Classic Outlook gets an official ‘death date’ as users are urged to switch

Last month, Microsoft officially announced the coming end of its Mail, Calendar, and People apps. If you’re still using those apps, you’ll start receiving pop-ups notifying you that end-of-support is coming up on December 31, 2024, and you’ll be urged to switch over to the new Outlook app that Microsoft is focusing on.

More recently, Microsoft has started pushing users in that direction even harder. According to Windows Latest, business-oriented Microsoft 365 users are being urged to switch from classic Outlook to the new Outlook app, despite it lacking several features from the legacy app.

There will first be an optional period where users can choose to switch over at their convenience, with a deadline at which point users will be forced to give up classic Outlook.

For Microsoft 365 Business Standard and Premium users, the transition will begin as early as January 2025. Microsoft 365 Enterprise users may have a little more time. Microsoft’s plan is for the entire transition over to the new Outlook app to be completed by April 2026, but “existing installations of classic Outlook through perpetual and subscription licensing will continue to be supported until at least 2029,” said one Microsoft representative who reached out to us. So, we now have an official “death date” for classic Outlook.

It remains to be seen if Microsoft will keep its promise to add those missing features from classic Outlook to the new Outlook, but we aren’t holding our breath. We don’t blame anyone for holding out and sticking with classic Outlook for as long as possible.

Further reading: Key details to know about the new Outlook app