How to Quickly Clean an Inbox Folder in Outlook.com

What to Know

Right-click the folder and select Empty folder, then select Delete all to confirm. Messages move to the Deleted Items folder.
To delete only some messages: Select the checkboxes next to the messages you want to delete, then select Move to > Deleted Items.
To retrieve a deleted message: Find it in the Deleted Items folder, select Move to, and choose an inbox folder.

This article explains how to empty an Outlook.com folder quickly and easily by deleting all contents or deleting emails selectively.

Empty a Folder Completely

In the Folders pane, right-click the folder and select Empty folder.
In the confirmation message that appears, select Delete all.
The messages are moved to the Deleted Items folder.

When you delete items, they're not gone forever: They're moved to the Deleted Items folder so you can review them before permanently deleting them.

Delete Only Some Messages

If you want to delete only some of the messages in a folder, select those messages and move them to the Deleted Items folder. Here's how:

Select the folder you want to clean. Its emails will display in the messages list.
Tick the checkbox to the left of each message that you want to delete.

If you want to delete most of the messages, select the check box to the left of the folder name at the top of the list to select every message in the folder. Then, clear the check box next to the messages you want to keep in the folder.
Select Move To > Deleted Items.
You'll find the deleted messages in the Deleted Items folder.

If You Accidentally Delete an Email You Want to Keep

Find the message in the Deleted Items folder, select Move to, and choose the folder where you want to store the messages.

If Outlook.com is set to empty the Deleted Items folder when you close your session and you want to recover one of these messages, open the Deleted Items folder and choose Recover deleted items from this folder.

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