Applies ToOutlook for Microsoft 365 Outlook 2024 Outlook 2021 Outlook 2019 Outlook 2016 Office for business Office 365 Small Business Microsoft 365 admin Outlook on the web Microsoft Office New Outlook for Windows

A shared mailbox makes it easy for a group of people to monitor and send email from a public email alias like info@contoso.com. When a person in the group replies to a message sent to the shared mailbox, the email appears to be from the shared address, not from the individual user. In classic Outlook, you can also use the shared mailbox as a shared team calendar. A shared mailbox is also suitable for use as a "noreply" email account.

Tip: If you're a small business owner looking for more information on how to get Microsoft 365 set up, visit Small business help & learning.

A shared mailbox isn't designed for anyone who's sharing the mailbox to sign in directly to the account. The account for the shared mailbox itself should stay in a disabled state.

Tip: Before you can use a shared mailbox, the Microsoft 365 admin for your organization has to create it and add you as a member. For more information, see Create a shared mailbox, which describes what the admin needs to do.

Select a tab option below for the version of Outlook you're using. What version of Outlook do I have?

Note: If the steps under this New Outlook tab don't work, you may not be using new Outlook for Windows yet. Select the Classic Outlook tab and follow those steps instead.

Tip: To help executive assistants and delegates better navigate mailbox management in the new Outlook, here are the some mail tips.

Add a shared mailbox to new Outlook

After your admin has added you as a member of a shared mailbox, close and then restart new Outlook. The shared mailbox should automatically display in your Folder pane.

What if it didn't work?

If your admin only recently added you to a shared mailbox, it may take a few minutes before the shared mailbox appears. Wait a bit and then close and restart the new Outlook again. Or, add the shared box manually.

  1. Select Mail from the navigation pane in new Outlook.

  2. In the Folder pane, right-click your account name, and select Add shared folder or mailbox.

    Screenshot showing selection to Add shared folder or mailbox

  3. In the Add shared folder or mailbox window, type the name of the mailbox you want to access, for example, info@contoso.com.

    Note: You can add the shared mailbox at any time, but before you can start using it, your IT admin must add you as a member.

Find the shared mailbox in the folder pane

In the folder pane on the left, locate the Shared with me folder. Click the folder to expand it. Your shared mailbox is a subfolder under Shared with me. When you select the name of the shared mailbox there, it will expand to show the standard email folders, such as Inbox, Drafts, and Sent Items.

Send mail from the shared mailbox

  1. Select Mail from the navigation pane in new Outlook for Windows.

  2. On the Home tab, select New > Mail.

  3. If you don't see the From field at the top of your message (next to Send), on the Options tab, select Show From.

  4. Click From in the message, and change to the shared email address. If you don't see your shared email address, choose Other email address and then type in the shared email address.

  5. Finish typing your message, then choose Send.

    From now on when you want to send a message from your shared mailbox, the address will be available in your From drop down list.

    Whenever you send a message from a shared mailbox, your recipients only see the shared email address in the message.

Reply to mail sent to the shared mailbox

  1. Open new Outlook for Windows.

  2. Open the email message you want to reply to.

  3. In the From field at the top of your message, you should see the name of your shared mailbox. If you don't, choose the From dropdown box and choose your shared mailbox.

  4. Finish typing your message, then choose Send.

    When you want to send a message from your shared mailbox, the address will be available in your From drop down list.

    Whenever you send a message from your shared mailbox, your recipients will only see the shared email address in the message.

Search on the shared mailbox

Once a shared mailbox is added to new Outlook, searching within it is similar to searching on a primary mailbox.

  1. Open new Outlook for Windows.

  2. Select a folder within the shared mailbox in the folder pane.

    Folder Panel selection

  3. In the Search box at the top of the Outlook window, type the query you want to use for searching, then press Enter.

    The message list will show results based on the search from that selected folder in the shared mailbox.

Use the shared calendar from the shared mailbox

After your admin has added you as a member of shared mailbox, close and then restart Outlook. The shared calendar associated with the shared mailbox is automatically added to your Calendars list.

  1. In new Outlook, go to calendar view, and choose the shared mailbox.

    When you enter appointments, everyone who is a member of the shared mailbox will be able to see them.

  2. Any member of the shared mailbox can create, view, and manage appointments on the calendar, just like they would their personal appointments. Everyone who is a member of shared mailbox can see their changes to the shared calendar.

Use the shared contact list in the mailbox

Contacts for shared mailboxes, and other user's mailboxes, is currently unavailable in new Outlook​​​​​​​. Microsoft's Outlook organization is actively working on updating this.

What else do I need to know about shared mailboxes in the new Outlook​​​​​​​​​​​​​​?

Currently, shared mailboxes can be added as resources only. In an upcoming update, the capability to add shared mailboxes as accounts will enable greater access to use and manage the mailbox settings. In a future update (roadmap), being able to add a shared mailbox as an account will provide support for the following capabilities (which are currently unsupported):

Notifications

Unread count

Automatic replies

Categories

Preference for accessible content

Focused inbox

Message format

Attachment preference

Rules

Conditional formatting

Sweep

Junk mail

Quick steps

Forwarding

Retention policies

Events and invitations

Work hours

​​​​​​​

Other capabilities that are not available today for shared mailboxes, but will be added in a future update:

  • Access to the Online Archive / In-Place Archive of the shared mailbox

  • Granting new delegated access to a mailbox

Here are some mail tips to help executive assistants and delegates better navigate mailbox management in the new Outlook​​​​​​​ .

Mail filters and rules for executive admins

In the new Outlook, executive admins can use the has calendar invites email filter to easily find meeting invites.

You can also set up an Email received for others rule for your executive's account and automatically move it to a separate folder and categorize it as you like.

Drag and drop emails to create tasks

Effortlessly stay on top of things by dragging emails to My Day to turn them into tasks.

Pin emails for quick access

You can now pin an email to appear at the top of your inbox, saving you time from having to go back and search for it. Hover or right-click on the email and select Pin to pin it.

Schedule when to send email

In today's hybrid work world, your day might be someone else's night, so you don't want to send an email to someone in the middle of the night. With the new Outlook, it's simple to send an email when you want to. Just select the dropdown arrow next to Send and choose Schedule send.

Snooze email

Sometimes email is very important, but not yet. With the Snooze feature, you can schedule a time for the email to be re-delivered to your inbox, appearing at the time you want it to, so you can handle it when it's the right time for you. Just right-click any message and choose Snooze, or select Snooze from the ribbon. Then choose the time you want it to be delivered.

Send automatic replies from a shared mailbox

Only your Microsoft 365 admin has permissions to set this up. For instructions, see Create a shared mailbox.

See also

Add a shared mailbox to Outlook mobile

Open a shared Mail, Calendar or People folder in Outlook for Mac

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