You want to use the My Day and To Do Bar in the new Outlook for Windows to manage your tasks and calendar without leaving your inbox. These panels show your upcoming events and flagged tasks in a side pane, but they behave differently than the classic To-Do Bar in older Outlook versions. This article explains exactly where to find each setting, what each panel can do, and the practical limits you will hit when using them. You will learn how to enable, disable, and adjust both panels, and understand why certain features from the classic Outlook are missing.
Key Takeaways: My Day and To Do Bar Configuration in New Outlook
- View > My Day > Dock / Undock: Switches My Day between a side pane and a floating window.
- View > To Do Bar > Show / Hide: Toggles the entire To Do Bar section on or off.
- My Day settings gear icon: Opens the mini calendar picker and task list preferences inside the panel.
How My Day and the To Do Bar Work in New Outlook
The new Outlook for Windows replaces the classic To-Do Bar with two separate but related panels: My Day and the To Do Bar. My Day is a compact panel that shows your calendar events for the current day along with your flagged tasks and Microsoft To Do tasks. The To Do Bar is a separate section that appears at the bottom of the folder pane (the navigation pane on the left) and displays your tasks from Microsoft To Do.
Both panels pull data from the same Microsoft To Do service and your Exchange or Microsoft 365 calendar. They are not synchronized with local PST data or non-Exchange calendars. If you use a POP or IMAP account, the task list will be empty unless you sign in to Microsoft To Do separately.
Prerequisites for Using My Day and the To Do Bar
You must have a Microsoft 365 work or school account, or a personal Outlook.com account. The new Outlook does not support classic Exchange on-premises mailboxes for these panels. You also need an active internet connection because the task data syncs through Microsoft To Do servers.
Steps to Enable and Configure My Day
My Day appears on the right side of the Outlook window by default. You can change its position, size, and content using the following steps.
- Open My Day
Go to the ribbon and click View. In the Layout group, click My Day. Select Dock to attach it to the right side of the window, or select Undock to make it a floating window. - Adjust the panel width
When docked, hover your mouse over the left edge of the My Day panel until the cursor becomes a two-headed arrow. Click and drag left or right to resize the panel. The minimum width is approximately 200 pixels. - Change the date range
Click the gear icon in the top-right corner of My Day. A small settings pane opens. Under Calendar, select Today, Next 7 days, or Next 30 days. The default is Today. - Show or hide tasks
In the same settings pane, toggle Tasks on or off. When on, My Day shows flagged emails and Microsoft To Do tasks below the calendar section. - Reorder calendar and tasks
In the settings pane, under Layout, select Calendar on top or Tasks on top. The change applies immediately.
Steps to Enable and Configure the To Do Bar
The To Do Bar appears at the bottom of the left navigation pane. It shows a compact list of your tasks from Microsoft To Do. You cannot resize it, and it does not show calendar events.
- Show the To Do Bar
Click View on the ribbon. In the Layout group, click To Do Bar. Select Show To Do Bar. A check mark appears next to the option when it is enabled. - Hide the To Do Bar
Click View > To Do Bar and click Show To Do Bar again to remove the check mark. The bar disappears immediately. - Filter tasks in the To Do Bar
Click the filter icon (three horizontal lines with circles) at the top of the To Do Bar. You can filter by All, Flagged, Today, or a specific list from Microsoft To Do. - Open a task
Double-click any task in the To Do Bar. The task opens in the Microsoft To Do app or in the new Outlook task window if you have the integrated task editor enabled.
Practical Limits of My Day and the To Do Bar
The new Outlook panels have several limitations compared to the classic To-Do Bar in Outlook 2019 or 2021. You should be aware of these before relying on them for daily task management.
My Day Does Not Show Multiple Calendars
My Day only displays events from your primary calendar. Shared calendars, group calendars, or additional calendars you added are not shown. If you need to see a shared calendar, you must open it in the main calendar view.
To Do Bar Cannot Be Resized or Docked to the Right
The To Do Bar is fixed at the bottom of the folder pane. You cannot drag it to the right side of the window or change its height. The only way to see more tasks is to scroll within the bar.
No Offline Access for Tasks
Both My Day and the To Do Bar require an internet connection to load and sync tasks. If you are offline, the panels show a blank state or stale cached data. The classic Outlook To-Do Bar cached tasks locally and worked offline.
No Task Categories in the To Do Bar
The To Do Bar does not display color categories assigned to tasks. You can assign categories by opening the task in Microsoft To Do, but the category color does not appear in the compact list. My Day also omits category colors.
No Flagged Email Sync for IMAP or POP Accounts
If you use an IMAP or POP email account, flagged emails do not appear as tasks in My Day or the To Do Bar. The new Outlook only syncs flags with Microsoft 365 or Outlook.com accounts. For other account types, you must use Microsoft To Do separately.
My Day vs To Do Bar: Comparison
| Item | My Day | To Do Bar |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Right side of the window (docked) or floating | Bottom of the left folder pane |
| Shows calendar events | Yes, from your primary calendar | No |
| Shows tasks | Yes, flagged emails and Microsoft To Do tasks | Yes, Microsoft To Do tasks only |
| Resizable | Yes, by dragging the left edge | No |
| Offline support | No, requires internet | No, requires internet |
| Multiple calendar support | No, primary calendar only | N/A |
| Category colors visible | No | No |
If My Day or the To Do Bar Does Not Appear
If you cannot see My Day or the To Do Bar after following the steps above, check these conditions.
My Day Option Is Grayed Out
The My Day button on the ribbon is disabled when you are viewing a folder that is not your mailbox, such as a public folder or a SharePoint document library. Switch to your Inbox or any mail folder, and the button becomes active.
To Do Bar Shows No Tasks
The To Do Bar pulls tasks from Microsoft To Do. If you have never used Microsoft To Do, the list is empty. Open the Microsoft To Do app from the Start menu or from the Outlook app launcher, and create a few tasks. They appear in the To Do Bar after a few seconds of sync.
To Do Bar Disappears After Restart
This is a known issue in new Outlook builds. Go to View > To Do Bar and re-enable Show To Do Bar. If the problem persists, update Outlook to the latest version via File > Office Account > Update Options > Update Now.
You can now enable, resize, and configure My Day and the To Do Bar to suit your workflow. Remember that My Day is best for a quick glance at your day, while the To Do Bar provides a persistent task list in the navigation pane. For full offline support, multiple calendar views, or category colors, consider using the classic Outlook desktop app instead of the new Outlook.