I am not able to delete emails from outlook, even if i delete it comes back

Question

Not able to delete my emails from outlook . i have tried all basic tips, even if i delete it comes back again when i refresh i am not able tos end or recive email now

Answer 1

Dear @Mohammed Ismail Khuddus,

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

I understand you’re experiencing two critical issues in Outlook for Windows (New Outlook for business):

1. Deleted emails reappear after refreshing.
2. You’re unable to send or receive emails.

These symptoms together strongly indicate that your mailbox may have reached its storage quota. When a mailbox is full, Microsoft 365 enforces strict limitations:

• Cannot receive new emails because there’s no space to store them.
• Cannot send emails because Outlook cannot save a copy in the “Sent Items” folder.
• Cannot delete emails normally because moving items to “Deleted Items” also requires space, which is unavailable.

When you delete an email, Outlook may temporarily hide it, but upon refresh, the server restores it because the deletion was never confirmed. So, I recommended some suggestions you can try:

1. Check your mailbox storage

• In New Outlook, click Settings (gear icon) > General > Storage.
• If you see usage near or above the limit (e.g., 49.5 GB / 50 GB), this is the root cause.

2. Permanently delete emails

Since the “Deleted Items” folder is also full, you need to bypass it:

• Select emails you no longer need (start with the largest ones).
• Press Shift + Delete on your keyboard.
• Confirm the prompt: “Do you want to permanently delete these items?”
• To find large emails quickly: use Filter > Sort by > Size.

Please note that this action cannot be undone. Please back up any important emails before proceeding.

3. Clear Deleted and Junk Folders

• Sign in to https://outlook.office.com.
• Empty the Deleted Items and Junk Email folders.
• Restart Outlook after clearing space.

If these steps do not work, your account may be under Litigation Hold or the Recoverable Items folder may be full. These require IT administrator intervention. Please contact your IT team and mention for example: “My mailbox may have exceeded quota or Recoverable Items storage. Could you review and release space?”

Also, if the issue still persists after trying all my suggestions, could you please clarify:

• Does the issue occur in all folders or only specific ones?
• Do you see any error messages when sending or receiving emails?
• Have you tried Outlook Web to check if the problem persists there?

We appreciate your kind patience and understanding that sometimes the initial response may not immediately resolve the issue or there may be some misunderstandings about your scenario, but we would love to hear updates from you and find out further suggestions.

Thank you for your patience. We’ll work together to resolve this quickly.

Best Regards.

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Answer 2

If you are unable to delete emails in Outlook and they reappear after refreshing, there are several methods you can try to resolve this issue:

1. Use Outlook on the Web: Sometimes, deleting the item in Outlook on the web can work when it fails in the desktop application.
2. Empty the Deleted Items Folder: Make sure to empty your Deleted Items folder, as this can sometimes resolve issues with deleting items.
3. Run Outlook Commands: You can try using command line switches to clean reminders or delete records. For example, you can run outlook.exe /cleanreminders or outlook.exe /cleandmrecords from the Run dialog.
4. MFCMAPI Tool: If the above methods do not work, you can use the MFCMAPI tool to delete stuck messages or reminders. Make sure Outlook is closed before using this tool. You can find detailed steps on how to use MFCMAPI in the Microsoft documentation.
5. Check for Corrupted Items: If there are corrupted items in your mailbox, they may prevent deletion. Using the MFCMAPI tool can help identify and remove these items.

If these methods do not resolve the issue, consider checking for updates to Outlook or consulting Microsoft support for further assistance.

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References:

• You can't remove a calendar item or an email message in Outlook in Microsoft 365
• You can't remove a calendar item or an email message in Outlook in Microsoft 365