Outlook – Turning off automatic “Mark as Read” setting

This guide will show you the process of turning off Outlook’s automatic “Mark as Read” setting, allowing you to view emails in the reading pane, without them being marked as read.

Outlook (New)

Step 1

Open Outlook

Step 2

Click the “Settings” icon on the top right of the screen.

Step 3

In the settings window that opens, go to the “Email” tab and select “Message handling”.

Step 4

In the “Mark as read” section, change the tick box to “Don’t automatically mark items as read”.

Outlook (Old)

Step 1

Open Outlook

Step 2

Click the “File” tab on the top left of the screen, once the “File” tab opens, click the “Options” button on the bottom left of the screen.

Step 3

A new “Outlook Options” window will then open, go to the “Advanced” tab and select the “Reading Pane” button. As highlighted in the image below.

Step 4

Untick the “Mark items as read when viewed in the Reading Pane” option and press “OK”.