How to Forward All Emails from Outlook: A Comprehensive Guide

Want to automatically divert all incoming messages from your Outlook account to another? You’re likely looking for a way to forward all emails automatically, ensuring you don’t miss crucial communications while perhaps managing multiple accounts or consolidating your inbox. You can achieve this in Outlook using the Rules feature. This involves creating a rule to automatically forward all incoming emails to your desired address.

Setting Up Automatic Email Forwarding in Outlook

Outlook provides a robust rule-based system perfect for managing email flow. Here’s how to set it up to forward all your incoming emails.

Using Outlook on the Web (Outlook.com)

The web version offers a clean, user-friendly interface.

1. Access Settings: Log in to your Outlook.com account. Click the gear icon (Settings) at the top right of the page, then select “View all Outlook settings” at the bottom.

2. Navigate to Rules: In the Settings window, select “Mail” and then “Rules.”

3. Create a New Rule: Click the “+ Add new rule” button.

4. Define the Rule: Give your rule a descriptive name, like “Forward All Emails.”

5. Set the Condition: Under “Add a condition,” select “Apply to all messages.” This ensures that all emails entering your inbox will be forwarded.

6. Add the Forwarding Action: Under “Add an action,” select “Forward to.” Enter the email address where you want all your emails to be forwarded. You can only specify one forwarding address here. Consider using the “Redirect to” option if needing to keep the original sender visible to the receiver.

7. Save the Rule: Click “Save” at the top of the New rule window. The rule is now active.

Using the Outlook Desktop Application

The desktop app provides a powerful, feature-rich experience.

1. Open Outlook: Launch the Outlook desktop application.

2. Access Rules and Alerts: Go to the “File” tab, then click “Manage Rules & Alerts.”

3. Create a New Rule: In the “Rules and Alerts” dialog box, on the “Email Rules” tab, click “New Rule…”

4. Start from a Blank Rule: Under “Start from a blank rule,” select “Apply rule on messages I receive” and click “Next.”

5. Set the Condition: In the “Which condition(s) do you want to check?” window, leave all boxes unchecked. Outlook will prompt you, saying “This rule will be applied to every message you receive.” Click “Yes” to confirm.

6. Specify the Action: In the “What do you want to do with the message?” window, select “Forward it to people or distribution list.”

7. Choose the Recipient: In the bottom box, click the underlined “people or distribution list.” In the Address Book, either select an existing contact or type the email address directly into the “To ->” field. Click “OK.”

8. Complete the Rule Setup: Click “Next.”

9. Add Exceptions (Optional): If you need to exclude certain emails from being forwarded, specify those exceptions on this screen. If not, click “Next.”

10. Name and Activate the Rule: Give your rule a name. Ensure the “Turn on this rule” box is checked. Click “Finish.”

11. Confirm Client-Only Rule: If prompted with a message stating this is a client-only rule, understand that this rule will only function when Outlook is open. This is normal if your email is handled by a server without the Outlook Rules feature configured.

Considerations Before Forwarding All Emails

While forwarding all emails might seem convenient, consider the implications.

• Data Privacy: You’re sharing potentially sensitive information with another email account.
• Storage Space: Forwarded emails will consume storage space on both your original account and the forwarding account.
• Spam: You’ll forward spam along with legitimate emails.
• Email Management: The forwarding account might become cluttered.
• Security: Be extremely careful about forwarding emails to untrusted addresses, to mitigate risks of your information getting into the wrong hands.

Alternatives to Forwarding All Emails

Consider these options if forwarding all emails seems excessive.

• Email Aliases: Create aliases for different purposes and manage them within your primary account.
• Filtering and Labels: Set up filters to automatically label and organize incoming emails.
• Email Client Integration: Use a single email client (like Outlook) to manage multiple accounts.
• Rules for Specific Senders or Subjects: Forward only emails from specific senders or with specific subjects.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Sometimes, things don’t go as planned. Here’s how to troubleshoot common forwarding issues.

• Rule Not Working: Ensure the rule is enabled and has no conflicting conditions. Double-check the forwarding address.
• Emails Not Being Forwarded: Verify your internet connection and that Outlook is running (for client-only rules).
• Email Overload in the Forwarding Account: Adjust your rules to be more selective or consider using filters in the forwarding account.
• Looping Issues: Ensure that the forwarding account isn’t forwarding back to the original account, creating an infinite loop.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Will forwarding all emails affect my ability to send emails from my original account?

No, forwarding all incoming emails only affects how you receive emails. You can still send emails from your original Outlook account as usual. Your sent items will remain in your original account’s Sent Items folder.

2. Can I forward emails to multiple email addresses?

The standard “Forward to” action in Outlook rules only allows for one forwarding address. To forward to multiple addresses, you might consider creating a distribution list or using the “Redirect to” option in combination with server-side rules if your email provider supports them.

3. Will the recipient of the forwarded emails see the original sender’s address?

When you use the “Forward to” action, the recipient will see your email address as the sender of the forwarded email. If you want the recipient to see the original sender, use the “Redirect to” action instead.

4. How do I stop forwarding all emails from my Outlook account?

To stop forwarding, simply disable or delete the rule you created for forwarding. Go back to the Rules & Alerts settings (either in Outlook on the web or the desktop application), find the rule, uncheck the box next to it to disable it, or select it and click the “Delete” button.

5. Does forwarding all emails in Outlook cost anything?

No, forwarding emails using Outlook’s built-in features is free. However, ensure you have sufficient storage space in both your original and forwarding email accounts, as forwarded emails will consume storage.

6. Can I forward emails only during specific times or days?

Standard Outlook rules do not have built-in options for time-based or day-based forwarding. You would typically require third-party tools or server-side rules (if supported by your email provider) to implement such a feature.

7. What happens to emails that are already in my inbox when I set up forwarding?

The forwarding rule only applies to emails you receive after the rule is created and activated. Emails already in your inbox will not be forwarded automatically. You would need to forward those manually if desired.

8. Is it possible to forward emails based on specific keywords in the email body?

Yes, you can create rules based on specific keywords. When creating the rule, you can specify conditions like “with specific words in the subject” or “with specific words in the message body.”

9. What is the difference between “Forward to” and “Redirect to” in Outlook rules?

“Forward to” sends a copy of the email to the specified address, making you (the original recipient) the sender of the forwarded email. “Redirect to” sends the email directly to the specified address as if it were originally sent to them, preserving the original sender information.

10. Will forwarded emails be marked as read in my original account?

By default, forwarded emails will remain marked as unread in your original account until you manually mark them as read. Some email clients or add-ins might offer options to automatically mark forwarded emails as read, but this is not a standard Outlook feature.

11. Can I forward emails to a phone number (SMS)?

Outlook does not directly support forwarding emails to a phone number as an SMS message. You would need to use a third-party service or an email-to-SMS gateway to achieve this.

12. Are there any security risks associated with forwarding all my emails?

Yes, there are security risks. The biggest is the potential exposure of sensitive information if the forwarding email account is compromised or if you accidentally forward emails to an untrusted address. Always ensure the forwarding email account has strong security measures in place (strong password, two-factor authentication).