How to Enable/Disable Focused Inbox in Outlook

Focused Inbox, previously known as Clutter, is an Outlook feature that divides every message in the message inbox into the Focused and Other sections. In most Outlook versions, the Focused Inbox is enabled by default unless you specifically disable it.

If you receive a lot of emails, enabling the focused inbox is a good idea, as Outlook automatically puts all your important emails in the Focused section using its AI algorithm. However, it sometimes can leave you searching for your emails when they automatically pile on the Other tab.

Fortunately, enabling or disabling the focused inbox feature in Outlook is as easy as pie and takes a couple of seconds only. So without further ado, let’s get into the nitty gritty of enabling/disabling the feature in Outlook.

How to Enable/Disable Focused Inbox in Outlook?

Whether you are using Outlook on Windows, Mac, Android, iPhone, or even online, you simply switch the toggle button to enable/disable the above feature.

However, if you are a part of an organization and use Outlook, you need to use PowerShell to change the setting for all users at once.

Using the Outlook Settings

It’s only a couple of steps to enable/disable the above Outlook feature using the Outlook settings. Here’s how you can do it, depending on where you are using it.

On Browser

1. Launch a browser and sign in to your Outlook.com account.
2. Click the Gear icon in the top right corner to open Outlook settings.
3. Toggle on/off the button next to Focused Inbox to enable/disable it.
   

On Windows (Office 365)

1. Launch the Outlook app.
2. Select the View tab on the top menu bar.
3. Click Show Focused Inbox to enable/disable it. If enabled, you can see two tabs, Focused and Other, for your message inbox.
   

On Mac (Office 365)

1. Open the Outlook app.
2. Select the Organize menu at the top.
3. Click Focused Inbox to turn it on or off according to your needs.
   
4. Alternatively, you can click the down arrow icon above your message inbox and select Turn on Focused inbox.
   

On Outlook Mobile App (Android & iOS)

1. Tap your profile icon in the top left corner.
   
2. Then, tap the gear icon in the bottom left corner.
   
3. Scroll down to the Email section and toggle on/off the Focused Inbox button as per your preference.
   

Using PowerShell

If you are an administrator and want to enable/disable the Focused Inbox mode for all users on Office 365, you can do so using Powershell. However, it’s not permanent; users can later change their settings in the View menu.

1. Press Windows + S and search for “Windows PowerShell.”
2. Click the Run as Administrator option.
3. Then, enter the following commands and press Enter after each. Follow the on-screen instructions and provide the necessary details when asked.
   • Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope LocalMachine -Force;
   • Install-PackageProvider -Name NuGet -Force;
   • Set-PSRepository -Name "PSGallery" -InstallationPolicy Trusted;
     
   • Install-Module -Name ExchangeOnlineManagement;
   • Import-Module ExchangeOnlineManagement;
   • Connect Exchange Online;
     

4. Upon the sign-in prompt, enter your admin Office 365 credentials (username and password.)
   
5. To disable the feature for all users, enter the following command and press Enter.
   Set-OrganizationConfig -FocusedInboxOn $false
   

6. If you want to enable the feature for the users, replace “false” in the above command with “true.”

How to Fix Messages Not Showing on the Focused Tab?

The Outlook app automatically filters out messages in your inbox and tries to show you only the important emails based on its AI. Sometimes it doesn’t work as expected and places it in the Others section. You will probably find your lost emails there. 

On the other hand, you can manually move the emails from the Others section to the Focused tab as follows.

1. Select the Others tab above your message inbox.
2. Right-click on the message you want to move to the Focused section.
3. Select the Move to Focused section.
   
4. Additionally, select the Always Move to Focused option if you want every message from the particular email to end up on Focused automatically.