Why are all of my emails pinned in New Outlook?

Question

Why are all of my emails pinned in New Outlook?

Bob S 25

I use Classic Outlook (Exchange) on my desktop. I rarely access email via my phone but needed to recently. I got an error message saying that Mobile Sync is slow because I have folders containing 1000 or more pinned messages. I have never pinned a message before. I do categorize lots of messages, but no pinning.

Today, while on my desktop, new outlook opened when I clicked on something. Lo and behold, every single message was pinned. I suspect that all of my categorized messages somehow turned to pinned in new Outlook. Does that sound right? Is there an easy way to undo all of the pins?

Thank you

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Answer accepted by question author

Anonymous

Hi @Bob S

Good day! Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A Forum.

I completely understand how unexpected and frustrating this situation must be. I'm here to help you sort this out.

If all your messages are fully loaded in the view, you can press Ctrl + A to select them all, then either right-click and choose "Unpin" or use the Pin/Unpin option on the Home tab. It’s a quick and easy workaround I’ve personally tested, and it works well for unpinning messages in bulk.

Regarding the mobile sync issue, having over 1,000 pinned messages may slow things down, especially since mobile devices are more sensitive to the size and state of your mailbox. User's image

After unpinning messages, try signing out and then signing back into Outlook on your phone to refresh the mail flow.

Based on what you’ve described, it sounds like messages categorized in Classic Outlook may have been seen as pinned in New Outlook. This may happen during the transition between the two versions, as they handle features like pins, flags, and categories differently. To help avoid similar issues in the future, once everything is back to normal, it’s best to limit switching frequently between Classic and New Outlook.

Since differences in testing environments and limited initial details can affect troubleshooting, providing more specifics or a screenshot, if the issue persists, will help us better understand and resolve it.

I truly appreciate the effort you’ve put in so far and hope one of these suggestions leads to a solution.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

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Bob S 25 Reputation points

2025-06-24T14:10:08.2866667+00:00

Thanks for the info. It worked and everything is functioning correctly now. Much appreciated!
Anonymous

2025-06-25T03:29:39.2933333+00:00

Hi @Bob S
Thank you so much for your thoughtful feedback, it truly means a lot. I’m really glad to hear everything’s working smoothly now.

If my response was helpful, even in part, I’d be grateful if you could mark it as the Accepted Answer. It helps others find solutions more easily and acknowledges the support you received.

2 additional answers

Your answer

Bob S 25 Reputation points

2025-06-24T14:10:08.2866667+00:00

Thanks for the info. It worked and everything is functioning correctly now. Much appreciated!
Anonymous

2025-06-25T03:29:39.2933333+00:00

Hi @Bob S
Thank you so much for your thoughtful feedback, it truly means a lot. I’m really glad to hear everything’s working smoothly now.

If my response was helpful, even in part, I’d be grateful if you could mark it as the Accepted Answer. It helps others find solutions more easily and acknowledges the support you received.

Answer 1

I had this same issue. I have thousands of items in my inbox (which I need to be able to search and reference) so following the instructions to simply unpin a batch at a time was inefficient. Instead, if you look at the top of your inbox, below where it literally says Inbox, you'll see there is a small arrow pointing down before the word "Pinned". Simply click here and it will toggle this "Pinned" section shut so it will go away, and you'll have "Today" displayed instead. I also right clicked the "Pinned" section and selected Move, then created a new folder which I called pinned just for retention purposes. This left my inbox normal again and showing my emails in time order.

Answer 2

Qihan Liu 3,131 Student Ambassador Volunteer Moderator

Hi.

I'm not really sure about the cause of this issue, but I can help you with the unpinning process:

Please click the first pinned message, then hold Ctrl + Shift + ↓ until all the pinned message are selected. Right click, then select Unpin.

(If you have loaded all your emails, you can also use Ctrl + A -> Unpin for faster process. If the emails aren't fully loaded, there won't be the option)

User's image

Bob S 25 Reputation points

2025-06-24T14:09:09.54+00:00

Thank you. After unpinning everything, I was able to load messages into mobile email. Still unsure how it happened in the first place, but it's fixed now. I appreciate your help!