Can I use Outlook without Office 365

Here are the versions of Office 365, Microsoft 365 and their apps that you can find online for free right now. 

Get Microsoft Office 365 free if you're a student or a teacher

If you're a student, teacher or faculty member with an active school email address, you're likely eligible to get access to Office 365 for free through Microsoft, with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Microsoft Teams and additional classroom tools. 

All you have to do is enter your school email address on this page on Microsoft's website: Get started with Office 365 for free. In many cases, you'll be instantly granted access thanks to an automated verification process. If you attend an institution that needs to be verified, it might take up to a month to confirm your eligibility. 

Recent graduates who want to stick with Office 365 can also get Microsoft 365 Personal for $12 for 12 months, with a valid school email address. 

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How to get Microsoft Office suite free if you're anyone else

Anyone can get a one-month free trial of Microsoft 365. However, it does require you to enter a credit card number, and if you don't cancel before the month is up, you'll be charged $100 for a one-year subscription to Microsoft 365 Family (formerly called Office 365 Home). 

The good news is if you don't need the full suite of Microsoft 365 tools, you can access a number of its apps online for free -- including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, Outlook, Calendar and Skype. Here's how to get them: 

1. Go to Office.com.

2. Click Sign up for the free version of Office under the "Sign in" button.

3. Log in to your Microsoft account or create one for free. If you already have a Windows, Skype or Xbox Live login, you have an active Microsoft account.

4. Select the app you want to use, and save your work in the cloud with OneDrive.

So what's the catch for the free version?

You may be saying, "Wait a minute, if I can get all of those apps for free, why pay for Microsoft 365 in the first place?" Well, the functionality of the free apps is limited: They only run in your web browser and you can only use them while you're actively connected to the internet. They also have fewer features than the full Microsoft 365 versions. 

There are still a number of benefits, however, including the ability to share links to your work and collaborate in real time, similar to what G Suite tools allow. If you're looking for basic versions of each of these apps, the free version should work well for you. 

Microsoft Outlook is an application that's used mainly to send and receive emails. It's also used to manage various types of personal data including calendar appointments and similar entries, tasks, contacts, and notes. Microsoft Outlook isn't free though; you must purchase it outright or pay a subscription for it if you want to use it.

The Evolution of Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft Outlook was introduced to the public in 1997 and was included with Microsoft Office 97. Outlook Express was included with Windows XP (and was the only free version). Since then, Microsoft has released an abundance of updated versions, each offering more features than the one before it.

Outlook is included in many of the Microsoft Office application suites, including Office 2010, 2013, and 2016, and Microsoft 365. It’s important to note that not all versions include Outlook though. As an example, Microsoft Outlook is available in Microsoft 365 Home but isn't included in Office Home & Student 2016 for PC.

Microsoft Outlook is an application you pay for and install on your device. An Outlook email address is a free email address from Microsoft, and can be accessed for free from the Outlook webmail portal: //outlook.live.com/.

Do You Need Microsoft Outlook?

If you only want to send and receive emails, you don’t need to purchase Microsoft Outlook. You can use the Mail application included with Windows 8.1 and Windows 10. You can also get your email from your provider’s web site (like //mail.google.com/mail/). If you need to do more than that though, you need a more powerful email management program.

With Microsoft Outlook you can sync your personal data with your phone, tablet, and other computers, provided you can log in to those with your Microsoft Account. You can sort your email into folders based on rules you create, send Out Of Office messages automatically, flag emails for follow up, and get email from Exchange servers. The latter means that you can get work email as well as personal email from the same Microsoft Outlook application, even when you are away from the office. You can't do that with the Mail app that comes with Windows 10. You can also delay the sending of emails, ask for receipts, and more.

It’s also possible to integrate your personal data with Microsoft Outlook. It includes an address book, calendar, task list, and virtual sticky notes. What you put in the calendar can be synced to your other devices. You can delegate tasks to others. You can also share and delegate calendars.

Do You Have Microsoft Outlook?

You might already have a version of Microsoft Outlook on your computer, tablet, or even your phone. You should find out before you make a purchase.

To see if you have Microsoft Outlook installed on your Windows device:

1. From the Search window on the Taskbar (Windows 10), the Start screen (Windows 8.1), or from the Search window on the Start menu (Windows 7), type Outlook and press Enter.
2. Look for an Outlook entry.

To find out if you have a version of Outlook on your Mac, look for it in the Finder sidebar, under Applications. To find out if you have Microsoft Outlook on your phone; perform a search from any search area.

Where to Get Microsoft Outlook

If you're sure you don’t already have a Microsoft Office suite that includes Outlook, you can get the latest version with Microsoft 365. Microsoft 365 is a subscription service, though, and you pay for it monthly. If you’re not interested in a sub, consider purchasing Microsoft Outlook outright.

Some employers, community colleges, and universities offer Microsoft 365 free to their employees and students.

You can compare and purchase all of the available editions and suites at the Microsoft Store. Microsoft Outlook is available now in the following Office Suites:

• Microsoft 365 Home
• Microsoft 365 Personal
• Office Home and Business 2016 for PC or Mac
• Office 2019 Home and Business for PC or Mac

Additionally:

• You can purchase Microsoft Outlook separately for PC or Mac.

Once you decide to make the purchase, follow the steps required to download the installation files. With that done, run the installation program. It’s straightforward and mostly foolproof if you opt for Microsoft 365.

Microsoft Outlook Has Lots of Identities

People reference Microsoft Outlook in many ways and using a lot of different terms. This creates confusion around Microsoft Outlook, which is quite simply a single application for managing email and other personal data. However, for the sake of completeness, understand you might hear Microsoft Outlook referred to in these terms as well:

How can I use Outlook without Microsoft 365?

Is there a free version of Microsoft Outlook?

Can I have an Outlook email without a Microsoft account?