Have you ever been in the middle of an important email exchange in Outlook when all of a sudden you notice the reading pane is blank? It’s like one moment you were in the middle of writing a response to an urgent email and the next you’re staring at an empty void.
What to do when a Blank Outlook Reading Pane Appears
Don’t panic! There are a few simple steps you can take to get the Outlook reading pane back up and running.
Step |
Description |
1 |
Check to make sure the message is still in the inbox. |
2 |
If the message is still in the inbox try restarting Outlook. |
3 |
If restarting Outlook doesn’t work try disabling add-ins. |
4 |
If disabling add-ins doesn’t work try repairing Outlook. |
Hopefully one of these steps will get your Outlook reading pane up and running again. If all else fails you can always contact your IT department for help.

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Identifying the Source of the Problem
Ah Outlook blank pane woes. If there’s one thing more frustrating than a message split over multiple windows it’s a totally blank Outlook reading pane. If emails are seemingly non-existent when you open Outlook it may be due to a variety of causes – some easily resolvable and others not so much. So it’s important to find out where the issue is occurring… and that’s what this article is all about.
First check if you have enabled the Message Preview Pane. This pane allows you to view messages in the Inbox without opening it. It usually appears at the bottom of the Outlook window and is a handy way to quickly see what messages you’ve received. If this is disabled your Outlook reading pane will remain empty – even if you can see emails in your Inbox. To re-enable it go to VIEW > Reading Pane. If you don’t find the Reading Pane option it means it’s already enabled.
Next check if the Outlook folders are properly synced. If Outlook is not syncing your emails then you wouldn’t be able to view any emails either! To ensure this isn’t the case go to the Send/Receive tab click on Work Offline and then click Work Online again. This will force Outlook to sync your mail. If this does not work it may be related to the mail server settings of your account. If this is the case contact your email provider for more info.
Finally if your Outlook folders have been emptied your reading pane will be blank. To check the number of emails in each folder go to the Folder tab and click on Folder Properties. It will show you the number of emails in each folder. If you find that the number is zero it means the folder has been emptied accidentally.
Identifying the source of the problem is a crucial first step in solving the Outlook blank pane mystery. Once you’ve figured it out all you have to do is enact the appropriate fix – and then you can enjoy emails galore without any blank panes getting in the way!
Troubleshooting Steps to Resolve the Blank Outlook Reading Pane
If you’ve gone to open an email in Microsoft Outlook only to discover that – to your surprise – the Reading Pane is totally blank you might be a little concerned; after all you rely on this nifty message-viewing feature every day. Don’t despair though – help is on the way! Here are a few troubleshooting steps to help you resolve this puzzling issue.
First off check that your folders are properly synchronized. If you’re using Exchange or an Outlook.com account it’s possible that the emails haven’t synced yet. An easy way to force the issue is to close Outlook open it again and wait for the ‘All folders are up to date’ message to appear.
If that doesn’t fix the problem make sure Outlook is properly configured to view the emails in the Reading Pane. Go to ‘View’ and choose ‘Reading Pane’. Make sure it’s set to ‘Right’ or ‘Bottom’. It could be the case that the view was inadvertently moved to the ‘Off’ setting – and that would explain the blank Reading Pane issue.
Another potential issue is that your email messages have become corrupted. You may have to delete the individual emails in order to fix this. Yep we know talk about a headache – but any other way around this one involves a lot of technical expertise (not to mention a lot of time). So take the easy way out delete the emails and start a fresh.
Finally if all else fails it might be the Outlook program itself that has gone south. Try running ‘detect and repair’ on it to diagnose and fix the issue.
Hopefully these commonsense troubleshooting steps have taken care of the blank Outlook Reading Pane issue. Bonne chance!
Suggested Alternatives to the Outlook Reading Pane
It can feel profoundly dissatisfying when the Outlook Reading Pane goes blank. But don’t despair! You can still access your emails without it. Here are three alternative solutions to the problem.
First you can try switching over to the Outlook web version available from the Microsoft website. This nifty web page comes with lots of features that make reading emails a breeze. You’ll still be able to use all your Outlook features just in a more accessible platform.
Alternatively why not install a desktop email-reading app? With this approach you can manage all your emails in one place keeping you organized and on top of things. With a desk-top app you can easily switch between work and personal emails and won’t have to worry about the dreaded (and suspiciously empty) Outlook reading pane.
Finally you could try the more whacky solutions. Who said reading emails had to be boring? Why not make it a challenge and read emails upside down? Maybe make a game out of it and time your self? And don’t forget to throw in some fun sound effects every time you successfully slide down the slippery email slope.
Try out one of these alternatives and you’ll soon have your email-reading mojo back. It turns out an empty Outlook reading pane doesn’t have to mean an end to your email journey!
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