Tip of the week # 459
10 September 2015

Last updated 21 January 2023 - added bonus tip

When replying to a message that is not in the Inbox, save the reply in the same folder (Microsoft Outlook) *

Is your Outlook inbox an overstuffed, out-of-control beast or are you a neat and tidy person and you store your email messages in separate mail folders? If you are the organised type and work with email folders, you probably end up rummaging through your Sent Items folder searching for email messages that you would really like to find in that specific folder you created about the topic. So, did you know that when replying to a message that is not in the Inbox, you can automatically save the reply in the same folder.

Here's how:

  1. On the File tab, click Options.
  2. Click Mail (or type the letter m).
  3. In the Outlook Options dialog box, under Save messages (half way down the list) tick the When replying to a message that is not in the Inbox, save the reply in the same folder check box. (Or - after step 2 - press TAB, type the letter m and press the SPACEBAR to tick the check box.)
  4. Click OK or press ENTER.

Next time you reply to a message, your reply will be saved in the same folder, unless the message was still in your inbox, in which case it will be stored in the Sent Items folder, as it used to.

Bonus tip: If you move your message to your preferred folder before you reply to it, the response will immediately go in the same folder. No need to rummage around in the Sent Items folder!


* Unless stated otherwise, these tips were written for Microsoft Office 2010.