How to Download the “Old” Outlook App If You Don’t Like the New One

Microsoft’s “new” Outlook app has been met with a ton of criticism for not being as good as its predecessor. To make matters worse, the new version of Outlook is being bundled with new computers. Fortunately, Microsoft is providing a download link for the “old,” better Outlook app—for now.

There have been a number of Microsoft email clients over the years. I use the excellent Windows Mail, which ominously warned of a move to Outlook in 2024. But there are two versions of Outlook: an older, “classic,” and a newer, “modern.” (We’ve already written about how to get started with this new Outlook app and what you need to know about it .)

But for those of you who don’t want anything to do with the new Outlook, there’s another way: download the desktop Outlook app using this link (or visit Microsoft’s support page on the subject if the link changes). If you’ve ever bothered to search for “how to download the old Outlook app,” you can find numerous threads where users complain about it, but links to the app itself are much harder to find.

The aforementioned download link is useful because Microsoft says new computers may generate an error message even if the “old” Outlook icon appears in the Start menu. That error message says, “We couldn’t verify and install this because it’s not available in the Microsoft Store. To install, download it from the publisher’s website.”

Mark Hachman / IDG

Assuming the download link still works, installing the old Outlook app isn’t much of a challenge: you can download the installer, then the app itself. Enter your email address and any passwords or credentials you need, and then Microsoft will download the app and sync your various email and contact folders.

If you already have the new Outlook app installed, the old app will not replace it. You will need to pin the old Outlook app to your taskbar or the appropriate place in your Start menu separately.

Microsoft doesn’t guarantee that the desktop version of Outlook (or, unfortunately, Windows Mail) will continue to be available. It’s possible that when Windows 11 24H2 is released in October, Microsoft will quietly get rid of the old Outlook. For now, though, the link is live — and it’s the best way to get the desktop Outlook app on your computer.

Further reading: Microsoft Outlook Tips Everyone Should Know