook will ask if you want to apply it to existing messages in your inbox. Choose “Yes” or “No” based on your preference.
Your rule is now set up and will automatically process incoming emails according to your specified conditions and actions. You can edit, disable, or delete rules at any time by going back to the “Rules and Alerts” dialog box. This will help you keep your inbox organized and streamline your email management.
Categories: Self Help
Robert Geoghegan. 
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