Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Mail

This article is for people who use a screen reader program such as Windows Narrator, JAWS, or NVDA with Microsoft 365 products. This article is part of the Microsoft 365 screen reader support content set where you can find more accessibility information on our apps. For general help, visit Microsoft Support.

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Use new Outlook with your keyboard and a screen reader to explore and navigate the different views in Mail and move between them. We have tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques.

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To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.
For the best user experience, we recommend turning the Reading Pane off and showing emails as Messages and not as Conversations.

In this topic

Navigate the main view and screen elements
Switch between views
Navigate to the app settings

Navigate the main view and screen elements

When you open Mail in new Outlook, the main view is displayed. The focus is on the message list. To navigate through and within the main view and screen elements, do the following:

To move the focus through the screen elements, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab.
To cycle through the main regions of the screen only, press F6 to move forward and Shift+F6 to move backward. The focus moves through the regions in the following order:
- Ribbon tabs below the horizontal title bar
- The vertical app banner on the left
- The navigation pane to the right of the vertical app banner
- The message list to the right of the navigation pane. It contains the list of messages and the quick access buttons for switching between the Focused and Other inboxes, and buttons for sorting and filtering your messages.
When the focus is on a button or selectable element, press Enter to perform the action or select the element.

Horizontal title banner

The horizontal title banner is at the top of the screen. It contains the Search field and a selection of buttons, for example, OneNote feed and My Day. You can also access your notifications and the app settings from the banner.

To move the focus to the title banner, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear with Narrator: "Banner, Search, edit." With JAWS, you hear: "Search, edit." With NVDA, you hear: "Search landmark."
To navigate the banner, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab.

Main regions

Ribbon tabs

Outlook Mail opens with the Home tab selected. The Home tab has buttons, for example, for creating a new mail or replying, forwarding, and moving mails.

To navigate to the row of ribbon tabs, press F6 or Shift+F6 until you hear "Ribbon tabs," followed by the currently selected tab.
To move between the ribbon tabs, press the Left or Right arrow key. To move to the options on the ribbon, do one of the following:
- On the Home tab, press the Tab key until you hear with Narrator: "Move and delete group, New mail, button." With JAWS, you hear: "Home, move and delete, New mail button." With NVDA, you hear: "Home property page, move and delete grouping, New mail menu button."
- On the View tab, press the Tab key until you hear with Narrator and JAWS: "Settings, view settings, button." With NVDA, you hear: "View property page, settings grouping, View settings button."
To navigate inside a ribbon tab, press the Left or Right arrow key.

: With JAWS, you might need to turn off the virtual PC cursor first.

Vertical app banner

The vertical app banner is on the left of the screen. It contains quick access buttons for switching between the Mail, Calendar, People, and the To Do views and other Microsoft 365 apps such as Word and PowerPoint.

To move the focus to the app banner, press F6 or Shift+F6 until with Narrator and NVDA you hear "Left trail of bar navigation," followed by your current view or app, for example, "Mail, toggle button." With JAWS, you hear "Left, dash, rail, dash, app," followed by your current view or app, for example, "Mail toggle button."
To navigate the app banner, use the Down or Up arrow key.

: With NVDA, you might need to switch to focus mode first.

Navigation pane

The navigation pane is on the left of the screen, to the right of the vertical app banner. It contains the button for hiding and showing the navigation pane at the top and a list of email folders and groups below the button.

To move the focus to the navigation pane, press F6 or Shift+F6 until you hear: "Navigation pane."
If the focus is on the Show or hide folder pane button, press the Tab key once to get to the list of folders and buttons.
When on the folder list, use the Down and Up arrow keys to browse the list of folders and groups. You hear the names of the folders as you move. Press Enter to open a folder.

Message list view

The message list contains the list of the messages in the selected folder. It also contains the quick access buttons for switching between the Focused and Other inboxes, and buttons for sorting and filtering your messages.

To move the focus to the message list, press F6 or Shift+F6 until you hear: "Message list."
To navigate the buttons and controls above the list of messages, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab.
To browse the list of messages, press the Down or Up arrow key. You hear the details of the message currently in focus.

