How to Turn Off AutoComplete in Outlook 2013

The AutoComplete list in Microsoft Outlook 2013 is something that builds up over time as you write and respond to emails. When a name or email address is added to the AutoComplete list, you can start typing that name or address into the To, CC, or BCC field in a message window, and Outlook will offer some suggestions.

This feature can be useful in a number of situations, but you might find that you prefer not to use it. If that is the case, then you can follow the steps below in order to turn off this functionality.

Stop Outlook from Giving AutoComplete Suggestions

The steps in this article were written using Microsoft Outlook 2013. Steps may vary for different versions of Outlook.

Note that this will not clear the AutoComplete list on your computer. If you decide later to turn this option back on, then all of the suggestions that Outlook 2013 was previously using will still be there.

  • Step 1: Open Outlook 2013.
  • Step 2: Click the File tab at the top-left corner of the window.
click the file tab
  • Step 3: Click the Options button in the column at the left side of the window.
click the options button
  • Step 4: Click the Mail tab in the left column of the Outlook Options window.
click the mail tab
  • Step 5: Scroll down to the Send messages section of the window, then uncheck the box to the left of Use Auto-Complete List to suggest names when typing in the To, CC, and BCC lines. Click the OK button at the bottom of the window to save your changes.
turn off the autocomplete option

If you are instead looking to delete your Auto-Complete list, then you can click the gray Empty Auto-Complete List button to the right of this setting. This will remove any existing suggestions in the list temporarily, but will start to build a new list over time.

Outlook 2013 includes an interesting feature that allows you to specify when an email will be sent. Learn how to delay delivery in Outlook 2013 if you would prefer to send a completed email at a later time or date.

See also

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