Free tool · Outlook search
Outlook Search Builder
Find any email in Outlook — by sender, subject, date, attachment or flag — without memorising Microsoft’s search keywords. Pick your Outlook, fill in what you know, and copy the search into the search box.
Which Outlook do you use?
Microsoft documents slightly different search keywords for each, so the builder only offers what Microsoft lists for the one you pick.
Ready-made searches
Outlook storage full? →Outlook search keywords, at a glance
Microsoft documents these on two help pages: one for Outlook for Windows (new and classic) and one for Outlook.com’s Advanced Query Search. Where they differ, both forms are shown.
| To find emails… | Outlook for Windows | Outlook.com & web |
|---|---|---|
| From someone | from:"bobby moore" · from:amy@example.com | |
| Sent to someone, or in Cc or Bcc | to:bobby · cc:bobbymoore@contoso.com · bcc:bobby | |
| Anyone in To, Cc or Bcc | — | Participants:JerriFrye |
| With words in the subject | subject:status · subject:"bobby moore" | |
| With words in the body | — | Body:report |
| With an exact phrase | "product plan" | |
| Both terms / either term | bobby AND moore · bobby OR moore (capitals) | |
| Without a word | bobby NOT moore | -from:"Jerri Frye" |
| Received on a date | received:1/15/2026 | received:01/15/2026 (MM/DD/YYYY) |
| Received in a period | received:today · received:yesterday · received:"this week" · received:"last week" | |
| Between two dates | — | received:01/01/2026..01/31/2026 |
| With attachments | hasattachment:yes | |
| Flagged | hasflag:true | IsFlagged:yes |
| Unread | read:no | — |
| Bigger than a size | messagesize:>5 MB | — |
| In a category | category:red | |
Search tips from Microsoft
- No space after the colon. Microsoft notes that
to: JerriFrye(with a space) searches the whole message for the word instead of the To field — writeto:JerriFrye. - AND, OR and NOT must be in capitals, Microsoft says —
bobby AND moore, notbobby and moore. - Quotes for anything with a space.
subject:budget Q1looks for “budget” in the subject and “Q1” anywhere;subject:"budget Q1"looks for the phrase in the subject. - Wildcards only at the end. On Outlook.com,
cat*works, but*catand*cat*don’t. - Size presets aren’t for the new Outlook. Words like
messagesize:largearen’t supported in the new Outlook for Windows, so the builder uses an exact size such asmessagesize:>5 MB. - Day and month names no longer work with
received:in Outlook for Windows — use today, yesterday, this week, last week, or a date. - Running out of space? Start with the “Biggest emails” search, then see Outlook storage full.
Questions
How do I search for emails from someone in Outlook?
Type from: followed by their name or address, such as from:amy@example.com. Put names with a space in quotes: from:"bobby moore".
How do I find emails with attachments in Outlook?
Type hasattachment:yes in the search box. Combine it with other keywords, such as from:amy hasattachment:yes.
How do I search Outlook by date?
Use received: with a date, such as received:1/15/2026, or a period such as received:"last week". On Outlook.com, dates use MM/DD/YYYY and you can give a range with two dots: received:01/01/2026..01/31/2026.
How do I find large emails in Outlook?
In Outlook for Windows, type messagesize:>5 MB to find emails over 5 MB.
Is this tool connected to my Outlook?
No. It only builds the search text in your browser. You paste it into Outlook yourself — we never see your mailbox.
Sources
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