To learn how to read and create emails, refer to Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook.

Switch between views

You can switch from the Mail view to the Calendar, People, or To Do view, or even to another Microsoft 365 app.

Press F6 or Shift+F6 until with Narrator and NVDA you hear "Left trail of bar navigation," followed by your current view or app, for example, “Mail, toggle button." With JAWS, you hear "Left, dash, rail, dash, app," followed by your current view or app, for example, "Mail toggle button."
Press the Down arrow key until you hear the name of the view or app you want, and then press Enter.

: With NVDA, you might need to switch to focus mode first.

Navigate to the app settings

Press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Settings, button," and then press Enter to open the Settings pane.
Press the Tab key once to get to the Settings pane. You hear: "Search Outlook settings."
Use the Down arrow key to browse the options available in the Settings pane.
To review all Outlook settings, press the Down arrow key until you hear "View all Outlook settings, button," and then press Enter. The Settings window opens. Use the Tab key, Shift+Tab, and the Up and Down arrow keys to navigate the window.

Navigate the main view

Cycle through the elements in the main view

Press F6 (forward) or Shift+F6 (backward) to cycle through the elements in the following order:

The message list
The status bar at the bottom of the screen
The row of ribbon tabs at the top of the screen
The navigation bar below the folder pane
The folder pane on the left

Navigate the ribbon tabs

The row of ribbon tabs contains the main Outlook tools for sending and receiving email, tagging messages, and managing email folders.

To move the focus to the row of ribbon tabs, press Alt. You hear “Ribbon tabs,” followed by the currently selected tab.
To move between ribbon tabs, use the Left or Right arrow key, and press Enter to select a tab. The contents of the selected ribbon tab are displayed on the ribbon below the ribbon tabs.
To move the focus to the ribbon, press the Tab key once. To navigate the ribbon, use the Tab key, Shift+Tab, or the Right or Left arrow keys.

Navigate the folder pane

The folder pane contains the available email folders. The most commonly used folders are contained in the Favorites folder. Each email account also has its own subfolders. When the focus changes to this pane, your screen reader reads the name of the currently active folder.

To navigate the folder pane, press the Up or Down arrow key. You hear the folder names as they are highlighted.
For the Favorites and account folders, you also hear whether the folder is collapsed or expanded. To collapse a folder, press the Left arrow key. To expand a folder, press the Right arrow key.
To open a highlighted folder, press Enter. The folder’s contents are displayed in the message list.
To navigate to the message list, press the Tab key.

Navigate the message list

The message list contains the contents of the currently active folder. Messages are grouped by date. When the focus changes to the messages list, you hear the name of the sender, the subject, date, and a short preview of the contents of the currently selected message.

To navigate the message list, press the Up or Down arrow key. You hear the name of the sender, the subject, date, and a short preview of the contents of each message as the focus moves through the list.
To open the selected message, press Enter.

Navigate the message window

The message window contains the full text and other information for an email message. The message window has its own ribbon tabs, and below them, a pane containing the message header, any attachments and message body. When the focus changes to the message window, you hear the message subject and format. The focus is placed to the beginning of the message body.

To navigate the ribbon tabs, press Alt. You hear “Ribbon tabs,” followed by the currently selected tab.
To move between ribbon tabs, press the Left or Right arrow key, and press Enter to select a tab.
To read the message header information, press the Tab key until you hear the header field you want.
To access any attachments in the message, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Attachments," followed by the name of the attachment you want. To open the context menu for the attachment, press Alt+Down arrow key. Press the Up or Down arrow key to browse the context menu and press Enter to select option.
To close the message window and return to the message list, press Alt+F4 or Esc.

Navigate the status bar

The status bar contains visual information on the current Outlook status. When the focus changes to the status bar, you hear “Status bar,” followed by the currently active Outlook view.

To cycle between the view options, press the Up or Down arrow key. You hear the currently highlighted option. Press Enter to select the view option.

Navigate the navigation bar

The navigation bar below the folder pane contains buttons for switching between the Mail, Calendar, People, and Tasks views, and displaying additional navigation buttons. When the focus moves to the navigation bar, you hear "Navigation bar," followed by the currently active view.

