Writing an email at 11 pm is fine. Sending it at 11 pm is another matter. Outlook can hold a message until a time you choose, but how it does that depends on which version you use, and one version has a catch that trips people up.
In Classic Outlook, the feature is called Delay Delivery. The message waits in your Outbox, on your PC, so Outlook has to stay open and connected when the delivery time arrives. Close the app or shut the laptop, and the email stays put until you open Outlook again. New Outlook and Outlook on the web work differently. They hand the message to Microsoft’s servers, so your device can be off.
This guide gives you the steps for all three: New Outlook, Classic Outlook and Outlook on the web. If you’re not sure which one you’re running, our comparison of the Outlook Web App and Outlook Desktop App explains how they differ.
Schedule Send in New Outlook
New Outlook for Windows calls the feature Schedule Send, and Microsoft’s support page confirms it isn’t available for IMAP or POP accounts. You need a Microsoft 365, Exchange or Outlook.com account. If the steps below don’t match what you see on screen, you’re probably still on Classic Outlook, so jump to the next section.
How to Schedule an Email in New Outlook
- Write your email as normal, with recipients, subject, body and any attachments.
- Select the dropdown arrow next to Send.
- Choose Schedule send.
- Pick a suggested time, or choose a custom date and time.
- Select Send.
Nothing leaves yet. The message sits in your Drafts folder until the delivery time, and Microsoft’s cloud sends it from there. Your PC can be off, and Outlook can be closed.
How to Send a Scheduled Email Straight Away in New Outlook
Changed your mind about the wait? Open the Drafts folder, open the scheduled message and select Cancel send. Then select Send, and the email goes out immediately. You can also edit the text or pick a new time before you send it again.
Delay Delivery in Classic Outlook
Classic Outlook has no Schedule Send button, so stop hunting for one. The equivalent is Delay Delivery, and it lives on a different tab. It also works differently in the way that matters most. Classic Outlook holds the message in your Outbox on your own computer, so Outlook must be open and connected at the scheduled time. If it isn’t, the email waits and goes out the next time you open Outlook, and it reconnects.
That makes Classic Outlook a poor choice for anything time-critical when you won’t be at your desk. Send that Monday 9am email by queuing it on Friday afternoon and closing the laptop, and it may leave at 9am or at 11:30am, depending on when you open the app.
How to Delay Delivery of an Email in Classic Outlook
- Start a new email and write your message.
- In the message window, open the Options tab and select Delay Delivery. On the full ribbon, you can instead select the small arrow in the Tags group.
- Under Delivery options, tick Do not deliver before and set the date and time.
- Select Close.
- Select Send.
Check your Outbox straight after. The message should be there and stay there until the time you set. If it jumps to Sent Items, Outlook didn’t register the delay, so recheck that the tick box is on and the time is in the future.
How to Edit or Cancel a Delayed Email in Classic Outlook
Open the Outbox and double-click the message. Go back to Options and Delay Delivery, then change the time or untick Do not deliver before to release it. Select Close, then Send. To scrap it completely, delete it from the Outbox.
How to Delay Every Email You Send in Classic Outlook
Classic Outlook can also hold all your outgoing mail for a few minutes, which works as a cheap safety net for missing attachments and typos. Select File, then Manage Rules & Alerts, then New Rule. Choose Apply rule on messages I send, skip the conditions, and tick defer delivery by a number of minutes. Microsoft’s limit is 120 minutes. A few minutes is usually enough, and the same rule has the same catch: Outlook has to be running when the delay ends.
Does Classic Outlook Work with IMAP and POP Accounts?
Yes, and that’s the one area where Classic beats the newer versions. Delay Delivery works with IMAP and POP accounts such as Gmail, because Outlook does the holding rather than the mail server. You pay for it with the open-and-connected requirement.
Schedule Send in Outlook on the Web
Outlook Web uses the same Schedule Send feature as New Outlook, and it runs entirely in Microsoft’s cloud. It only works with accounts Microsoft hosts, such as Microsoft 365 and Outlook.com.
How to Schedule an Email in Outlook Web
- Write your email as normal, with recipients, subject, body and any attachments.
- Select the dropdown arrow next to Send.
- Choose Schedule send.
- Pick one of the suggested times, or choose a custom date and time.
- Select Send.
Nothing leaves yet. The message on Outlook Web sits in your Drafts folder until the delivery time, and Microsoft’s cloud sends it from there. Your PC can be off, and Outlook Web can be closed.
How to Send a Scheduled Email Straight Away in Outlook Web
Changed your mind about the wait? Open the Drafts folder, open the scheduled message and select Cancel send. Then select Send, and the email goes out immediately. You can also edit the text or pick a new time before you send it again.
