Color code ALL contacts

Question

How do I color code ALL my known contacts, so that when I receive an email from them, their name is in a color. all my known contacts can be same color.

Answer 1

I did that but it changed the look of the preview and it didn't show the color coding.

Answer 2

Hi Linda Mellin

Based on your description, I understand that you would like emails from your known contacts to appear in a different color in Classic Outlook for Windows. 

You might want to try the steps below: 

1. In Outlook, go to View > Current View > View Settings. 
2. Select Conditional Formatting. 
3. Click Add and enter a name for the formatting rule. 
4. Select Font, then choose the color you would like to use. 
5. Click Condition. 
6. Under the Messages tab, enter the email address or contact name in the From field. 
7. Click OK to save the settings. 

However, from my testing, not every contact may be applied correctly when selected directly from the Contacts list. If the formatting does not work for a specific contact, please try entering the sender’s full email address manually in the “From” field instead of selecting the contact name. 

Please check whether this matches what you are trying to achieve. If I misunderstood your requirement, feel free to correct me and provide additional details. 

Please understand that our initial reply may not always immediately resolve the issue. However, with your help and more detailed information, we can work together to find a solution.

I hope this helps. 

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Answer 3

In classic Outlook for Windows, use color categories on contacts so that messages from those contacts show a color in the Categories column (and, if desired, combine this with a rule). All known contacts can share the same category/color.

To assign one color category to all contacts in classic Outlook:

1. On the navigation bar, select People.
2. Switch to a list view if needed (for example: View > Current View > Change View > List).
3. Select all contacts (for example, click one contact and press Ctrl+A).
4. Right‑click any selected contact and hover over Categorize.
5. Choose a color, or select All Categories to create or rename a category (for example, name it “Known Contacts”).
6. The selected color category is now applied to all contacts.

When email arrives from those contacts, the same color category will appear in the Categories column in Mail views, making them visually distinct. If the Categories column is not visible, add it via View > View Settings > Columns.

If additional control is needed (for example, automatically categorizing messages from known contacts), combine this with an Outlook rule that assigns the same color category to messages from those contacts.

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References:

• Organize your contacts with color categories
• Manage contacts in Outlook
• Create and assign color categories in Outlook
• Add a color to a flag