not receiving emails

Question

i am not receiving emails. i have been able to send emails but not receive.

Answer 1

Hi @Larry Castellanos, 

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A forum.  

Thank you very much for reaching out regarding the issue where you can send emails but not receive them.  

If you can send emails but aren’t receiving any, it typically indicates an inbound mail flow issue caused by factors such as DNS/MX misconfiguration, security filtering (Quarantine/Junk), mailbox rules or blocked senders, a full mailbox, or Outlook client filters/view settings. 

Here are my recommendations, please follow the steps below: 

1/ Check via Outlook on the web (OWA) 

• Go to https://outlook.office.com and check: Inbox; Other (if Focused Inbox is enabled); Junk Email folder 
• This helps confirm whether the issue is with the mailbox or only the Outlook desktop app. 

2/ Review rules & forwarding 

In Classic Outlook, please check rules directly in the desktop app: 

• Open File > Manage Rules & Alerts. 
• 
• Review all rules and delete/disable any rules that automatically move or delete emails. 
• Make sure there are no forwarding rules unless they were intentionally created. 

3/ Check blocked senders & domains 

• Go to Home > Junk > Junk E-mail Options. 
• Open the Blocked Senders tab. 
• 
• Remove any legitimate email addresses or domains. 

Additionally, please check your mailbox storage quota, as a full mailbox can prevent new messages from arriving. 

4/ Outlook desktop app - Filters / View

If the issue only occurs in Outlook desktop, but everything works normally in OWA, it usually indicates a client-side issue. 

Please check the following: 

A - Clear Filters / Custom Views 

• Go to View > View Settings. 
• Select Filter and ensure no filters are applied. 
• 
• Click Reset View if needed. 

B - Temporarily disable Add-ins 

• Go to File > Options > Add-ins. 
• At the bottom, select COM Add-ins > Go 
• 
• Temporarily uncheck add-ins to see if any are interfering with email display. 

5/ Contact Support 

If the issue persists after these checks, please contact your IT admin so they can check the message trace, review Quarantine, verify inbox/transport rules, confirm the MX record is correctly pointed to Microsoft 365, ensure the mailbox status/quota/license is valid, and, if applicable, review any third‑party gateway or hybrid routing into Microsoft 365. 

In case your IT department cannot access the necessary information or make the required changes, I recommend asking them to open a request with Microsoft Support team through the Microsoft Admin Center. They have access to backend configurations and can perform a more in-depth investigation. At the very least, they can provide the most effective workaround to ensure your experience remains smooth and secure.   

We kindly ask for your understanding that, as moderators, we do not have access to the administrative tools or permissions required to investigate or modify these configurations. We also do not have the capability to initiate remote sessions for direct assistance. Our role is to guide users to the appropriate resources and support channels.     

I hope this information is helpful. Should you have any further questions or need additional assistance, feel free to reach out.   

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this.

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Answer 2

Try the following checks and fixes in classic Outlook for Windows in this order:

1. Confirm Outlook is online and connected

• Make sure Outlook is open and not showing “Working Offline” in the status bar.
• If it is, go to the Send/Receive tab and turn Work Offline off.

2. Check for errors and stuck messages

• Look at the bottom status bar for any sync or connection errors.
• Check the Outbox folder; if messages are stuck there, that can indicate a connection or profile issue.

3. Verify account password and settings

• If the email account password was changed on the provider’s website, update it in Outlook as well. See the guidance under Have you changed your password recently? in the Outlook article.
• If unsure the account settings are correct, confirm server names, ports, and security options with the email provider and compare them with what is configured in Outlook.

4. Check antivirus and firewall

• Some antivirus products scan email and can block mail flow. If email stopped working after installing or updating antivirus, contact the antivirus help desk or temporarily disable email scanning (not the whole antivirus) following their guidance.

5. Repair Outlook installation

• If Outlook itself is damaged, repair the Office installation:
  • Use the steps in Repair an Office application to run a Quick Repair (and if needed, an Online Repair). This can take up to 30 minutes.

6. Repair or recreate the Outlook profile

• A corrupted mail profile can prevent receiving mail while sending still works.
• Follow Fix your Outlook email connection by repairing your profile to repair the existing profile.
• If that does not help, create a new profile using Create an Outlook profile, add the email account again, and test receiving mail.

7. Start Outlook in Safe Mode (to rule out add-ins)

• Close Outlook.
• Press the Windows key, type: outlook.exe /safe and press Enter.
• If mail is received in Safe Mode, an add-in is likely causing the issue. Disable or remove problematic add-ins, then restart Outlook normally.

If these steps do not restore incoming mail, follow the broader guidance in Troubleshooting Outlook issues from the same article for more advanced diagnostics.

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References:

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