How to Recall an Email in Outlook (and Undo Send)

“Recall” in Outlook tries to delete an email from the recipient’s mailbox after you’ve sent it. It only works in specific conditions — and for personal accounts such as Outlook.com, it doesn’t work at all. Here’s what does work, for each kind of account.

When recall works

Microsoft says you can recall an email from new or classic Outlook for Windows or Outlook on the web only if:

• You and the recipient both have a Microsoft 365 work or school account in the same organization, and
• The recipient hasn’t opened the message yet.

Recall fails if the recipient is outside your organization or has already opened it. And Microsoft is explicit: personal email accounts — Gmail, Hotmail, Outlook.com — can’t use message recall. For those, use Undo send.

Recall a message in new Outlook

1. Open Sent Items in the left folder pane and double-click the message to open it in its own window.
2. Select Recall Message on the ribbon, then OK.
3. Shortly afterwards you’ll get a Message Recall Report in your inbox. Open its link to see whether the recall succeeded, is pending, or failed.

If you don’t see Recall Message, you may not be on new Outlook yet — classic Outlook has its own steps on Microsoft’s recall page, linked below. For Outlook for Mac, Microsoft has a separate article.

Recall, Undo send or Schedule send?

Undo send: the option for everyone

Undo send holds every message for a few seconds after you click Send, so you can cancel it. It’s what Microsoft recommends for personal accounts. Once the delay has passed, the message is gone — it can’t be recalled.

Outlook.com and new Outlook

1. On the View tab, select View settings.
2. Select Mail › Compose and reply.
3. Under Undo send, set a delay of 5 or 10 seconds.
4. Select Save.

From then on, a notification appears at the bottom of the Outlook window after you select Send, with the chance to cancel.

New Outlook for Mac

Go to Outlook › Settings › Composing and set a delay of up to 120 seconds. Microsoft says this is for Microsoft 365 and Outlook.com accounts, in the new Outlook for Mac.

Want more than a few seconds? Schedule it

1. In new Outlook for Windows, select the arrow next to Send › Schedule send.
2. Pick a suggested time or a custom one, then select Send.

Until then the message waits in Drafts, where you can still change or cancel it. To send it right away, open it from Drafts, select Cancel send, then Send. Schedule send isn’t available for IMAP or POP accounts. More in scheduling email in Outlook.

On Gmail? How to unsend in Gmail — up to 30 seconds.