Share via

how to remove an old work account

Juan Ortega 40 Reputation points
2026-01-23T21:36:13.92+00:00

When I open outlook or an office app (i.e. Excel), it defaults to an old work account and have to manually switch to my personal account. I am retired and the old work account is no longer valid. How can I remove my old work account and change default to my personal account?

Microsoft 365 and Office | Subscription, account, billing | For home | Windows

Answer accepted by question author

AI answer

2026-01-23T21:36:23.4133333+00:00

To remove your old work account from Outlook or any Office app and set your personal account as the default, you can follow these steps:

  1. Sign out of the old work account:
    • Open any Office app (like Outlook or Excel).
    • Go to File > Account.
    • Look for the option to Sign out from your old work account.
  2. Remove the old account from the Office profile:
    • In the same Account section, check for any connected services or accounts.
    • Remove the old work account if it appears there.
  3. Add your personal account:
    • After signing out, you can add your personal account by going to File > Account > Add Account and entering your personal email and password.
  4. Set your personal account as default:
    • Once your personal account is added, ensure it is set as the default account in the account settings.
  5. Clear any cached credentials:
    • You may also want to clear any cached credentials that might be causing the old account to appear. You can do this by going to Control Panel > Credential Manager and removing any entries related to the old work account.

After completing these steps, your Office apps should default to your personal account instead of the old work account.

AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

Was this answer helpful?

1 person found this answer helpful.

Answer accepted by question author

EmilyS726 232.4K Reputation points Independent Advisor
2026-01-23T22:11:51.42+00:00

Hello,

Can you go to your Windows Settings > Accounts > Access Work or School (note, it is the briefcase icon, not the envelope icon). Then see if the organization email address is still listed? If so, click on it and then disconnect it. If that still doesn't remove it, continue through the rest of the steps:

==================

Type contro panel in the search on the taskbar to launch it, then go to Credential Manager > Windows credential tab, look for anything referencing the organization account, right click and delete all that is found.

===============

Hold down Windows + R keys, copy and paste the following path into the run box (one at a time please), and press enter to launch the folder. When it is launched, delete everything in the folder. If you run into any sub folder that will not allow you to delete, go into that sub folder, and delete from within.

%LocalAppData%\Packages\MSTeams_8wekyb3d8bbwe %LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.AAD.BrokerPlugin_cw5n1h2txyewy %LocalAppData%\Microsoft\OneAuth

%LocalAppData%\Microsoft\TokenBroker

%LocalAppData%\Microsoft\IdentityCache  

=========================

Restart the computer after that. Then check to see if the organization account is now gone.

Was this answer helpful?

0 comments

0 additional answers

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest

Your answer

Answers can be marked as 'Accepted' by the question author and 'Recommended' by moderators, which helps users know the answer solved the author's problem.