Yes, Microsoft Outlook also comes with the option to setup auto reply in outlook. If you are a corporate employee, associate or a business person, then you must be using Microsoft Outlook to check and send or receive your emails.
Even outlook can be used for personal emails as well, such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc. You just need to configure your respective email once with easy steps and you can check your email easily.
[Read: How to Configure Gmail for Outlook?]
Setup Auto reply in Outlook 2013, 2016 & 2019
For business and office use, an automatic reply to emails is very important sometimes. Suppose somebody sent you a contract copy or any important document by email and he/she won’t get a reply after a while.
The sender or email must be suspicious whether the email was delivered or not. If you could have set up an automatic reply to your outlook then the sender of the email has been acknowledged automatically with an auto reply email.
Create Automatic Reply Email Template
Note: You can apply the instructions given in this article for Microsoft Outlook 2019, 2016 & 2013 along with Outlook for Office 365.
First, we need to create or setup an automatic reply email template within outlook. To do that, follow these steps below:
- Click on the New Email option from your Outlook ribbon bar
- The above action will open an email compose window on your screen. Enter the appropriate subject line and message regarding which shows the recipient that you are not available at this time.
- Now we need to save this auto reply template. Therefore, navigate to the File Menu and select Save As.
- In this Save As window, change Save as type to Outlook Message Format.
The moment you select this format type, it will automatically take you to the outlook template directory (C:\Users\your user\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Templates).
- Check the file name and select Save.
Once you have created an outlook auto reply email template, you need to setup a rule for automatic reply when you are out-of-office or on vacations, holidays, etc. Follow below steps:
Create Rules for Automatic Reply (Out-of-Office)
Step 1. Go to the File Menu -> Info -> Click on Manage Rules & Alerts.
Step 2. The Rules and Alerts window will open on your screen. Choose the appropriate mailbox from the drop-down or desired email address if you have configured more than one email address in outlook.
Step 3. In the Rules Wizard window, select “Apply rule on message I receive” under Start from a blank rule option. Then, click Next.
Step 4. Select the condition as where my name is in the to box and then, click Next
Step 5. Now select reply using a specific template.
From the same screen, go down and select the hyperlink for a specific template. Check out the image below for reference:
Step 6. With your above action, select the reply template window that will open.
Make sure you click on the “Look in: option and select User Templates in file System” in order to get the above created auto reply template. Once you see it, select it and click Open
Step 7. You are almost near to the last step. Your above action will take you to the previous window where you can see that your reply path has been set up. Click Next to continue.
Step 8. You have the option to create exceptions as we selected as except if it is an automatic reply and then, click Next
Step 9. Finally, on this last screen, you have an option to modify or you can specify the name of the rule. We have already changed it to “Out of Office Reply”.
You should make it yours. Also, make sure the check box for Turn on this Rule is marked or checked.
Lastly, just click on the Finish button to apply all the previous all setup or changes. This means you have successfully setup auto reply in Outlook 2016 or in the listed Office additons.
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Setup Automatic Reply in Outlook 2019, 2016, 2013 & Office 365 Click To Tweet
