How To Make Font Bigger In Outlook

This guide explains how to approach how to make font bigger in outlook, including the preparation, practical steps, common mistakes, and final checks that help you finish with confidence.

2–10 minutes Time needed

Beginner Difficulty

Different settings for different views Watch out for

Before You Start

Check first: Changes to your 'composing' font affect how others see your emails. Stick to common fonts like Calibri, Arial, or Verdana and a reasonable size (like 12pt or 14pt) to ensure your messages look professional and are easy to read for everyone.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Quick Reference

Common Problems When You Make Font Bigger In Outlook

Sometimes, changing font sizes doesn't work as expected. Here are a few common issues and how to resolve them.

Advanced Tips for Making Font Bigger In Outlook

Once you've mastered the basics, here are a few more advanced techniques to further customise your Outlook experience for better readability.

Create a Custom View

If you often switch between different font settings for different tasks, you can save a set of view settings as a custom view. For example, you could have a "Standard View" with a small font for general scanning and a "Reading View" with a very large row font for focused work.

To do this in Classic Outlook, set up your view exactly as you like it (column sizes, row font size, sorting, etc.), then go to the View tab, click Change View, and select Save Current View As a New View.... Give it a memorable name, and you can then switch to it anytime from the 'Change View' menu.

Use Windows Display Scaling

If you find that not just Outlook, but your entire computer interface is too small, you can adjust the scaling at the operating system level. This will make text, icons, and windows bigger across all your applications, including Outlook.

Right-click on your desktop and select Display settings. Look for the Scale & layout section and choose a higher scaling percentage, such as 125% or 150%. This is a powerful, system-wide change that can greatly improve accessibility, but be aware it may cause some older applications to appear slightly blurry.

Explore the Immersive Reader

For reading long or complex emails, Outlook includes a fantastic accessibility tool called the Immersive Reader. When an email is open, go to the Message tab and look for the Immersive Reader button. Clicking this opens the email in a simplified, distraction-free view where you can easily control text size, spacing, background colour, and even have the email read aloud to you. It's an excellent tool for focusing on content without straining your eyes.