How to get my icloud folders in OUTLOOK Classic

Question

Microsoft support helped me move Outlook from an old W10 computer to a new W11 computer and set up my primary e-mail account which works fine; however, I also needed an iCloud account to sync my calendars across all my devices. That also, is working fine. My problem is that on my W11 computer under my iCloud account, there is no "Inbox" folder. I do use my icloud account occasionally, so I would like to establish all folders that should be associated with that account. I currently have an email addressed to my iCloud account that shows up on my ios devices but does not show up on my W11 computer.

Answer 1

Dear Mark Bennett

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A forum. I understand that your iCloud mail folders (especially Inbox) aren’t appearing in Classic Outlook on Windows 11, even though iCloud calendar sync works and you can see iCloud email on iOS but not on your PC. I’m happy to help. 

In Classic Outlook, do you currently see an iCloud email address in the folder list (as an IMAP mailbox), or do you only see iCloud calendar/contacts? 

Please note that the iCloud calendar/contacts sync you enabled through iCloud for Windows is not the same as adding iCloud Mail as an email account in Outlook. When only the sync component is set up, it may not appear as a mail account under File > Account Settings > Email. 

Please follow these steps: 

1) Add iCloud Mail as an actual email account in Classic Outlook (so Inbox exists) 

• In Classic Outlook, go to File > Add Account. 
• For iCloud, you may need an Apple app‑specific password if your usual Apple ID password isn’t accepted. 
• Note: iCloud Mail uses IMAP/SMTP (not POP). For server settings, see: Add or manage an iCloud email account in Outlook – Microsoft Support.

2) If the iCloud mail folders exist but don’t show, re‑subscribe to folders in Outlook 

• In Classic Outlook with an IMAP iCloud account, this often helps:  
  • Right‑click the IMAP account in the folder list > IMAP Folders > Query > Subscribe to any missing folders. 
    • Also consider unchecking: “When displaying hierarchy in Outlook, show only subscribed folders.” 

3) If iCloud components fail to load in Classic Outlook (calendar/contacts errors) 

• This could be an iCloud MAPI service failing to load. A common workaround is to uninstall and reinstall iCloud for Windows (ensure you’re using supported Outlook versions). 

I hope these steps help. If not, please let me know what you see after trying them, and I’ll be happy to assist further. I look forward to hearing from you. Have a lovely day! 

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".  

Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread. 

Answer 2

Hi Mark Bennett

It is my pleasure to hear that the issue has been resolved!  

Is there anything else I can assist you with? If not, please feel free to let me know so I can close this thread. 

Warm Regards