Outlook 2016: Enable or Disable Macros

You may want to know how to enable macros in Microsoft Outlook 2016 so that you can automate tasks. Doing so may cause a security risk, so there may also be times when you want to disable macros. Here’s how to access the setting.

These steps are for the Windows version of Outlook 2016. You cannot enable or disable macros in the MacOS version.

1. Select “File” > “Options“.
   
2. Select “Trust Center” on the left pane, then select the “Trust Center Settings…” button.
   
3. Select “Macro Settings” on the left pane, then the desired setting.
   • Disable all macros without notification.
   • Notifications for digitally signed macros, all other macros disabled.
   • Notifications for all macros.
   • Enable all macros
     
     You may have to check the “Apply macro security settings to installed add-ins” to allow macros to work with add-ins.
     
4. Click “OK“, then close and re-open Outlook for the setting to take effect.

FAQ

How do I actually use macro features with Outlook?

You can access options from the “Developer” tab. If you don’t have Developer tab in the outlook, enable it by going to “Customize Ribbon” option in left pane of Outlook options. From Popular commands to Main Tabs, check “Developer” tab and click “OK“. Once there, on the Developer tab, choose “Macros” and select the ones to delete. For more info on writing a macro, visit Microsoft’s page on the subject.