How to Use Tasks and Microsoft To Do in Outlook
Most people keep their to-do list in their head, on a sticky note, or as 300 unread emails. Outlook has a proper task list built in, and it's the same list that Microsoft To Do shows on your phone. Here's how to use it without turning it into another chore.
Quick reference
| What you want | How |
|---|---|
| Open tasks | Click the To Do icon (tick mark) in the left bar |
| Quick task list beside your email | My Day (top right) |
| Turn an email into a task | Drag it into My Day, or flag it |
| Classic Outlook tasks | Ctrl + 4, or the To-Do Bar |
1. Add a task
New Outlook and Outlook on the web:
1. Click the To Do icon (a tick inside a circle) in the left-hand bar.
2. Click Add a task, type what you need to do and press Enter.
3. Click the task to add a due date, reminder, repeat or notes.
2. Click Add a task, type what you need to do and press Enter.
3. Click the task to add a due date, reminder, repeat or notes.
Classic Outlook:
1. Press Ctrl + 4 or click Tasks at the bottom left (it may be under ⋯).
2. Click New Task, fill in the subject, due date and reminder, and click Save & Close.
2. Click New Task, fill in the subject, due date and reminder, and click Save & Close.
Tick the circle (or checkbox) to complete a task. Completed tasks drop into a Completed list you can review later.
2. Use My Day
You don't have to leave your inbox to see your tasks. In new Outlook, click My Day (the calendar-and-tick icon at the top right). A pane opens beside your email with a To Do tab showing today's tasks and a Calendar tab showing today's events.
Click Add a task at the bottom of the pane for a quick entry while you're reading email.
3. Turn an email into a task
The email is the task half the time. Three ways to capture it:
• Drag it from your inbox into the My Day pane. A task is created with the email attached, so you can open the original later.
• Flag it — click the flag icon. Flagged emails appear automatically in To Do under Flagged email.
• Classic Outlook — drag the email onto Tasks at the bottom left.
• Flag it — click the flag icon. Flagged emails appear automatically in To Do under Flagged email.
• Classic Outlook — drag the email onto Tasks at the bottom left.
Once it's captured, archive or file the email. Your inbox gets emptier and nothing is lost.
4. Organise with lists
In To Do, the left-hand panel has My Day, Important, Planned and Flagged email. Click New list to add your own, such as Home, Project X or Someday. Drag tasks between lists.
Planned shows everything with a due date in order — the closest thing to a real agenda.
5. Set reminders and repeats
Open a task and click Remind me to get a pop-up at a set time, or Repeat for weekly bills and monthly reports. Reminders fire in Outlook and in the To Do app on your phone.
6. See it all on your phone
Install Microsoft To Do from the app store and sign in with the same account. Every task, list and flagged email is there, and anything you tick off on the bus disappears from Outlook too.
Troubleshooting
My tasks aren't in To Do on my phone. Make sure the account is the same one — To Do works with Microsoft 365, Exchange and Outlook.com accounts, but not Gmail accounts added to Outlook.
I can't find the Tasks module in classic Outlook. Click ⋯ at the bottom of the folder pane and choose Tasks, or press Ctrl + 4.
Flagged emails are cluttering my list. In To Do, go to Settings and turn off Flagged email for the list — or stop flagging and start dragging into My Day instead.
Wrapping up
Open My Day, drag in the emails you need to act on, and give the important ones a due date. Check the Planned list each morning and you'll always know what today actually requires.
