how can i open an attachment without the preview pane?

Question

how can i open an attachment without the preview pane?

Ravi Kanhye 20

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Answer accepted by question author

Liora 3,285 Independent Advisor

Dear @Ravi Kanhye

I hope you’re having a good day

If you're using New Outlook for Windows, there are several ways to open an attachment directly instead of viewing it in the Preview pane.

You can try the following:

Double-click the attachment to open it in its associated application (for example, Word, Excel, Adobe Reader, etc.).
Right-click the attachment and select Open or Open With (if available).
Select Download or Save As, then open the file directly from your Downloads folder or the location where it was saved.
If the attachment opens in Preview by default, look for an Open, Open in Desktop App, or Open With option within the preview window, depending on the file type.

If the attachment always opens in Preview and you don't see any of these options, it would be helpful to know:

What type of file you are trying to open (PDF, Word, Excel, image, etc.).
Whether you are using the New Outlook for Windows desktop app or Outlook on the web.

Different attachment types can have slightly different opening options, and those details will help identify the most appropriate method.

I hope this information helps point you in the right direction. If you run into any issues while trying the steps, or if something still doesn’t feel quite right, please don’t hesitate to reach out again. I’ll do my best to support you however I can.

Looking forward to hearing back from you with any updates or additional details.

Warm regards,

If the answer is helpful, please select "Yes, accept answer". If you have any questions or new updates, please feel free to comment below.

Ravi Kanhye 20 Reputation points

2026-10-25T04:38:00.9766667+00:00

i mostly want to know on the settings option for attachment which i cannot find in the new outlook. example my exl file is opening directly on web and not on excel. so i want to have access on setting option to solve the issues.
Liora 3,285 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-10-26T15:42:43.3633333+00:00

Hi Ravi,

Thank you for the clarification.

I now understand that the question is less about opening a specific attachment and more about finding a setting in New Outlook that controls how attachments are opened by default.

Based on your description, and I agree with the observations shared by the other contributors, I have not been able to find a setting in New Outlook for Windows that allows you to globally configure Office attachments (such as Excel files) to always open in the desktop application instead of the web experience.

From what I can see, this appears to be a limitation of the current New Outlook experience rather than a configuration option that is hidden or difficult to find.

Thank you for providing the additional context. It helped clarify that the concern is about the lack of a default attachment-opening preference rather than the preview pane itself.

Kind regards,

2 additional answers

Your answer

Ravi Kanhye 20 Reputation points

2026-10-25T04:38:00.9766667+00:00

i mostly want to know on the settings option for attachment which i cannot find in the new outlook. example my exl file is opening directly on web and not on excel. so i want to have access on setting option to solve the issues.
Liora 3,285 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-10-26T15:42:43.3633333+00:00

Hi Ravi,

Thank you for the clarification.

I now understand that the question is less about opening a specific attachment and more about finding a setting in New Outlook that controls how attachments are opened by default.

Based on your description, and I agree with the observations shared by the other contributors, I have not been able to find a setting in New Outlook for Windows that allows you to globally configure Office attachments (such as Excel files) to always open in the desktop application instead of the web experience.

From what I can see, this appears to be a limitation of the current New Outlook experience rather than a configuration option that is hidden or difficult to find.

Thank you for providing the additional context. It helped clarify that the concern is about the lack of a default attachment-opening preference rather than the preview pane itself.

Kind regards,

Answer 1

i mostly want to know on the settings option for attachment which i cannot find in the new outlook. example my exl file is opening directly on web and not on excel. so i want to have access on setting option to solve the issues.

Which options do you see if you click the arrow on an attached document in Outlook web?

Edit in Word desktop app should be one of the available options. See the screen shot below which is from Outlook web (the options in the new Outlook for Windows are similar).

If you are looking for a way to change the default behavior, I don't think there is one, as other contributors have noted.

User's image

Answer 2

Hi Ravi, I could not find a setting for this in New Outlook either. As far as I can see, New Outlook does not have an attachment handling setting, so I change it per file instead of in Settings.

In New Outlook for Windows, double-click the attachment to open it in its desktop app. Microsoft notes this under Open attachments in desktop apps, and that it does not apply to Outlook on the web.

If you are using Outlook on the web, that is why the Excel file opens in the browser. Click the small arrow next to the attachment and choose Edit in Excel desktop app. If that option is not shown, download the file and open it from Downloads.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/getstarted/what-s-new-in-new-outlook-for-windows