Outlook Web also makes a handy workaround if you use Classic Outlook day to day. Schedule the important emails in a browser, and you get server-side delivery without switching apps. For the wider picture, see our Outlook Web App and Desktop App comparison.
Because the web version runs entirely in Microsoft’s cloud, the email goes out on time whether your computer is on or not. The scheduled message waits in Drafts, marked with a clock icon and the delivery time. To change it, open it from Drafts, edit the text or choose a new time, or send it immediately.
Classic vs New Outlook vs Web: Scheduling Compared
The table sums up the differences. The row to watch is whether your PC needs to stay on.
| Outlook Delay and Schedule Send Compared | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Feature | Classic Outlook | New Outlook | Outlook on the Web |
| Feature Name | Delay Delivery | Schedule Send | Schedule Send |
| Where to Find It | Options tab, Delay Delivery | Dropdown next to Send | Dropdown next to Send |
| Where the Message Waits | Outbox | Drafts | Drafts |
| PC Must Be On | Yes, and Outlook must stay open | No, handled in the cloud | No, handled in the cloud |
| IMAP and POP Accounts | Supported, Outlook still needs to be open | Not supported | Not supported |
| How to Edit or Cancel | Open it in Outbox, untick Do not deliver before, or delete | Open it in Drafts, select Cancel send, or delete | Open it in Drafts, select Cancel send, or delete |
Why Schedule Send Is Missing or Not Working
Four causes account for most of the “where’s the button?” questions.
- You’re on Classic Outlook. The feature exists, but it’s called Delay Delivery and sits on the Options tab.
- Your account is IMAP or POP. New Outlook and the web can’t schedule send for these accounts. Messages may go out immediately. Switch to Classic Outlook, or use a Microsoft 365, Exchange or Outlook.com account.
- Your Outlook is out of date. In Classic Outlook, go to File, Office Account, Update Options, then Update Now, and restart the app.
- An add-in is getting in the way. Disable your COM add-ins under File, Options, Add-ins, restart Outlook, and switch them back on one at a time.
Scheduling only controls when the email leaves. It doesn’t change where it lands, so a message sent on time can still end up in a recipient’s junk folder.
Conclusion
Pick the version that matches how you work. New Outlook and Outlook on the web are the safe choices, because Microsoft’s servers send the message from your Drafts folder and your PC can be off. Classic Outlook can delay mail too, but its Delay Delivery feature keeps the message in your Outbox, so Outlook has to be open and connected at the scheduled time or the email waits until you’re back.
If you rely on Classic Outlook, either leave it running or schedule the important emails through Outlook on the web instead. If you use an IMAP or POP account, Classic Outlook is your only option, and it comes with the same condition. Want to know more about how the versions differ? Read our Outlook Web App and Desktop App comparison, and see our other Microsoft Outlook tips.
The steps above follow Microsoft’s guide to delaying or scheduling email in Outlook, with extra detail from Microsoft’s Q&A forum. Tried a different method? Leave a comment below. Browse more Windows apps guides and email apps guides on Techrater UK.
Questions People Ask
Does a Scheduled Email Send if Outlook Is Closed?
In New Outlook and Outlook on the web, yes. Microsoft’s servers hold and send the message, so you can close the app or shut down your PC. In Classic Outlook, no. The message stays in your Outbox until Outlook is open and connected.
Where Do Scheduled Emails Go in Outlook?
New Outlook and Outlook on the web keep them in the Drafts folder. Classic Outlook keeps them in the Outbox. If the message isn’t in either, check Sent Items, because the delivery time may already have passed.
How Do I Cancel a Scheduled Email in Outlook?
In New Outlook, open the message from Drafts and select Cancel send, then delete it or send it immediately. In Classic Outlook, open it from the Outbox, untick Do not deliver before under Options, or delete it.
Can I Schedule an Email With a Gmail or Other IMAP Account?
Not with New Outlook or the web, because Schedule Send doesn’t support IMAP or POP accounts. Classic Outlook can delay mail for these accounts through Delay Delivery, but Outlook must stay open and connected.
Why Did My Scheduled Email Send Straight Away?
The usual causes are an IMAP or POP account in New Outlook, or a delay time that was in the past or in the current minute. In Classic Outlook, check that Do not deliver before is ticked and that the message appears in your Outbox after you select Send.
Can I Delay Every Email I Send by a Few Minutes?
Yes, in Classic Outlook. Create a rule under File, Manage Rules & Alerts that applies to messages you send and defers delivery by a number of minutes, up to 120. Outlook has to be running when the delay ends.
Can I Schedule Recurring Emails in Outlook?
Not natively. Schedule Send handles a single message. For repeat sends, look at Microsoft Power Automate or a third-party add-in.
