Tips to use the most important Outlook search commands
From: Tips to use the most important Outlook search commands - Lookeen
and How to search email by date range (between two dates) in Outlook? (extendoffice.com)
The most important Outlook search commands
The Outlook search commands are, amongst others, a combination of rather logical operators like AND, NOT and OR. It is important to note that they should not be typed in lowercase letters. The following table shows the most important parameters to help you simplify your email search:
| Type… | …to find the items that… |
|---|---|
| max | …contain max, MAX, max, mAx, etc. As Instant search is not case sensitive, you can use a combination of lowercase and uppercase letters. |
| max smith | …contain max and smith, regardless of the order. |
| max AND smith | …contain both max and smith, regardless of the order. |
| max NOT smith | …contain max, but not smith. |
| max OR smith | …contain max, smith, or both. |
| “max smith” | …contain the exact phrase in between the quotation marks, not variations. |
| from: “max smith” | …are sent by max smith. |
| hasattachment:true | …contain attachments. |
| subject:”max smith” | …have a subject including the exact phrase max smith. |
| subject:max smith | …have max in the subject and smith is included anywhere in the item |
| cc:”max smith” | …have a CC line including max smith. |
| cc:max@smith.de | …have a CC line including the email address max@smith.de. |
| bcc:”max smith” | …have a BCC line including max smith. |
| category:blue | …contain a word with the term blue in it. |
| sent:yesterday | …you sent or that were sent to you yesterday. |
| to:sam | …contain emails you sent to sam (sent items folder). |
| read:false | …you have not read, yet. |
Outlook Search Syntax for Dates
If you are looking for a message from a certain date, the commands before and after can be quite helpful. Behind the chosen command follows the date statement you are searching for. Be careful to use the date format configured in Windows (e.g. mm/dd/yyy or dd.mm.yy).
Example
before:21/04/2021In addition to the date format it is also possible to specify a date or month using words:
- Direct searches: yesterday, today, tomorrow
- Searches for a specific day of the week: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
- Searches for a specific month of the year: January, February, March, April. May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
Outlook search syntax for sizes
Another important Outlook Search command is the size command, so you can find items with the specific size you are looking for.
Specific size ranges
• Empty: 0KB
• Tiny: 0 to 10KB
• Small: 10 to 100KB
• Medium: 100KB to 1MB
• Large: 1 to 16MB
• Huge: 16 to 128MB
• Gigantic: >128MB
Example
size:medium - to find all items between 100KB to 1MB
Combination of Outlook search parameters
What also may be interesting is that it is possible to combine single Outlook search parameters. This way, you can narrow your search even more. To do this, you just have to separate the commands with a blank space. In doing so, you can find an email that is not only written by a specific person, for example, but you can also select a specific date.
Example
sent:yesterday from:max
Outlook search tip – use smart subject headings
If it is part of your usual routine to attend several meetings, it may be difficult to find the message you are looking for when searching for the subject heading meeting. Therefore, choosing the right subject heading can be crucial for simplifying your Outlook search. It is as simple as this – if you think, you will ever need an email again, just use the opportunity to rename other people‘s subject heading while responding to it.
Example
Sam sent you an email with the subject heading "meeting".
When replying, simply change the heading using specific keywords like
"meeting marketing November 2021"
Simplify your Outlook by adding a search tool to your collection
Simplify your Outlook search
If you only have to narrow your search down roughly, then you can focus on the more simple search parameters like today, tomorrow, this year, next year, Monday…Sunday, January…December. But even these simple terms have to manually be typed into the Outlook search field. On the other hand, there are professional search solutions like Lookeen, which generates a graphical timeline to simplify your Outlook search even more. In Lookeen, you can see the corresponding period and narrow your search down with just one simple click.
Now that you know the most important Outlook search commands, like in most areas of life: only practice makes perfect. Train regularly and you will quickly reach the point at which you don’t have to think too much about the right syntaxes to find what you need.
These Outlook tips should not only help you to find your messages faster but hopefully will make your life easier as well. Good luck!
How to search email by date range (between two dates) in Outlook?
With the Outlook’s Instant Search feature, you can not only search an email by a certain date, a sender or a keyword, but also can search email by a certain date range. For how to search email by a certain date range question in Outlook, this tutorial will give you all the instructions.
Search emails between by date range with Instant Search feature
Find emails between two dates
Search emails by date range with Advanced Find feature
Find emails between two dates, or before certain date, or after certain date
Search emails by date range with Query Builder feature
Search emails between by date range with Instant Search feature
You can type the search criteria into the Instant Search box to search emails between two dates quickly. Please do as follows:
For example you want to search emails received between 2016/3/1 and 2016/3/31. Please type the search criteria received:2016/3/1..2016/3/31 into the Instant Search box, and then all emails received in this date range will be found out immediately. See screenshot below:
Note: It requires to type the dates in the default date format in your computer, such as received:3/1/2016..3/31/2016.
Quickly search and delete duplicate emails in Outlook
With Kutools for Outlook’s Duplicate Emails feature, you can quickly find and delete them from multiple mail folders, or find and delete all duplicates from the selected ones with two clicks in Outlook.
Search emails by date range with Advanced Find feature
You can also configure the Advanced Find criteria to search emails by specific date range, such as between two dates, before a certain date, or after a certain date, etc.
1. Select the email folder where you will search emails by the specific date range, put the cursor into the Instant Search box to activate the Search Tools, and then click Search > Search Tools > Advanced Find. See screenshot:
2. In the opening Advanced Find dialog box, please go the Advanced tab, and (see screenshot below):
(1) Click Field > All Mail fields > Received;
(2) Select the between from the Condition drop down list;
(3) In the Value box, type the date range in the format of <Value 1> and <Value 2>, such as <2016/3/1> and <2016/3/31>;
(4) Click the Add to List button.
Note: For searching emails before (or after) a certain date, please select the on or before (or on or after) from the Condition drop down list, and then type the certain date into the Value box.
3. Now the searching criteria has been added into the Find items that mat these criteria box. Keep selecting the added searching criteria, and click the Find Now button. See screenshot below:
Now all emails received in the specified date range are found out and listed at the bottom of Advanced Find dialog box. See screenshot below:
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