How can I organise emails in my inbox according to category

Hi @Laura Sherburn, 

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A forum.  

Thank you for reaching out the new Outlook experience. 

The issue you are experiencing relates to organizing emails by category and displaying the Category column in the New Outlook interface.  

In the New Outlook experience, the Reading Pane is designed to show email content only. Unlike Classic Outlook, it does not support adding custom columns such as Categories within the Reading Pane. However, you can still organize and sort emails by category in the message list view. 

• Select an email in your inbox. 
• Click Categorize  
• Choose an existing category or select Manage categories to create new ones. 

For your information that you can concern: 

• Use color-coded categories for quick identification. 
• Create Search folders or Filters for specific categories to keep your inbox organized. 

Alternatively, as a forum moderator, I hope you understand that I don’t have the ability to modify or escalate product issues directly. However, I strongly recommend submitting your feedback through the Outlook · Community portal. This is the most effective way to ensure your voice reaches the product team and can be considered for future improvements.   

You've clearly identified a real-world challenge, and your suggestion reflects a deep understanding of user needs - feedback like yours is truly valuable and helps shape the future of Microsoft Teams. 

Sharing your experience through this channel is one of the most effective ways to advocate for improvements that benefit both you and the broader community.  

Once you’ve submitted your feedback, feel free to share the link here. I’d be happy to upvote it to help increase its visibility. 

As community moderators, we kindly ask for your understanding that our access to internal development details is limited. Our primary role is to guide users toward the appropriate resources and support channels. While we may not have influence product design decisions and have limited access to internal development details, we’ll continue doing our best to support you within the scope of our responsibilities.  

I hope you find this information helpful. 

Thank you sincerely for your understanding regarding this limitation. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please feel free to reach out at any time. 

Hope everything goes wonderfully for you.

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