I’ve used Outlook for over a decade. I’ve also used the Outlook app (including the old Windows Mail app) for just as long. And I’m telling you: you deserve better.
Outlook is clunky
The app forgot how to feel native
Let’s start with the app itself. Outlook was my go-to email client for years. I had it on my computer, my Surface, and — foolishly — on my Android phone. It wasn’t by choice. I never picked Outlook; it was just there. Windows Mail came preinstalled, and I got used to it. I suspect that’s true for most Outlook users today.
To be fair, Windows Mail was a good app. It was lightweight and did exactly what you expected: send and receive email. Then, Microsoft retired Windows Mail in favor of Outlook. At first, that was fine, too. It was fast enough, worked reliably, and basically did everything Windows Mail did. Microsoft had just decided to unify its branding — its mail app and email service would both be called Outlook, like Gmail. Reasonable.
But then came the new Outlook, and that’s where it all fell apart. The older version was rebranded “Outlook Classic,” and the new one inherited every problem currently plaguing Microsoft software. If you’re fed up with Windows 11’s Settings app like me, you already know what I mean.
Outlook suffers from the same design and performance issues that have infected nearly every Microsoft app. Gone are the days when you could expect Microsoft — the company behind Windows — to make great Windows software. Now, nearly every Microsoft app feels bloated, slow, and clunky. Nothing happens instantly. You click something and then wait, forever unsure whether the click actually registered.
I doubt this is a technical limitation. My theory is simpler: Outlook’s slowness isn’t due to bad engineering — it’s due to over-engineering. Just as Chrome drains battery life on iPhones because it runs extra processes in the background, Outlook is likely doing far more than meets the eye. It’s probably logging, tracking, and sending data back to Microsoft constantly.
So that lag you feel, that delay when switching folders or clicking Send, it’s performance overhead you never asked for — caused by background behavior you’d probably prefer didn’t exist. And I refuse to put up with that. You shouldn’t either.
Outlook has ads
Because apparently your inbox wasn’t monetized enough
One of the biggest turn-offs with the new Outlook is the ads. I can’t even write that without asking: why? Why did Microsoft decide to inject ads into Outlook? Why are they designed to look exactly like unread emails, just to trick users into clicking them? And even if you accidentally click one, why does it have to open in your browser instead of an email-like preview?
Receiving spam is one thing. Having the client itself inject fake emails into your inbox is another. This isn’t just sleazy and borders on malware behavior.
I could understand if this were a free website funded by ad revenue. But Outlook isn’t that. Microsoft is one of the wealthiest companies on the planet. If small independent developers can build clean, ad-free mail clients, why can’t Microsoft? The answer is simple: greed.
Microsoft has terrible service
Security theater and support nightmare
