Microsoft updated the Subscription Manager in November 2019. The original list list of subscriptions is cleared and Subscription Manager will be reset. Only messages in the Inbox (not picked up by the junk email filter) will be processed and listed in the Subscription Manager.
The Outlook.com product team added a new Subscriptions feature in late 2018. All Outlook.com accounts should have an option for Subscriptions in Settings now.
Where does the list come from? After the junk mail is filtered out, Microsoft looks for information in the message header that identifies it as a subscription.
What it does: Subscriptions is list of all senders whose messages contain subscription information in the message. Included is an Unsubscribe button and Outlook.com will try to unsubscribe you. This is great for legitimate subscriptions, such as newsletter or stores you’ve purchased from before.
However, many users discover their subscription list is full of spammers and fake subscriptions. They cannot (and should not) try to unsubscribe from the fake subscriptions. If the link works, it will verify your address is good (which will lead to more spam) and the unsubscribe link may lead to a page full of malware.
Microsoft added an option to Block Sender. This will remove the sender from the Subscriptions list. However, if you delete the address from the blocked list, the address will be returned to the Subscriptions list.
Until Microsoft adds a (real) Delete button, users are stuck with the spam subscriptions on their subscriptions list or adding them to the Blocked sender list. (Which is generally pointless as most spammers won;t send more than a couple of messages from an address.)
Vote for and share your comments in this Uservoice suggestion: Problem with "Manage Subscriptions" & Junk Email
David says
Microsoft now lets spam into my Junk Mail folder that cannot even be blocked because the address is invalid. The spam volume is now overwhelming and they don't even process the "rules" I have created. It's pathetic that Gmail and Yahoo mail still do a way better job at both filtering and blocking spam.
Diane Poremsky says
If the messages are in the junk email folder, Microsoft knows they are spam - blocking the addresses won't do any good.
Rules will only run on the messages in the inbox - it won't help if the messages are in the junk email folder.
John says
I unsubscribed from one by mistake how do I reverse?
Diane Poremsky says
The unsubscriptions are at the bottom of the list - you'll need to go to the website and resubscribe, or find a message from the address and see if there is a subscribe link.
Toby A says
Hey Diane
,
I am currently trying to sort through my subscriptions on Outlook and was looking for guides on to effectively do that and came across this one. I noticed that under Mail Settings I do not have Subscriptions option (the Settings list ends at Automatic Supplies) and I was wondering if the option had been removed? Have tried clarifying this information elsewhere but not found anything so thought it was worth leaving a comment. Thanks :)
Diane Poremsky says
Are you using Outlook.com or an office 365 business mailbox? Subscriptions is not currently available in the business accounts.
It also seems to come and go in the outlook.com accounts.
Log in using a private browser and see if it is there - if yes, you need to clear the browser cache. To open a private browser window, right-click on the browser icon on the taskbar and choose the option for a new private or incognito window.
Mustafa says
Hi Diane, Is there a way I can permanently block in outlook an unsubscribe email address, so that I don't send email to that address again future by mistake.
Diane Poremsky says
No, not really. In Outlook desktop software, you could use macros or after sending rules to alert you, but nothing exists for outlook on the web or the mobile app.
Nark State says
Hi, Diane
I don't use Outlook.com, but i use other Microsoft products. I set up Outlook as a mail item so long ago I don't remember my password for it. Now I would like to eliminate Outlook altogether, because I keep getting unwanted messages that I should log into it. How can I unsubscribe from Outlook? I tried using the Microsoft Help system, but they don't offer a solution for this, and I can't even get an email sent to a tech to help me out.
Mark State
Diane Poremsky says
If you wait, it will be closed for you.
If you don't log in at least once a year, the account is inactive and purged and the only way to recover it is if you have the password - resetting the password wont work.
If you haven't accessed the Microsoft account in more than 2 years, it will be deleted (closed for good).
MARK STATE says
The Microsoft help features are not too helpful in answering my question, which is how do I unsubscribe from Outlook.com specifically to? I haven't used it for years and don T recall what my password could have been.
Thomas says
Spammers have found some sort of loophole in this system and are able to add themselves using the subscription feature. I've been getting inundated with spam recently and didn't know why. It's this feature specifically. Even if you add the sender to your block list, this will bypass it. If you click unsubscribe you are letting the spammers know if it a legitimate address.
How/why they are allowing ANY outside entity the ability to add themselves to what's effectively an allow list? Unbelievable.
This even bypasses the "Only trust email from addresses in my Safe senders and domains list and Safe mailing lists".
Why they don't have an option to disable this feature, especially for folks who are paying for O365, is beyond me and I'm pretty much ready to switch to Gmail or another service in the near future if this isn't addressed.
