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Newest version of Outlook for Mac: reading pane suddenly at the bottom, and won't save preference

James Wyatt 41 Reputation points
2025-10-29T22:12:37.1066667+00:00

Just downloaded the newest version of Outlook for Mac this morning (16.102.2) and suddenly every time I open it, the email reading pane is at the bottom. I've had it on the right for years, and when I select that, the next time I open Outlook, it's on the bottom again. Major bug. It won't save my preference.

Outlook | MacOS | Legacy Outlook for Mac | For education

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  1. Vergil-V 6,060 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2025-10-30T01:15:44.94+00:00

    Hi @james wyatt  
    Thanks for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A forum.   
    I completely understand how inconvenient and frustrating it can be when Outlook for Mac doesn’t honor your Reading Pane settings as expected. 

    Based on my research, this behavior appears to be affecting many users and is strongly associated with Outlook for Mac version 16.102.2. Given this, I highly recommend submitting feedback directly to the Outlook team so they’re aware of the impact. You can do this by following these steps: 

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    Update:
    The "Give Feedback" option is available only in the New Outlook for Mac version. As an alternative, you can submit your feedback through the Microsoft Feedback Portal, which serves the same purpose and allows you to share your experience directly with the product team

    As a temporary workaround, you might consider reverting to a previous version of Outlook (prior to 16.102.2), which does not seem to exhibit the same issue. If you choose to do this, I also suggest turning off the auto-update feature to maintain the functionality you’re used to until a new version is released that addresses this behavior. 

    User's image

     You can manually download older versions from the official Microsoft site here: Update history for Office for Mac - Office release notes | Microsoft Learn 

    For reference, here are some discussions from other users experiencing similar issues: 

    I truly hope this information helps clarify the situation and supports you in finding a suitable solution. Please feel free to reply if you have any updates or further questions. 

    Thank you again for your patience and understanding. 

    If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment". 

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

    2 people found this answer helpful.
  2. Hornblower409-4652 2,110 Reputation points
    2025-10-30T01:21:45.1833333+00:00
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