Live chat for CLassic Outlook issues

Add the frequently used folders to Favorites, set the Contacts list that contains your entries as the default Address Book, and use the calendar item’s right-click Categorize command while addressing the missing ribbon button separately.

1. Keep selected mail folders at the top

Instead of manually placing folders above the alphabetical list:

1. In Outlook’s left Folder Pane, right-click each folder you want at the top.
2. Select Add to Favorites.
3. If Favorites is hidden, select View → Folder Pane → Favorites.
4. Drag the shortcuts within Favorites into your preferred order.

Favorites remains at the top and contains shortcuts—the original folders and their messages remain in their normal locations. Use Remove from Favorites, not Delete Folder, if you later want to remove a shortcut.^1^

Classic Outlook does allow ordinary folders to be dragged into a custom order, but Folder → Show All Folders A to Z returns them to alphabetical order.^2^ Favorites is therefore the more reliable arrangement for the few folders you always want at the top.

2. Make the correct Contacts list appear when selecting To

The empty list is currently opening as your default address book. Since one of the three Address Book choices contains your contacts, make that list the default:

1. Close the Select Names window.
2. In Outlook’s main window, select Home → Address Book.
3. In the Address Book window, select Tools → Options.
4. Under When opening the address book, show this address list first, select the Contacts list that contains your entries.
5. Select OK, close the Address Book, and test New Email → To.

The Address Book must be opened from Outlook’s main window for the Tools menu to be available.^3^ Outlook normally opens the configured default list when you select To, while the Address Book drop-down lets you select another list manually.^4^

3. Categorize appointments despite the missing ribbon command

In Classic Outlook, Categorize should appear in the Tags group on the Appointment or Meeting tab. Since adding it through ribbon customization did not work, use either supported method:

• From the calendar: save the appointment, right-click it, point to Categorize, and select a category.
• From the open appointment: look under Appointment → Tags → Categorize.

Select All Categories to create, rename, or choose additional categories.^5^

If Categorize is absent from both places, reset the Appointment ribbon rather than trying to add the command again:

1. Select File → Options → Customize Ribbon.
2. Select the relevant default Appointment tab.
3. Select Reset → Reset only selected Ribbon tab.
4. Select OK, restart Outlook, and open an appointment again.

Resetting removes customizations from the selected tab. Reset all customizations is broader and also resets the Quick Access Toolbar, so avoid that unless necessary.^6^

If this is another person’s shared calendar, category availability can depend on permissions to that person’s Calendar folder.^7^

Contact Microsoft by live chat

For a Microsoft 365 home subscription:

1. Open Microsoft’s support page.
2. Select the Personal account section and then Get help.
3. Sign in with the Microsoft account associated with Microsoft 365.
4. Enter Classic Outlook for Windows and describe the issue.
5. Continue through the suggested help until Contact Support appears, then select the available chat option.

The available contact method can vary by product and subscription, and Microsoft states that the support flow may offer chat.^8^

References

1. [New Outlook](https://support.microsoft.com/outlook/mail/use-favorites-in-outlook)
2. [Classic Outlook](https://support.microsoft.com/outlook/mail/change-the-order-of-folders-in-the-folder-pane-in-outlook)
3. Change the default Address Book | Microsoft Support
4. Find people and contacts in classic Outlook | Microsoft Support
5. [Classic Outlook](https://support.microsoft.com/outlook/calendar/assign-a-color-category-to-a-calendar-event-in-outlook)
6. [Windows](https://support.microsoft.com/office/foundations-experiences/customize-the-ribbon-in-office)
7. You cannot change a user's categories when you work as a delegate in Outlook | Microsoft Support
8. Contact Microsoft customer support | Microsoft Support