Share and access another person's mailbox or folder in Outlook

Owner of folder or mailbox: Grant permissions to a folder

1. In the Folder Pane, right-click the folder you want to share, and then select Properties.

2. To find the users or contact groups you want to share the folder with, on the Permissions tab, under Permissions, select Add. 

3. In the Global Address List, select the users and contact groups you want, clicking Add after selecting each one. As you add users or groups, they appear in the box to the right of the Add button. When you're finished adding users, click OK.

   

4. Select the user you want to share with, and choose permissions level from the dropdown list.

5. Permissions descend from Owner, with all the rights, to Contributor, with the fewest rights.

6. After you choose a permissions level, you can fine-tune the permissions by selecting buttons or checking and unchecking boxes. If you do that, the Permission Level for the user or group will change to Custom.

   In the example shown here, Diane and Kim have the built-in Author and Publishing Editor permission levels. Vernon was assigned to the Editor level, which was then customized to allow him to delete his own items.

   

7. Set different permissions for other users or groups by repeating steps 2 through 6.

8. Click OK.

Invitee: Access another person’s folder or mailbox in classic Outlook

If you're using classic Outlook, the mailbox you were granted access to automatically displays in your folder list. In the example below, Adam Barr was granted access to the mailbox of Kim Akers. Kim’s mailbox displays automatically in Adam’s folder list.

What you can do in this mailbox depends on the permission levels you were granted by the person sharing their mailbox with you.

Share and access a folder or mailbox in Outlook on the web 

There are two ways to interact with shared folders: you can be the owner of a mailbox who wants to share one or more folder or their entire mailbox.

• Folder or mailbox owner: You own the folder and decide to share it with others. You set the appropriate permission levels for those you want to share the folder with.

• Invitee: When someone shares a folder or mailbox with you, you'll receive an invitation to share a folder. When you accept the invitation, the folder appears in your folder pane. What you can do in a shared folder, depends on the permission levels set.

Owner of folder or mailbox: Share a folder or mailbox with others

To share one or more folders or to share your entire mailbox with others in your organization, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the folder you want to share.

2. Right-click on the folder and choose Sharing and permissions.

3. In the Permissions for the folder window, if the person isn't already included in the list of people you're sharing with, select   to add them.

4. Enter the name or email address of the person you're giving permission to, and then select Add.

5. From the list of names on the Permissions for the folder window, select the name of the person you just added.

6. In the Permissions section, select the Permission level dropdown and select the permissions you want to grant to this user. If you're not sure what permission level to select, see the section below Options for sharing a folder.

   

7. Confirm the sharing settings and click OK. The person you're sharing with will receive an email to let them know you shared a folder with them.

   Tip: If you want to share a subfolder you need to follow the same process, but also share the parent folder(s).

Owner of folder or mailbox: Remove sharing privileges

1. Navigate to the folder you're sharing.

2. Right-click the folder and choose Sharing and permissions.

3. Select the person you're sharing with, and then select Delete icon.

Invitee: Accept and view a folder or mailbox shared with you

When someone shares a folder with you an email is sent to let you know. You can now add this to your folder pane so you can access.

1. In the folder pane, right-click Shared with me.

2. Select Add shared folder or mailbox.

3. Enter the email address or name of the person that shared a folder with you and click Add.

4. The name of the person will appear under the node Shared with me. Expand the node to view all folders that person shared with you.

Invitee: Remove the shared folder or mailbox from your folder pane

If you decide that you no longer want to see the other person’s mailbox or folder every time you open new Outlook, right-click the folder, and click Remove shared folder.

Options for sharing a folder

The table below details the type of permission granted depending on the Permission level you set.