Delete an Address From Outlook's Autocomplete List

Email & Messaging

Updated April 12, 2019

Outlook remembers every address you type in a To, Cc, or Bcc field. This saves time: When you start keying in a name or address, Outlook automatically suggests the contact in its entirety.

Unfortunately, Outlook remembers mistyped and old contacts as well as correct and current ones, and suggests them indiscriminately. Fortunately, getting rid of entries you no longer want to appear in the Outlook autocomplete list is easy.

Instructions in this article apply to Outlook 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007, Outlook for Mac, and Outlook Online.

To remove a single name or email address from Outlook's autocomplete list

Create a new email message in Outlook. (Mac ⌘ + N)
Start typing the name or address you want to remove.
Use the down arrow key to highlight the undesired entry.
Press Del. on your keyboard.

You can also hover the cursor over the entry you want to remove and click the X that appears to its right.

Can I Delete All the Addresses From the Outlook Autocomplete List at Once?

To clear your Outlook 2016, 2013, or 2010 autocomplete list of all entries:

Select File in Outlook.
Choose Options.
Open the Mail category.
Click Send messages > Empty Auto-Complete List.
Click Yes.

Preventing Address Autocompletion in Outlook

To stop Outlook from suggesting recipients when you type in an email address field in Outlook 2016, 2013, and 2010:

Click File > Options.
Go to the Mail category.
Make sure Use Auto-Complete List to suggest names when typing in the To, Cc, and Bcc lines is not checked under Send messages.

To stop Outlook from suggesting recipients when you type in an email address field in Outlook 2007

Select Tools > Options.
Select E-mail options.
Select Advanced E-mail Options.
Make sure Suggest names while completing To, Cc, and Bcc fields is not checked.
Click OK.