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To keep your inbox organized and ensure that important emails are easily accessible, it’s a good idea to delete emails that you no longer need. Fortunately, there are several ways to delete multiple emails at once in Outlook, whether you’re using it on a desktop, web, or mobile. Let’s take a look at these methods and how you may use them.
How to Delete Multiple Emails in the Outlook Desktop App
There are different methods to mass delete emails in Outlook, and choosing the most suitable method depends on the emails you want to delete and where they are. you’re able to delete folders, clean up conversations, or just manually select the emails and delete them.
Delete Multiple Emails at Once in Outlook
The most straightforward way to delete multiple emails in Outlook is to select them all together. If the emails are consecutive, this is all the easier.
If the emails aren’t consecutive, you’ll need a few more clicks to get the job done. To delete non-consecutive emails:
Delete All Emails in a Folder in Outlook
There are two ways you can delete emails from a folder. You can either empty the folder, which will remove all the emails but keep the folder intact, or you can delete the entire folder, along with all the emails in it. Both processes are simple and require only a few clicks.
Use the Clean Up Conversation Tool in Outlook
Lengthy email conversations can clutter up your inbox. However, every new reply in a conversation includes every previous reply in the thread. This means that you only need the most recent email in the conversation, which includes all the previous ones.
To solve this problem, you can use Outlook’s Clean Up Conversation tool. This tool identifies redundant emails in conversations and moves them to the Deleted Items folder, only keeping the most recent email that includes all the previous replies. You can use this tool on a specific conversation, a folder, or a folder and its subfolders. Here’s how:
You can only use the Clean Up Conversation tool on the desktop version of Outlook. It is not available on the web or mobile versions.
How to Delete Multiple Emails in Outlook on the Web
The web version of Outlook is very similar to the desktop version, including the process of deleting emails. You can delete emails by selecting them individually, or by deleting a folder. To select multiple emails in Outlook Web, you can use the same methods as in the desktop version.
Additionally, in the web version, you’re able to check the box next to each email to select it. Once you’ve selected the emails, clickDeletein the toolbar to delete them.
Just like Outlook desktop, you may also delete folders or empty their contents in Outlook web. The steps are identical: right-click the folder, and then select eitherDelete Folderto delete the folder and its content, or selectEmpty Folderto only delete the folder’s content.
How to Delete Multiple Emails in Outlook Mobile
To delete multiple emails in Outlook mobile, you may only select each email one by one. Surprisingly, you can’t even delete or empty folders in the mobile version.
Given that you can’t use a physical keyboard with Outlook mobile, the only option is to select the emails you want to delete one by one. To do so, select the emails by tapping the checkbox next to them, and then tapDeletefrom the ribbon.
How to Recover Deleted Emails in Outlook
If you have accidentally deleted an email in Outlook, you can recover it in most cases. Depending on your email provider, you can also recover emails that you’ve permanently deleted.
Restoring Deleted Emails in Outlook
you’re able to recover a deleted email by moving it back to its original folder, such as your inbox. Here’s how:
This recovery method is applicable across all Outlook versions, including desktop, web, and mobile platforms.
Restoring Permanently Deleted Emails in Outlook
If you have permanently deleted an email and your email has a Deleted Items folder, you can still recover it. However, if your email has a Trash folder instead, you can’t recover permanently deleted emails. This feature is also absent altogether on Outlook mobile.
To restore permanently deleted emails in Outlook desktop, follow these steps:
The recovered email will return to your Deleted Items folder. You can then move it back to your inbox by following the steps in the previous section.
Deleting emails is a hassle when there are too many to delete. The methods we discussed here make the task easier and less time-consuming. Additionally, if you accidentally deleted an item, now you know how to quickly recover it, even if it’s permanently deleted.