To navigate the navigation bar, press the Right or Left arrow key.

Use the Focused inbox

Focus on the emails that matter the most to you. By default, Outlook creates a Focused inbox and an Other inbox. Your most important emails are sorted into the Focused inbox while the rest remain easily accessible, but out of the way, in the Other inbox.

Do one of the following:
- To switch from the Focused inbox to the Other inbox, place the focus to the message list, press the Tab key until you hear "Other, button, off," and then press Enter.
- To switch from the Other inbox to the Focused inbox, place the focus to the message list, press the Tab key until you hear “Focused button, off,” and then press Enter.

Move between views

Navigate the File menu

In the File menu, you can set up new email accounts or automatic replies, print messages, or access your Microsoft 365 account information. To learn how to use the keyboard shortcuts in the File menu, refer to Keyboard shortcuts for the File menu in Microsoft 365 for Windows.

Press Alt+F to open the File menu.
To move between the menu tabs, press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the one you want and then press the Tab key to cycle through the items in the tab.
To close the File menu and return to the main view, press Esc.

Navigate Outlook options

In the Outlook options window, you can change, for example, message format, arrival alerts, auto-saving, and tracking options.

Press Alt+F, T to open the Options window. The focus is on the options category pane on the left.
Press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the category you want. The contents of the focused category are displayed in the content pane on the right.
Press the Tab key to move between the different options in a category. Press Spacebar to clear or fill check boxes of the currently highlighted option. Press the Down arrow key to expand menus, press the Up or Down arrow key to browse the menus, and press Enter to select and option.
To close the Options window and return to the main view, do one of the following:
- If you made changes and want to apply them, press the Tab key until you hear "OK button," and press Enter.
- If you didn't make changes or don't want to apply the changes you made, press Esc.

Switch between Outlook Mail and Outlook Calendar

To navigate to Outlook Calendar, press Ctrl+2.
To navigate to Outlook Mail, press Ctrl+1.

In this topic

Navigate the main view
Move between views

Navigate the main view

When you open Outlook for iOS, the main view shows the inbox. The main view contains the following elements:

The toolbar at the top right corner, which contains the Show navigation pane button for navigating to folders and app and account settings in the top left corner. The top right corner has the Compose button for creating a new message. The switch for changing between the Focused and Other inboxes is located below the Show navigation pane button, followed by the Filter button for filtering the inbox contents below the Compose button.
Below the toolbar, the messages list showing the newest message first.
Below the messages list, the tab bar, which contains the Email, Search, and Calendar buttons for switching between the main Outlook views.

To explore the main view, slide one finger across the screen or swipe left or right with one finger. VoiceOver announces the items as you move.

: You can also navigate the main view using the VoiceOver rotor. For example, to move between headings, turn the rotor until you hear “Headings,” and then swipe up or down to move between headings.

Navigate the messages list

To browse the messages list, swipe right. VoiceOver reads the name of the message sender, subject, date, and a short preview of the message contents.
Double-tap the screen to open the currently selected message in a separate window.

Use the Focused inbox

When viewing the inbox in the main view, the Focused inbox is active by default. To switch to the Other inbox, swipe left or right until you hear “Other inbox,” and double-tap the screen.
To return to the Focused inbox, swipe left or right until you hear “Focused inbox,” and double-tap the screen.

Move between views

Navigate to email folders

The navigation pane contains a list of all the email accounts added to Outlook. In the navigation pane, you can also add a new email account and access the settings.

To open the navigation pane, tap near the top of the screen with four fingers. You hear your "Menu," followed by your username, and “Show navigation pane.” Double-tap the screen.
If you have added more than one account, swipe right until you hear the correct one and double-tap the screen to select it.
Swipe right until you hear the folder you want, and then double-tap the screen to close the navigation pane and open the selected folder in the main view.

