Microsoft Outlook, a part of the Microsoft Office or Microsoft 365 package, is one of the most widely used email clients on Windows systems. It can help organize and manage emails, meetings, and contacts to stay connected and productive. This article provides insight on how to set up Microsoft Outlook for single or multiple users with separate workspaces or profiles in a single system.
Outlook E-Mail Profile – Brief Overview
Email profiles are personalized setups of single or multiple email accounts for users. As an email management application, Microsoft Outlook stores and organizes details like email accounts, display preferences, passwords, mail signatures, etc., creating a customized mail workspace.
Such setups can help manage multiple email accounts securely, efficiently, and hassle-free, apart from providing a simple and user-friendly way to transfer mail to other devices, if needed.
How to create a new profile in Outlook?
- Open Outlook and click on File > Account Settings > Manage Profiles
- Click on Show Profiles in the next window.
- Click on Add, enter the new profile name followed by OK to complete the profile creation process.
- Once the profile is created, the following screen will prompt you to set up an email account under the profile.
- Enter the name, new email address, and password for use in the profile, and click Next.
- Outlook will start configuring the account and display a confirmation message once the setup is completed.
- Click on Finish on the next window to complete the process.
Managing Email Profiles on Outlook
Email profiles in Outlook can not only organize emails but also help improve efficiency by managing contacts, calendars, meetings, and tasks. Effective profile management in Outlook involves exploring and adopting the below-mentioned features of the application:
1] Setting a default profile
As the name suggests, the default email profile is the Outlook profile, automatically configured for email accounts, display preferences, and data files. This is the same profile Outlook chooses to open when the application starts unless the user selects a different profile manually. To set a default profile,
From Microsoft Outlook
- Open Outlook and navigate to File > Account Settings > Change Profile
- Clicking on Change Profile will close the Outlook application, which needs to be launched manually once again.
- Once Outlook starts, it will show the Choose Profile dialogue box.
- Click on the drop-down beside Profile Name and select the profile to be set as default.
- Click on the Options button once the profile is chosen and tick the checkbox beside Set as default profile.
From Run Dialogue Box
- Open the Run Dialogue box by pressing Windows + R.
- Type outlook.exe /profiles and press Enter.
- The same Choose Profile dialogue box will appear, from where the relevant profile can be chosen to be set as default.
Read: How to Schedule an Email in Outlook: A Step-by-Step Guide
2] Switching Profiles
- Changing profiles in Outlook would involve choosing the profile to be loaded while Outlook starts by following the below-mentioned steps:
- Click on the File > Account Settings > Change Profile option in Outlook.
- Outlook will restart with the Choose Profile window.
- Please choose the desired profile from the drop-down menu and click OK to load it.
3] Adding a new profile for a secondary account
Adding a new profile for a secondary email account involves the same steps as creating a new profile in Outlook and adding an email. Please refer to the new profile creation steps for the same.
4] Configure Outlook to Use the Same Profile Always
- Open Outlook and navigate to File > Account Settings > Manage Profile
- At the bottom of the Mail window, click the radio button beside Always use this Profile.
- Select the profile to be used from the drop-down list and click Apply > OK to save the changes.
5] Configure Outlook to Prompt for Profile Choice While Launching
- Open Outlook and navigate to File > Account Settings > Manage Profile
- Click on the radio button beside Prompt for a Profile to be used.
- Select Apply > OK for the changes to take effect.
6] Using Multiple Profiles
Multiple profiles might be helpful if a computer is shared by more than one individual, each having separate profiles. These profiles will have their own personalized accounts and settings that can be loaded by selecting the relevant profile while starting the Outlook application. Please refer to the above section for configuring Outlook to prompt for choosing a profile while launching.
Read: Repair Outlook Profiles, Contacts, Search Folder, Fix Add-ins with OLFix
7] How Do You Delete a New Profile in Outlook?
- Open the Mail window and select the profile to be removed.
- Click on the Remove button to remove the profile.