Help with Storage being full even after purchasing Microsoft basic.

Question

I was late on payment for my Microsoft basic package and i went to renew it to get more storage, however when i went to my outlook, i keeps saying that "you're out of storage" and i cant send emails but when i went to my Microsoft account , it says that i have 100gb. This is important as i need to use my email everyday for work.

Answer 1

Hi,

If you recently purchased additional space, please note that it may take 24 to 48 hours to update across all services. If you still don’t see the change after that time, try signing out and back in.

Note: Make sure you are signed in to the Microsoft account with the subscription.

After that time frame, check if your storage space has been updated by visiting: https://outlook.live.com/

Go to Settings > Accounts > Storage

Expand both the Microsoft Storage and Cloud Storage sections

If the issue persists, I suggest contacting Microsoft Support directly so they can check it for you:

Click this link: https://support.microsoft.com/contactus/

Sign in to your Microsoft account.

Select Microsoft 365 > Click 'Get home support'.

Type "Chat with an agent" from the text field and press Enter.

Click "Contact support" at the bottom.

Select the product you need help with.

Follow the prompts to connect with a live agent or request a call back.

Answer 2

The Outlook “you’re out of storage” message is controlled by two separate quotas that can both block sending/receiving mail:

1. Microsoft cloud (unified) storage quota – OneDrive + Outlook.com attachments + other Microsoft storage.
2. Email mailbox storage quota – the size of the Outlook.com mailbox itself.

Renewing or upgrading a subscription increases available storage, but if either quota is still exceeded or not refreshed correctly, Outlook will continue to show “out of storage” and block sending.

Key points from the documented behavior:

• If Microsoft unified storage is full:
  • Cannot send or receive email in Outlook.com, even if email storage is not full.
  • Cannot upload/edit/sync new OneDrive files; existing files become read-only.
  • After 6 months over quota, OneDrive content may be deleted.
• If email storage is full:
  • Cannot send or receive email in Outlook.com.
  • Incoming messages are bounced back to senders until storage is reduced.

For a personal Outlook.com account:

• Free accounts get 15 GB email storage and 5 GB cloud storage.
• Microsoft 365 subscribers get 100 GB mailbox and larger cloud storage.

Because the Microsoft account page shows 100 GB, the subscription is active, but Outlook is still seeing one of these as over quota. The most common causes are:

1. Cloud/unified storage still over quota or not refreshed
   • Even with a subscription, if OneDrive or unified storage is still above the allowed limit, Outlook.com will block email.
   • Check the Microsoft storage usage (OneDrive + Outlook attachments) and delete or move enough content so total usage is below the quota.
2. Mailbox storage still full
   • The mailbox may still be at or above its limit from before renewal.
   • In Outlook.com (web):
     • Open Settings and search for Storage.
     • On the Storage page, review the folder breakdown and use the cleanup options to permanently delete items (or items older than 3, 6, or 12 months) from large folders like Deleted Items, Junk Email, and Sent Items.
3. Account mismatch
   • The subscription and the mailbox must be on the same Microsoft account.
   • If the subscription is attached to one email address but Outlook is signed in with another, Outlook will not see the 100 GB quota.

Practical steps to resolve:

1. In a browser, sign in to Outlook.com with the exact account used for the Microsoft 365 Basic subscription.
2. Go to Settings → Storage and confirm:
   • Email storage usage is below the mailbox limit.
   • If not, use the cleanup tools to reduce it.
3. Check Microsoft/unified storage (OneDrive + Outlook attachments) and ensure total usage is under the quota by deleting or moving files as needed.
4. After freeing space, wait a short time and try sending an email again.

If storage is clearly under quota in both places and Outlook still blocks sending, contact Outlook.com support from the Help menu in Outlook.com so support can check the quota state on the backend.

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References:

• Storage limits in Outlook.com
• Microsoft storage FAQs
• Mailbox storage limits in Outlook