Outlook web is not sending or receiving emails right now, is the server down? - Feb 18

Question

Feb 18, 2026 at 11a EST

I've tested sending and receiving emails from to from my outlook accounts and to and from outlook to gmail accounts using the outlook on the web only. I received the one from outlook to gmail about 15 minutes later. I do not see any emails in outlook since yesterday Feb 17th at 1p EST.

Is it down?

Answer 1

Hi MBN Global

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A Forum. I understand how worrying it is when Outlook on the web suddenly stops sending or receiving emails, especially when it was working earlier.

Please try the steps below on Outlook on the web:

1. Refresh the connection

• Sign out of Outlook on the web completely.
• Sign back in and check whether new emails appear.
• You can also try in an InPrivate/Incognito browser session from a different browser/device. (If needed, you can then clear the browser cache/cookies for Outlook.com.)

2. Check whether emails are being filtered or landing elsewhere

Please sign in to Outlook on the web then:

• Check all folders (Inbox, Junk Email, Deleted Items, Archive), ensure your inbox filter is set to All (not “Unread” or another filter).
• Check Focused / Other tab (if Focused Inbox is enabled), emails may land in Other. You can also temporarily turn Focused Inbox off to test.

3. Check your storage

If your mailbox storage is full, you can’t send/receive email normally and messages can bounce or fail to arrive. Still in Outlook web, go to Settings > Account > Storage and free up space if needed.

For more details, you can see these official support links:

• Can't send or receive email in Outlook.com - Microsoft Support
• Fix email sync issues by removing a device from your Outlook mailbox - Microsoft Support

Please feel free to let me know how it goes and I’d happy to help you further. Thank you for your time and understanding.

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Answer 2

If you're experiencing issues with sending and receiving emails in Outlook on the web, it could be related to a server issue. To check if the server is down, you should sign in to the Microsoft 365 portal with your administrator credentials and check the service health status. This will indicate whether other users are experiencing similar issues, which may suggest a service interruption affecting email delivery.

Additionally, you can verify if there are any local network issues that might be impacting your connectivity, such as problems with your proxy server, firewall, or Internet service provider.

If the problem persists, consider using the Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant to troubleshoot further.

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References:

• Outlook performance is slow in the Microsoft 365 environment
• Fix Outlook connection problems for Microsoft 365 account