Reset Outlook to Default and Remove All Accounts

Why would I want to reset Outlook?

If you need to wipe all accounts and trigger the new installation prompts, this is the quickest way to do so. 

Important: This will remove all accounts and cached mailboxes, so make sure you have done any necessary backups/exports before resetting!

How do I reset Outlook on a Windows PC to start as if it’s a new installation?

1.     Open Control Panel (hit the Windows Key on your keyboard and start typing Control Panel to search).

2.     Click the search bar in the upper right corner of the window and type Mail:

3.     When the next window comes up, click on Show Profiles:

4.     Make sure Outlook is highlighted and click Remove:

5.     A warning dialog will pop up.  If you are sure you want to continue, click Yes:

6.     After you click Yes, the Mail Profile menu should look like this:

7.     Close the Outlook destop app if it was open. 

8.     Open the Outlook app again and it should prompt you to create a new profile.  Type Outlook and hit Enter or click OK:

9.     You should then be greeted with the Welcome to Outlook startup window.  You may need to delete a previous email address from the email field before entering the new email account:

10.  Once it finishes loading, Outlook should function normally as if this was the first time it was used with only one account signed into it.

What tools are available for resetting Outlook on a Mac?

There is a free downloadable tool called Office-Reset for the following releases of Office on Mac:

·        Microsoft 365 for Mac

·        Office 2021 for Mac (16.53 - 16.75)

·        Office 2019 for Mac (16.17 - 16.75)

·        Office 2016 for Mac (15.11 - 16.16.27)

Go to https://office-reset.com/ to download the latest version.

Here’s the summary from the website of all that it can do:

“Office-Reset is a free downloadable tool that you can use to fix problems and errors encountered with Microsoft Office for Mac apps. This includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, OneDrive, Teams and AutoUpdate. The tool can help fix app launch errors, freezes, hangs, crashes, bad plug-ins, corrupt templates, performance issues, and confusing error messages.

You can tell Office-Reset to fix a specific app, or you tell it to perform a 'factory reset' - essentially putting Office back to the same pristine state as when you first installed it. There's also an option to completely start over, where the tool can remove every app, cache, container, preference and keychain entry that Office may have created while it was running.

Office-Reset does not delete your documents and workbooks. The tool doesn't have ads, an upsell, collect your data, or install software that you don't want. It simply runs, fixes, and quits.”