Resetting Outlook font spacing

Good day Neil, and I appreciate the clear explanation of your concern.  

Just to gently clarify before we go any further, this is a user‑to‑user support forum. I don’t have the ability to access or investigate individual accounts because this is a user-to-user support forum. Moderators and contributors, including external Microsoft employees, do not have access to internal systems or the ability to directly take action on Microsoft product features. However, I truly hope I can help review your situation, offer some guidance, and support you in finding the right next steps as best as possible.   

Based on the behavior you described, the most likely cause is that Immersive Reader is enabled and the Text Spacing setting has been turned on. This feature can increase the spacing between characters to improve readability, but it may also make email text appear unusually spread out. 

Please see the following workarounds that will help you verify the issue:  

Note: Since your post is tagged for the Classic Outlook app, the instructions above reflect that version. If you are using New Outlook instead, feel free to tell me and I will provide the exact steps. 

Option 1: Turn off Text Spacing in Immersive Reader 

Open Classic Outlook desktop. 

Open one of the affected emails > Go to the View tab > Select Immersive Reader. 

In the Immersive Reader ribbon, check whether Text Spacing is enabled. 

Turn Text Spacing off. 

Select Close Immersive Reader. 

Reopen the email and check whether the letter spacing is back to normal. 

This should restore the normal display if the issue is caused by Immersive Reader Text Spacing. 

Option 2: Reset the default font settings for new emails, replies, and forwards 

If you also notice the spacing issue while composing new messages, replying, or forwarding emails, please reset the default font settings: 

Open Classic Outlook > Select File > Options > Select Mail. 

Under Compose messages, click Stationery and Fonts. 

Under Personal Stationery, select Font for New mail messages. 

Set the following values: 

• Font: +Body 
• Font Style: Regular 
• Size: 11 
• Select OK. 

Repeat the same settings for Replying or forwarding messages. 

Select OK again to save the changes. 

Note: If the issue only occurs with specific emails and not all messages, the formatting may have been applied within the original email itself. In that case, Outlook is displaying the content exactly as it was formatted by the sender. 

I hope this information is helpful. If the issue persists, please let me know whether it occurs while reading emails, composing emails, or both. Additionally, any screenshots or further details would be greatly appreciated. 

Thank you for your patience and understanding. 

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