emails have disappeared from my Hotmail Inbox

Question

Udi Goldstein 10

my emails since one week ago through 2016 have disappeared from my inbox. How can I retrieve them?

Alexa 0 Reputation points

2026-02-07T18:30:47.56+00:00

Yesterday all my emails were there under focused and other tabs, but today there are only two emails. I don't have on any filters on, I didn't delete all of my emails. Where did they go?
Emma1-N 4,360 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-10T04:34:03.3866667+00:00

Hello Alexa,

Could you check the Deleted Items folder in case the emails were removed?
Alexa 0 Reputation points

2026-02-10T16:52:24.06+00:00

Thank you for your comment. The emails were in the deleted folder. I had to recover all the deleted items and go through all my emails to restore the ones I needed. Several hundreds of emails. Not sure why or how they randomly ended up in the deleted folder though?
Emma1-N 4,360 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-11T07:40:00.6533333+00:00

Hello Alexa,

It’s possible that a rule was accidentally created, causing your emails to be moved to the Deleted Items folder. Please go to Settings > Mail > Rules, then review whether any rules are set to move or delete incoming emails.

2 answers

Alexa 0 Reputation points

2026-02-07T18:30:47.56+00:00

Yesterday all my emails were there under focused and other tabs, but today there are only two emails. I don't have on any filters on, I didn't delete all of my emails. Where did they go?
Emma1-N 4,360 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-10T04:34:03.3866667+00:00

Hello Alexa,

Could you check the Deleted Items folder in case the emails were removed?
Alexa 0 Reputation points

2026-02-10T16:52:24.06+00:00

Thank you for your comment. The emails were in the deleted folder. I had to recover all the deleted items and go through all my emails to restore the ones I needed. Several hundreds of emails. Not sure why or how they randomly ended up in the deleted folder though?
Emma1-N 4,360 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-11T07:40:00.6533333+00:00

Hello Alexa,

It’s possible that a rule was accidentally created, causing your emails to be moved to the Deleted Items folder. Please go to Settings > Mail > Rules, then review whether any rules are set to move or delete incoming emails.

Answer 1

Emma1-N 4,360 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A forum. I am sorry to hear about your issue with your emails disappearing from your Hotmail inbox.

To help identify the fastest resolution, please confirm the following:

Are you trying to sign in to your account using another browser or in Incognito/Private mode?
Is any Inbox filter turned on (Unread/Flagged/Attachments, etc.)?
Have you checked the Archive, Junk, Deleted Items folders, and the “Recover items deleted from this folder” option?
Have you recently received an “unusual sign-in” alert, or noticed any unfamiliar devices/locations signing in to your account?
Have you gone a long time without signing in to Hotmail/Outlook.com?

Looking for your response.

Answer 2

If your emails have disappeared from your Hotmail inbox, there are a few steps you can take to try to retrieve them:

Check Deleted Items: Sometimes emails may be accidentally deleted. Check your Deleted Items folder to see if they are there.
Search for Missing Emails: You can use the search feature in Outlook to look for specific emails by keywords, sender, or date range.
Check Filters: It’s possible that a filter has been applied to your inbox view that is hiding emails. To check this:
- Go to the View tab in Outlook.
- Click on View Settings and then Filter. Review any filters that might be hiding your emails.
Recover Deleted Items: If you find that emails are in the Deleted Items folder, you can recover them by right-clicking and selecting "Move" to return them to your inbox.
Use Audit Logs: If you are an administrator or have access to audit logs, you can investigate deletion activities using PowerShell commands to identify if emails were deleted and by whom. This can help you understand if they were removed intentionally or by mistake.
Contact Support: If you are unable to find your emails through these methods, consider reaching out to Microsoft support for further assistance.

By following these steps, you may be able to locate and recover your missing emails.

References: