Office 2021 Outlook Mail Folder problem.

Question

Office 2021 Outlook Mail Folder problem.

Archie Thomas 0

Hi, I run Office 2021. I like to keep my Outlook Mail screen tidy and I collapse my folders when I exit Outlook. However when I open Outlook again the Folders are all expanded. How can I get Outlook to retain the collapsed view?

Thanks for any help you can provide.

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2 answers

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Answer 1

Vikki-T 11,245 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi Archie Thomas,

I can see why having the entire folder tree reopen each time would make Outlook feel unnecessarily cluttered.

Could you clarify whether Outlook is expanding the mailbox names and their subfolders in the Folder Pane, or expanding message groups such as Today, Yesterday, and Last Week? Those are controlled separately.

If the folders in the left-hand Folder Pane are reopening unexpectedly, please test Outlook in Safe Mode first:

Close Outlook.
Press Windows key + R.
Enter outlook.exe /safe, then press Enter.
Collapse the folders, close Outlook, and reopen it in Safe Mode to check whether the layout is retained.

If the behavior does not occur in Safe Mode, an Outlook add-in may be interfering with the saved navigation settings.

If the same behavior continues, close Outlook and run outlook.exe /resetnavpane from the Run dialog. This rebuilds the Folder Pane for the current Outlook profile, so you may need to arrange or collapse the folders again afterward.

Please let me know whether this affects every mailbox and folder, or only one account or one specific folder tree. That detail will help determine whether the issue is with the Outlook profile or the way that particular mailbox is displayed. Thank you so much for your understanding.

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Archie Thomas 0 Reputation points

2026-10-03T07:41:02.8366667+00:00

Hi,

Outlook is expanding the mailbox names and their subfolders in the Folder Pane not message groups. I have tried running outlook.exe /resetnavpane but that didn't make any difference. I wonder if the fact that I am using a launcher from DejaOffice is causing the problem.

Regards
Vikki-T 11,245 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-10-03T10:41:13.9133333+00:00

Hi Archie Thomas,

Thank you for clarifying, and for testing the Navigation Pane reset.

DejaOffice may be involved because it can integrate with Outlook through its own add-in, but the best way to confirm this is to isolate it. Please close DejaOffice and Outlook completely, then start Outlook directly from the Windows Start menu, collapse the folders, close Outlook normally, and reopen it the same way.

You can also run outlook.exe /safe, which starts Outlook without COM add-ins. If the folders remain collapsed when DejaOffice is bypassed or Outlook is in Safe Mode, the behavior is likely connected to the DejaOffice integration or another add-in.

You may then temporarily disable the DejaOffice add-in from File > Options > Add-ins > COM Add-ins > Go and test again. If the issue occurs only when DejaOffice is enabled or used to launch Outlook, I recommend contacting DejaOffice Support for further assistance, as it is a third-party application. Thank you so much for your cooperation.
Archie Thomas 0 Reputation points

2026-10-03T13:10:23.05+00:00

Thanks Vikki. I have decided to use a workaround to tidy up my folders. Many of the folders I use very infrequently so I have aggregated all these folders into one folder which I will open when needed.

Thanks for your prompt responses.

Answer 2

Outlook for Windows does not have a setting to retain all mail folders in a collapsed state after reopening.

What is supported:

The Navigation Pane and Folder Pane can be minimized or expanded, but that controls the pane itself, not whether each mail folder stays collapsed.
In Outlook, when reopened, folder expansion state is not preserved the way requested.
A related supported option is Conversation view grouping, where messages can be set to All collapsed, but that applies to message groups, not mail folders.

If the goal is a tidier view, these are the available workarounds:

Minimize the Navigation Pane:
- View > Navigation Pane > Minimized
- or click the arrow in the upper corner of the Navigation Pane.
Use the Folder Pane in normal or minimized mode depending on how much space is needed:
- View > Layout > Folder Pane > Normal or Minimized
If the issue is actually message threads expanding, use:
- View > View Settings > Group by > All collapsed

References: