Classic Outlook Immersive Reader in New Outlook: What Changed

If you rely on the Immersive Reader in Classic Outlook to read emails without distractions, you may have noticed that the feature looks and works differently in the new Outlook for Windows. The Immersive Reader in the new Outlook retains core reading tools like text-to-speech and focus mode but integrates them into a redesigned interface with fewer customization options. This article explains exactly what changed between the two versions, what features you lose, and what remains available.

What the Immersive Reader Does in Both Outlook Versions

The Immersive Reader is a Microsoft accessibility and reading tool built into Outlook, OneNote, Word, and Microsoft Edge. Its primary purpose is to reduce visual clutter and improve reading comprehension. In Classic Outlook, you access it by opening an email message and clicking the Immersive Reader icon in the ribbon under the Message tab. In the new Outlook, the same icon appears in the top-right toolbar of an open email. In both versions, clicking the icon opens the email in a full-screen reading view that strips away navigation panes, formatting, and images. The tool also includes text-to-speech functionality called Read Aloud, which highlights each word as it is spoken. The core goal remains identical: help users focus on the text content of an email without distractions.

Prerequisites for Using Immersive Reader

No special setup is required. The Immersive Reader is available in all Microsoft 365 subscriptions, including Business Basic, Business Standard, Business Premium, and Enterprise plans. It also works with free Outlook.com accounts in the new Outlook. You need an active internet connection for the Read Aloud feature because the text-to-speech engine runs on Microsoft servers. Offline reading of plain text works, but the spoken audio will not play. The feature is supported on Windows 10 and Windows 11.

Feature Comparison: Classic Outlook Immersive Reader vs New Outlook Immersive Reader

The most significant change is the reduction in toolbar options. Classic Outlook offers five categories of controls: Text Preferences, Grammar Options, Reading Preferences, Column Width, and Page Color. The new Outlook reduces this to four icons: Play, Text Spacing, Line Focus, and Page Color. Below is a detailed breakdown of each feature and its availability.

Text Preferences

In Classic Outlook, Text Preferences let you change the font size, increase or decrease text spacing, and switch to a mono-spaced font like Sitka or Consolas. The new Outlook keeps only the Text Spacing toggle. You cannot change the font family or font size from within the Immersive Reader. To adjust font size in the new Outlook, you must close the Immersive Reader and use the Zoom slider in the email reading pane.

Grammar Options

Classic Outlook includes Grammar Options that color-code syllables, highlight nouns, verbs, and adjectives, and show a Picture Dictionary for selected words. These tools are designed for language learners and people with dyslexia. The new Outlook removes all Grammar Options entirely. There is no way to enable syllable highlighting or parts-of-speech coloring in the new Immersive Reader.

Reading Preferences

Classic Outlook offers Reading Preferences that include Line Focus (highlighting one, three, or five lines at a time), Picture Dictionary, and the ability to translate the entire email. The new Outlook includes Line Focus with the same three options: one line, three lines, or five lines. Picture Dictionary and translation are not available inside the new Immersive Reader. Translation is still possible by right-clicking selected text outside the Immersive Reader.

Column Width and Page Color

Classic Outlook lets you adjust the column width of the text area using a slider, which narrows the text to a comfortable reading width. The new Outlook removes the column width slider entirely. Both versions include Page Color, which changes the background to a sepia, green, or gray tone. The new Outlook offers the same four color options: None, Sepia, Green, and Gray.

How to Open and Use Immersive Reader in New Outlook

The steps are slightly different from Classic Outlook, but the process is straightforward.

1. Open an email message
   Double-click any email in your inbox to open it in a separate window. The Immersive Reader icon does not appear in the reading pane.
2. Click the Immersive Reader icon
   Look in the upper-right corner of the email window, next to the ellipsis (three dots) menu. The icon looks like a book with a speaker. Click it.
3. Use the simplified toolbar
   After clicking, the email opens in full-screen reading mode. A small toolbar appears at the top with four icons: Play (starts Read Aloud), Text Spacing (toggles wider spacing), Line Focus (cycles through one, three, or five lines), and Page Color (opens a color picker).
4. Exit the Immersive Reader
   Click the Close icon (X) in the upper-right corner or press the Escape key on your keyboard. You return to the email in its normal view.

Limitations and Missing Features in New Outlook Immersive Reader

Users migrating from Classic Outlook should be aware of several limitations in the new version.

No Grammar Tools for Language Learners

The absence of syllable highlighting and parts-of-speech labels makes the new Immersive Reader less useful for people learning English or other languages. If you rely on these tools, consider opening the email in Microsoft Edge and using the browser’s Immersive Reader, which still includes Grammar Options. To do this, save the email as an HTML file or copy the text into a Word document.

Cannot Adjust Column Width

The new Outlook does not allow you to narrow the text column. The email fills the entire window width. On a wide monitor, this can make lines too long for comfortable reading. You can work around this by resizing the email window to a narrower width before opening the Immersive Reader.

No Picture Dictionary

The Picture Dictionary feature, which shows a simple image for a selected word, is not present in the new Outlook. This feature was helpful for children and early readers. No workaround exists within Outlook. Use the Microsoft Edge browser as an alternative.

Read Aloud Voice Selection Is Limited

In Classic Outlook, you could choose from multiple voices in the Read Aloud settings, including different accents and speeds. The new Outlook uses the default Windows text-to-speech voice set in Windows Settings > Time & Language > Speech. To change the voice, you must change the system-wide default, which affects all applications.

Feature	Classic Outlook	New Outlook
Text Spacing toggle	Yes, with slider	Yes, on/off only
Font size adjustment	Yes, within Immersive Reader	No, use window zoom
Font family change	Yes	No
Syllable highlighting	Yes	No
Parts of speech coloring	Yes	No
Picture Dictionary	Yes	No
Line Focus	Yes, 1/3/5 lines	Yes, 1/3/5 lines
Column width slider	Yes	No
Page Color	Yes, 4 colors	Yes, 4 colors
Read Aloud	Yes, with voice picker	Yes, system voice only

If You Need the Classic Immersive Reader Features

Microsoft has not announced plans to add Grammar Options or column width controls to the new Outlook. If you depend on those features, you have two options. First, you can switch back to Classic Outlook by toggling the Try the new Outlook slider in the upper-right corner of the Outlook window. Second, you can copy the email text into Microsoft Word Online or the Microsoft Edge browser, both of which retain the full Immersive Reader toolbar including Grammar Options. Word Online’s Immersive Reader is accessible from the View tab and includes all the missing tools.

The new Outlook Immersive Reader works well for basic reading and text-to-speech needs. It removes advanced learning tools that only a small percentage of users accessed. If you are a power user of the Classic Immersive Reader, test the new version with a sample email before committing to the switch. You can toggle between Classic and New Outlook at any time without losing data.