Navigate to and inside the Outlook settings

To open the navigation pane, tap near the top of the screen with four fingers. You hear your "Menu," followed by your username, and “Show navigation pane.” Double-tap the screen.
Swipe right until you hear “Settings button,” and double-tap the screen to open the Settings window.
To move between the different settings, swipe left and right until you hear the one you want and double-tap the screen to select it. Some settings open in a separate window. If so, to return to the Settings window, swipe left until you hear “Back button,” and double-tap the screen.
To close the Settings window and return to the main view, swipe left until you hear “Close button,” and double-tap the screen.

Switch between Outlook Mail, Calendar, and Search

To switch to your calendar, tap near the bottom of the screen with four fingers. You hear: "Tab bar, Calendar, tab." Double-tap the screen.
To switch to your email, tap near the bottom of the screen with four fingers, swipe left until you hear “Email tab,” and double-tap the screen.
To access Search, tap near the bottom of the screen with four fingers, swipe left until you hear "Search tab," and double-tap the screen.

In this topic

Navigate the main view and screen elements
Switch between Outlook Mail, Calendar, and Search

Navigate the main view and screen elements

When you open Outlook for Android, the main view shows the inbox. The main view contains the following elements:

The toolbar at the top right corner, which contains the Open navigation drawer button for navigating to folders and app and account settings in the top left corner. The switch for changing between the Focused and Other inboxes is located below the Open navigation drawer button, followed by the Filter button for filtering the inbox contents.
Below the toolbar, the messages list showing the newest message first.
Floating on top of the messages list near the bottom right corner of the screen is the Compose button for creating a new email.
Below the messages list and the Compose button, the tab bar, which contains the Email, Search, and Calendar buttons for switching between the main Outlook views.

To explore the main view, slide one finger across the screen or swipe left or right with one finger. TalkBack announces the items as you move.

To quickly cycle through the main controls of the screen only, swipe up-then-down repeatedly until you hear: "Controls." Then swipe up or down to cycle through the controls in the following order:

The Open navigation drawer button
The Compose button
Any pop-up dialog box that might be open, such as an account sign-in dialog box.

Move between the Focused and Other inboxes

To switch from the Focused inbox to the Other inbox, swipe right or left until you hear "Toggle to Other mail, switch," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Focused inbox is off, showing Other mail."
When you want to switch back to the Focused inbox, swipe right or left until you hear "Toggle to Focused inbox, switch," and double-tap the screen.

Navigate to mail folders and accounts

To open the navigation drawer, swipe right or left until you hear "Open navigation drawer, button," and double-tap the screen.
Swipe right or left to move between your mail accounts and folders in each account. To select, double-tap the screen.
To close the navigation drawer and return to the Inbox, swipe down-then-left.

Navigate to the app settings

To open the Settings menu, swipe right or left until you hear "Open navigation drawer, button," and double-tap the screen.
Swipe right until you hear "Settings," and double-tap the screen.
To close the Settings menu and return to the Inbox, swipe down-then-left.

Navigate the messages list

The messages list contains your emails.

To browse the currently displayed messages in the list, swipe right or left.
To scroll the message list to display more messages, swipe up or down with two fingers.

To learn how to read and create emails, refer to Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook.

Switch between Outlook Mail, Calendar, and Search

To switch to your calendar, tap near the bottom of the screen with four fingers. You hear: "Tab bar, Calendar, tab." Double-tap the screen.
To switch to your email, tap near the bottom of the screen with four fingers, swipe left until you hear “Email tab,” and double-tap the screen.
To access Search, tap near the bottom of the screen with four fingers, swipe left until you hear "Search tab," and double-tap the screen.

In this topic

Navigate the main view and screen elements
Switch between views
Navigate to the app settings

Navigate the main view and screen elements

When you open Mail in Outlook on the web, the main view is displayed. The focus is on the message list. To navigate through and inside the main view and screen elements:

Press the Tab key to move the focus through the screen elements.
To cycle through the main regions of the screen only, press Ctrl+F6 to move forward and Shift+Ctrl+F6 to move backward. The focus moves through the regions in the following order:
- The search field horizontal title banner at the top of the screen
- The navigation pane on the left
- The command toolbar at the top of the message list
- The message list to the left of the navigation pane. It contains the list of messages and the quick access buttons for switching between the Focused and Other inboxes, and for filtering your messages

Horizontal title banner

The horizontal title banner is at the top of the screen below the URL address field. It contains the App Launcher, Search field, and a selection of buttons, for example, Meet Now, Chat, and My Day. You can also access your notifications, account info, and the app settings from the banner.

