As a Microsoft Outlook user, you may encounter a situation where you cannot see some emails in the Inbox folder. It would be a critical situation if you can’t find the email you need to reply to urgently. So, it is important to fix such an issue as soon as possible. This post will help you resolve the “Outlook emails not showing in Inbox” issue. But before that, let’s learn about the causes behind such an issue.
Why is Outlook not Showing All Emails in the Inbox?
Here are the possible reasons why Outlook is not showing emails in the Inbox:
- IMAP or POP settings have problems or are configured incorrectly.
- Internet connection is unstable or poor.
- Some emails may be deleted mistakenly from your Inbox and you are not aware of it.
- The Outlook data file has exceeded the stipulated size limit, unable to store more data.
- Synchronization issues between the server and Outlook data file (OST).
- You may have set some rules to move emails from particular email IDs to another folder.
How to Fix “Outlook Emails not Showing in Inbox” Issue?
Below are some effective methods to resolve the Outlook emails not showing in Inbox issue.
Fix 1: Check Internet Connectivity
If your internet connection is not working fine, you may not be able to receive emails on time. You need to ensure that your internet connection is stable and working fine. You can try to disconnect and then reconnect the internet connection to see if it is working fine. You can also open a web browser on your system and try to open a random website to check if the internet is working. If there is any issue with the internet, you can contact your internet service provider.
Fix 2: Check the Default View Settings
If the Outlook Folder View settings are altered, it might lead to emails not showing in the Outlook Inbox. You can check and change the Outlook Folder View settings to resolve the issue. Follow the below steps:
- Step 1: Open Microsoft Outlook and navigate to the View tab.
- Step 2: Click the View Settings option and click on “Reset Current View.”
- Step 3: A pop-up appears asking to confirm the change. Click Yes..
- Step 4: Go back to the Outlook interface and click the Send/Receive option to see if you’re now receiving emails.
Fix 3: Disable Auto Archive Feature
If you’ve enabled the Auto Archive feature in Outlook, it may also cause the emails are showing in Inbox issue. You can disable this feature by following the below steps:
- Step 1: Launch Microsoft Outlook and go to File > Options.
- Step 2: Go to the Advanced tab and choose the Auto Archive setting option.
- Step 3: In the new window, uncheck the Run Auto Archive every option box, and click the OK button.
- Step 4: Restart Outlook and check if the issue is resolved.
Fix 4: Check Rules
Outlook rules are used to automate several email-related tasks. When specific rules are applied, the selected emails will be sent to a specific folder. You can check if any such rules exist and remove them to fix the issue. Follow the below steps:
- Step 1: Open Outlook and choose the File tab.
- Step 2: Select Manage Rules & Alerts in the Info tab.
- Step 3: Check every rule you have set. Once you find the rule that modifies incoming emails, uncheck the box next to it.
Fix 5: Check Deleted Items Folder
It may happen that you have deleted the emails accidentally. When you delete any email, it goes to the Deleted Items folder. You can check the Deleted Items folder for the missing emails.
Fix 6: Create Space in Outlook Mailbox
If you do not have any available space in your Outlook mailbox, the application might not be able to store new emails. You can try cleaning up your mailbox by deleting old or unimportant emails. Follow the below steps to clean up the mailbox:
- Step 1: Go to File > Tools > Mailbox Cleanup.
- Step 2: Choose from the multiple options – “View mailbox size”, “Find items older than”, “Find items larger than”, “View deleted items size”, “Empty deleted items folder”, “View conflicts size”, and “Empty conflicts” to cleanup the mailbox.
- Step 3: Click on Send/Receive option to see if you’re receiving new emails.
Conclusion
The Outlook emails not showing in Inbox issue can be frustrating as it can disturb your daily workflow. You can try to resolve this issue by following the methods mentioned above. If you’re facing this issue due to corrupt or damaged OST file, then you can rebuild the OST file to resolve the issue. For this, go to the OST file location, copy it to another folder or drive, and then delete the original OST. When you start the Outlook, it will create a new OST file at the default location.
However, after recreating the OST, check it for any missing emails and items. If there are any missing items, you can use a third-party OST to PST conversion tool, such as Stellar Converter for OST, to extract items from the backup OST file and save them to PST. You can then import this PST into Outlook to restore missing items.