Diane Poremsky says
They updated the subscriptions feature so addresses in the junk mail folder are not added to the subscriptions list... but the junk mail filter went down Friday, so not only are you getting spam in the inbox, the addresses are added to the subscriptions list if the message has an unsubscribe link.
Hello! says
For some reason I don't have a subscriptions button I have a groups button instead, do you maybe know why?
Diane Poremsky says
You have a business account. It's not currently available on business accounts.
NobodySpecial says
What a lot, and I mean a lot of people are missing here, is that the Subscription Manager is a list of addresses that have sent you email, that just look like subscriptions - they aren't actual subscriptions, if you pretend it doesn't exist, nothing happens. However, if you click unsubscribe, it's as if you clicked it inside the actual email, even if was spam, and you have long since reported and deleted the original email. Subscription Manager is a spammers dream come true... they don't have to worry about the user clicking something in an email, Microsoft will gladly do it for them.
Diane Poremsky says
Yeah, trying to get people to understand that it's just a list of addresses is a lot of fun. Some refuse to believe it.
Microsoft updated the subscription feature to run after the junk mail folder then cleared everyone's list, so it should be less annoying now.
NobodySpecial says
Which might be OK, if the junk filters actually worked - my school, work, bank, and bill emails, still regularly get put into junk, and spam is still often sent to my inbox as legit subscriptions
Heather says
Hi, Diane. I just wanted to say THANK YOU for all you do. This site is a fantastic resource to more than you can probably imagine, including me. I came here today as a user of O365 and MSO 16 on W10, wondering what I can do about hundreds (literally) of unwanted subscriptions I have in my inbox. I was pleased to see your highlighted update at the top; I can't wait. Thank you! :)
DARLENE says
My subscriptions button has disappeared!
Diane Poremsky says
That has happened off and on to a few people - it should come back. Try logging in using a private browser session.
Miss Speller says
Your link to the uservoice website was active and it said there that they were working on it and would have action by September. The link went down at the beginning of October saying "We will be right back!" and asking for an email address to sign in. Trying to sign in doesn't work. Looking on uservoice you can't find any reference to problems with subscriptions. This is ludicrous, subscriptions can't e deleted and I also find Rules are not working in outlook.
Diane Poremsky says
The sign in is for the outlook.com owners - not us. (I tried too, then asked my contacts about it.) They said they took it down for updates - it was expected to be back up late last week.
Melissa says
Today is 10 Oct 2019. I just discovered the Subscriptions folder and tried to unsubscribe a few and it didn't really work. I also tried to block sender, with only marginal success. Plus, there are literally hundreds of these bogus subscriptions -- all 100% spam -- and we shouldn't have to put up with them being attached to our email accounts.
So, is Microsoft going to allow us to delete these folders?
Or is it finally time to leave Hotmail/Outlook email for good?
Diane Poremsky says
They are working on letting users delete entries from the list. blocking is mostly a waste - first, spammers rarely send mail from the address over a long period of time and blocking clutters the blocked list. When you delete the address from the list list, it shows up on the subscriptions list again. :(
SKEP T CAL says
This is a scam by outlook....it's so outlook can spam you more....PLAIN AND SIMPLE....they contain viruses and mall-ware....some cannot be deleted or blocked....THIS IS BEING DONE BY DESIGN..ALSO...On their microsoft community, all talk of this is deleted...I WONDER WHY ?...I am banned from there for asking TOUGH QUESTIONS....
RoyS says
Thank you for explaining how this happens as Outlook Support does not have a clue about it! MS Outlook support must read down a script although one savvy support person SAID that this issue will be 'corrected' (means they know it is not working properly) in the "next release"...but no other information is available. I get 200 spam emails a day and have to go in and block hundreds per week. A huge time waster. You would think that Outlook could do the same job gmail does...where I hardly ever get unwanted spam.
John says
...and as usual, they think EVERY e-mail I get I should auto-subscribe to.
I wish they'd add a 'never subscribe' or 'unsubscribe from all and BLOCK these e-mailers' while there at it next to the 'delete' button that may or may not EVER be added.
BUT...we all know this will never happen, they never ask us the users what we want, just asmall group that never has to really use it at all and make all the decisions.
Diane Poremsky says
They aren't auto subscribing you. When a message arrives with header information indicating the message is likely a subscription, its added to the list. This is to make it easier for you to unsubscribe.
It doesn't solve the problem of spammers making it appear you subscribed to their crap - and you don't want to unsubscribe from spam. That just verifies your address is valid.
brittany says
At least you're still getting your mails to your inbox! I have to manually add all of my email addresses one at a time to my "safe-senders" list because all of my important emails are being filtered into spam with no way to turn it off.
Diane Poremsky says
Are you only using Outlook on the web? If you also use outlook desktop software, set junk mail filtering off.