To move the focus to the title banner, press Shift+Ctrl+F6 until you hear: "Banner, Search, landmark."
To navigate the banner, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab.

Navigation pane

The navigation pane on the left of the screen contains the New message button for creating a new email and the button for hiding and showing the navigation pane at the top and a list of email folders and groups below them.

To move the focus to the navigation pane, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear: "Navigation pane, region landmark."
To move between the buttons at the top of the navigation pane, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab.
To browse the list of folders and groups, press the Tab key until you hear "Favorites," and then use the Down or Up arrow key.

Vertical app banner

To the right of the navigation pane, you'll find the vertical app banner. It contains quick access buttons for switching between the Mail, Calendar, People, and Files views, and the To-Do and other Microsoft 365 apps such as Word for the web and PowerPoint for the web.

To move the focus to the app banner, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear: "Navigation pane, region landmark," and then press Shift+Tab once. You hear: "Mail, button."
To navigate the app banner, use the Down or Up arrow key.

The command toolbar

The command toolbar displays options related to the selected item in the navigation pane or in the message list.

To move the focus to the toolbar, press Ctrl+F6 or Shift+Ctrl+F6 until you hear: "Command toolbar, region landmark."
To navigate the toolbar, press the Tab key once, and then use the Right, Left, Up, or Down arrow key.

Message list view

To move the focus to the message list, press Ctrl+F6 or Shift+Ctrl+F6 until you hear: "Message list, region landmark."
To navigate buttons and controls above the list of messages, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab.
To browse the list of messages, press the Tab key until you hear the details of the message currently in focus. Then, with JAWS and NVDA, use the Down and Up arrow keys. With Narrator, use the SR key+Left and Right arrow keys.

To learn how to read and create emails, refer to Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook.

Switch between views

You can switch from the Mail view to the Calendar, People, or Files view or to the To-Do app, or even to another Microsoft 365 app.

Press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear: "Navigation pane, region landmark," and then press Shift+Tab once. You hear: "Mail, button."
Press the Down arrow key until you hear the name of the view or app you want, and press Enter.

Navigate to the app settings

To open the Settings pane, press Ctrl+F6 or Shift+Ctrl+F6 until you hear "Banner, Search, landmark," press the Tab key until you hear "Settings button," and then press Enter.
Press the Tab key until you hear "Complimentary, Search Outlook settings, and then use the Down arrow key to browse the options available in the Settings pane.
To review all Outlook settings, press the Down arrow key until you hear "View all Outlook settings button," and press Enter. The Settings window opens. Use the Tab key, Shift+Tab, and the Up or Down arrow keys to navigate the window.

Technical support for customers with disabilities

Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.

If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.

In this topic

Navigate the main view and screen elements

Horizontal title banner

Main regions

Ribbon tabs

Vertical app banner

Navigation pane

Message list view

Switch between views

Navigate to the app settings

See also

In this topic

Navigate the main view

Cycle through the elements in the main view

Navigate the ribbon tabs

Navigate the folder pane

Navigate the message list

Navigate the message window

Navigate the status bar

Navigate the navigation bar

Use the Focused inbox

Move between views

Navigate the File menu

Navigate Outlook options

Switch between Outlook Mail and Outlook Calendar

See also

In this topic

Navigate the main view

Navigate the messages list

Use the Focused inbox

Move between views

Navigate to email folders

Navigate to and inside the Outlook settings

Switch between Outlook Mail, Calendar, and Search

See also

In this topic

Navigate the main view and screen elements

Move between the Focused and Other inboxes

Navigate to mail folders and accounts

Navigate to the app settings

Navigate the messages list

Switch between Outlook Mail, Calendar, and Search

See also

In this topic

Navigate the main view and screen elements

Horizontal title banner

Navigation pane

Vertical app banner

The command toolbar

Message list view

Switch between views

Navigate to the app settings

See also

Technical support for customers with disabilities

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