Unable to View Calendar I am a Delegate of in List View in Classic Outlook

Question

I am trying to view a calendar that I am a delegate of in list view. It previously worked for me 1-2 weeks ago but now when i select her calendar and click list view it snaps back to my calendar and shows it in list view.

Answer 1

Hi @Haines Kelly, 

I hope you are doing well today. 

Based on the details you shared that you are currently experiencing an issue where the delegated calendar snaps back to your own calendar whenever you attempt to switch to List View in Classic Outlook. 

This behavior is directly related to a recent update that Microsoft introduced called Shared Calendar Improvements, which changed the way shared and delegated calendars are handled within Classic Outlook for Windows. Although this update was designed to enhance the overall calendar sharing experience, it has unfortunately affected the ability to use List View on delegated calendars.  

Please be assured that this is a known and documented issue acknowledged by Microsoft Known issues with classic Outlook Desktop Shared Calendar Improvements - Microsoft Support, and the steps below are specifically tailored to help you get this working again.  

1/ Disable shared calendar improvements  

This is the most effective fix for your situation and will restore List View for delegated calendars immediately. 

• Open Classic Outlook. 
• Click File > Account Settings > Account Settings. 
• Double-click your Microsoft 365 account. 
• Click More Settings, then go to the Advanced tab. 
• Under Microsoft 365 Features, uncheck "Turn on shared calendar improvements." 
• Click OK > Next > Finish. 
• Fully close and restart Outlook. 
• Navigate to the delegated calendar and switch to List View, it should now stay in place. 
• Reference: How to enable and disable the Outlook calendar sharing updates - Microsoft Support 

2/ Re-select the calendar after switching views 

If you prefer to keep Shared Calendar Improvements enabled, please try the steps below as a temporary workaround. 

• In the Calendar navigation pane on the left, make sure only the delegated calendar is checked (uncheck your own calendar). 
• Click View > Change View > List. 
• When the view snaps back, do not change the view again yet. Instead, click on the delegated calendar in the left navigation pane once more. 
• Then go to View > Change View > List a second time. 
• Many users find the view holds on this second attempt. 
• Reference: Share and access a calendar with edit or delegate permissions in Outlook - Microsoft Support 

3/ Remove and re-add the delegated calendar 

If neither of the above fully resolves your experience, removing and re-adding the calendar can help refresh the connection. 

• In the Calendar pane, right-click the delegated calendar. 
• Select Delete Calendar or Remove from the context menu. 
• Close and restart Outlook. 
• Go to File > Account Settings > Delegate Access and confirm the delegation permissions are still in place. 
• Re-open the other person's calendar by going to Home > Open Calendar > Open Shared Calendar and entering their name. 
• Once the calendar reappears, attempt to switch to List View. 
• Reference: Calendar sharing in Microsoft 365 - Microsoft Support 

Please begin with Solution 1, as this has been confirmed to work for the majority of affected users. If you have any questions while going through these steps or need further assistance, please do not hesitate to reach back to me directly and I will be happy to help. 

Thank you for your patience and your understanding. I look forward to continuing the conversation. 

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Answer 2

This behavior matches a known issue affecting shared calendars in classic Outlook for Windows.

When a shared calendar is selected, Outlook may fail to keep that calendar active when switching views (such as to List view) and instead snap back to the primary calendar. A related issue is documented where shared calendars cannot be opened or selected after being added.

Use the documented workaround for shared calendar issues in classic Outlook for Windows:

1. In Calendar, take a screenshot of all calendars currently listed in the Calendar pane so they can be re-added later.
2. Close Outlook.
3. Press Windows key + R to open Run.
4. Run this command:

      outlook.exe /resetnavpane
   

   This resets the navigation pane, which is where shared calendar links are stored.
5. Reopen Outlook.
6. Re-add the delegate calendar:
   • If it is a REST shared calendar: in the Calendar module, on the Home ribbon select Add > Open Shared Calendar, then choose the owner’s calendar.
   • If it is shared with Free/Busy permissions only: in the Calendar module, on the Home ribbon select Add > From Address Book, then select the owner and their calendar.
7. Select the delegate calendar again and switch to List view; it should now remain on the delegate calendar instead of snapping back to the primary calendar.

If the issue persists, use Outlook on the web or the new Outlook for Windows temporarily to access the delegate calendar while classic Outlook behavior is being investigated.

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References:

• Unable to open a shared calendar in Outlook Desktop