The following articles were included in our Exchange Messaging Outlook (EMO) newsletter published on October 30, 2025.
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Today's Highlights »
- Reading Pane Bug in Outlook for Mac
- Coming Soon to New Outlook: Mail Templates
- Upgrading Microsoft 365 Subscriptions
Reading Pane Bug in Outlook for Mac
Users are complaining that when they open Outlook for Mac the reading pane is on the bottom, as opposed to on the right, which is their preference. Putting it back on the right works until they close and reopen Outlook. Then it's back on the bottom again.
This is a bug in current versions of Outlook for Mac. It was first noticed in version 16.102. I have version 16.104 (early release channel) installed and do not have the problem in new Outlook but when I switch to legacy Outlook, the pane is on the bottom each time I restart Outlook.
Microsoft is aware of the issue but does not currently have a “known issues” article for it (or an ETA for a fix).
There are two workarounds available:
1. If you are using legacy Outlook, switch to new Outlook and see if the problem goes away.
2. Rollback to the October 20 2025 build. Trash the Office apps then install the October 20 version from https://learn.microsoft.com/officeupdates/update-history-office-for-mac
I don't know if you can use mixed versions, but can try just trashing Outlook and installing the old build. If Office acts wonky, roll all back to the older build.
Coming Soon to New Outlook: Mail Templates
No, not the My Templates feature available in Microsoft email accounts, but real templates, just like in classic Outlook.
The feature is rolling out now and should be available to all Outlook accounts, in both new Outlook and Outlook on the web within a couple of weeks. When it is available in your Outlook app, you’ll see “Mail from template” on the Home > New menu. (I have it available in my Microsoft 365 business mailboxes, but not in my Outlook.com accounts yet.)
You need to add the templates to your account in New Outlook in View tab > View settings Mail > Templates. (You can click Settings in the Mail from template dialog to open the Templates page too.) Then click + Add Template button and select the template. You can enter a new name for the template if you want. (Some of the templates I added have a friendly name, others had “Template” for the name.)
If you have email templates for classic Outlook and they are not in the default templates folder in %APPDATA% > Microsoft > Templates, you can browse for them in the Open dialog. Templates don’t need to be in the default template folder.
If you want to update a template or save a new message as a template, look for the Mail Template button on the far right of the Options ribbon (classic ribbon) or at the bottom of the overflow menu if you use the simplified ribbon.
Templates are shared between new and classic Outlook. However, templates in new Outlook are only available in Microsoft 365 mailboxes, not in IMAP accounts. If you have multiple Microsoft 365 mailboxes, the templates are not shared between accounts; you need to set the templates up in each Microsoft account. You can add the same template to each account.
Upgrading Microsoft 365 Subscriptions
A user purchased Microsoft 365 Personal then less than a week later, decided to upgrade to the Premium subscription (it has more AI features). They were charged for both personal and premium subscriptions but only expected to be charged for the difference in price. Instead, the user’s subscription was extended for one year, with all the premium features for the entire almost two-year period.
How upgrading Microsoft 365 works:
When you have a consumer Microsoft 365 subscription and decide to upgrade to a more expensive level, you will be changed for a full year at the new price and your expiration date extended by up to one year. (There is a chart in the “How many days will be added to a Microsoft 365 subscription upgrade?” section in this article Switch between Microsoft 365 subscriptions)
Because this user upgraded quickly, they might be able to get a refund from Microsoft for the first purchase, but Microsoft won’t give refunds after 30 days unless required by law.
Note: If you have a consumer subscription and switch to a business subscription, your consumer subscription is not prorated or switched to business. You need to cancel the consumer subscription (so it doesn't renew). It will end on the next expiration date. If the subscription renewed within the last 30 days, you could contact support and ask for a refund.
New & Updated Outlook Support Articles
Outlook for Mac and Outlook Mobile intermittently stop syncing
Outlook GPO Update for “When sending a message” policy
Other Resources
Fixes or workarounds for recent issues in Outlook for Mac
Urban legend: Microsoft Deletes Old Outlook.com Messages
Microsoft won't delete older messages from your mailbox (if it remains active.)
Buttons in the New Message Notifications
When the Outlook notification banner (also known as “toast”) pops up in Windows, there are up to 3 buttons at the bottom for you to interact with the message, two buttons to take action on the message plus Dismiss.