How To Recover If Outlook Search Bar Is Missing?
Outlook is a great email client that enjoys good popularity among people. However, some technical glitches continue to happen in it despite it being a fairly feature-rich email client. Many people report the Outlook search bar missing from title bar. This problem usually occurs when they try to update Office or Windows. Most commonly, Office 365 and 2019 users report this problem. When the search bar goes missing, it can certainly pose a problem since you cannot find anything you want in Outlook. However, there are a few methods to fix this problem. Keep reading to learn about them.
Related Post:- How to Update Office 365
Methods to Fix Outlook Search Bar Missing Issue
When you find the search bar in Outlook missing, there are two ways you can use it to fix this issue. The first is a shortcut method that can work for some users. The other is a more detailed method to bring back the missing search box. You can find the explanation of both these methods below.
Shortcut Process
It is a very easy way to resolve the Outlook search bar missing in inbox issue. Just hit ‘Control + E‘ on your keyboard. You can also press ‘F3‘ while the screen of Outlook is displaying. It will bring the search ribbon, and you can start using it.
Apart from it, you can also see an active cursor through which you can navigate the menu when the search bar missing in Outlook reading pane. Input the desired keyword on the search bar and press ‘Enter.’ To expand the menu, tap the arrow, which is on the right side of the field where you must enter the text. That’s it. Now you can start working on Outlook. But if this trick did not bring the search bar missing in Outlook, go ahead and use the technique described in the next sections and fix Outlook search bar not showing deleted items or being missing from Outlook.
Detailed Process
You must be reading this detailed process to find the missing search box in MS Outlook because the shortcut method did not work for you. In this process, you must adhere to the stepwise instructions mentioned below. It will help you add the Outlook search bar disappeared after update or being missing.
- Firstly, launch the window of ‘Options.’ You can do it by tapping ‘File‘ on Outlook followed by ‘Options.’
- After this step, navigate to the ‘Customize the Ribbon.’ Once there, choose the ‘Tool Tabs‘ as well as ‘Main Tab.’ You can locate the Customize the Ribbon option in the window of ‘Outlook Options.’ It’s in the left bar. The Tools Tabs and Main Tab are under the ‘Choose commands from‘ and ‘Customize the Classic Ribbon‘ sections, respectively.
- Proceeding forward, you must add ‘Search Tools‘ to ‘Main Tabs.’ For it, left-tap ‘Search‘ so that it gets selected. You will notice it getting highlighted in blue. After that, hit the ‘Add‘ button. You will notice a search appearing below the Main Tabs. At the end of the window of ‘Outlook Options, hit ‘OK.’ It will save the changes and exit the window.
- The last step is to start using the search ribbon to find whatever you are looking for. For it, you must go to the main window of Outlook and click the ‘Search‘ ribbon. Now you can use any icon in the section of ‘Refine‘ to look for particular emails or messages.
Related Post:- How to Refresh Outlook
Other Fixes for Outlook Search Bar Missing Problem
Apart from the technique above, you can also do some more troubleshooting when you find the search bar missing in Outlook. Follow the methods below when Outlook isn’t displaying the search bar.
Launch Outlook in Safe Mode
Launching Outlook in Safe Mode is another workaround to this problem. When Outlook opens in this mode, it disables the various Outlook add-ins. It’s easy to run Outlook in Safe mode.
Just open the Run box, and type ‘outlook /safe.’ Then, hit Enter. If it works fine, it means that add-ins were the reason behind the problem. To discover the problematic add-in, disable all the installed add-ins one by one, and then open Outlook and check Outlook search bar not showing recent emails or not. If not then, go with the following solution.
Also Read: Outlook Search Not Working
Repair MS Office
The search function in Outlook shows you items or messages in all your Outlook views, like contacts, mail, and calendar. So, when you find the Outlook search bar missing above emails, you can repair Office to resolve the problem.
- Open ‘Control Panel.’ Then click ‘Programs and Features.’
- Right-tap on the Office app you want to repair, and select ‘Change.’
- Now, click ‘Repair‘ followed by ‘Continue.’
- When the repair process completes, start your device again.
Final Thoughts
It’s highly likely that you’ll find the answer for resolving the Outlook search bar missing problem in this article. Implement both the shortcut method and the detailed stepwise instructions. You also have a few other options like opening Outlook in Safe Mode and repairing MS Office. If you still need more help, contact expert Outlook support services.
Written By
John
John is a Technical Writer at Email Support, has 10 years of experience, and is an expert in Email and Cloud Computing. His specialty is writing about the Email clients such as Outlook, Yahoo, Verizon, SBCGlobal, Gmail, Apple Mail, AOL, WildBlue, and others.
