How to Fix Outlook's 'Your Message Can't Be Displayed' Error
Outlook throwing "Your message can't be displayed right now" sends most people straight to a search bar looking for a one-click fix. There isn't one published yet. The Microsoft material reviewed for this guide does not document a fix for this exact wording. What follows is a troubleshooting heuristic for narrowing down whether the problem is a local app glitch, a single damaged message, an account-level issue, or something happening on Microsoft's end. It's not a Microsoft-confirmed diagnostic for this specific error, but it mirrors the logic support teams use to separate a device problem from a backend one.
Three questions decide the path: does the error follow you into a second Outlook client? Does it hit one message or several unrelated ones? Is anyone else seeing it? Test for those answers first, then match what you find to the section it points to below. It applies whether you're running classic Outlook, new Outlook, Outlook on the web, or some combination of the three.
What Microsoft has documented so far
The closest match found in Microsoft's published Outlook known-issues pages and Q&A threads is a different generic message, "Your request can't be completed right now," tied to a search failure that showed up simultaneously in Outlook on the web, new Outlook, and classic Outlook (Microsoft Q&A, about 14 months ago). Posted HAR logs in that thread traced the fault to a 500 Internal Server Error inside a backend module called EmailSearchWorkflow, a search-specific issue with nothing to do with opening a message.
That case doesn't diagnose the error covered here, but it shows something worth borrowing: near-identical Outlook error text can trace back to entirely different causes depending on what action triggered it. That's the reason the rest of this guide is a triage method rather than a lookup table.
How to fix Outlook's "Your message can't be displayed right now" error: first identify the scope
None of the steps below are a documented Microsoft repair for this wording. They're a scoping exercise, the kind support teams run to separate a device-level problem from a server-side one, and working through it before changing settings can save some wasted effort later.
- Write down the exact error wording, the client you were using, and when it happened. It's your reference point if this ends up in a support ticket.
- Check the scope. For this guide, "several messages" means unrelated items in different folders or from different senders, not several messages inside one damaged thread, which tends to behave like a single-item problem.
- Open the same message or account in one additional client you haven't tried, ideally pairing a desktop client with a web client. A comparable pattern showed up when a separate search failure appeared identically across Outlook on the web, new Outlook, and classic Outlook at once (Microsoft Q&A, about 14 months ago), which is the logic behind testing a second client here. Two clients tested is "cross-client," not "every client," so treat a match as a strong signal rather than a full platform sweep.
- On a work or school account, ask your IT admin whether anyone else has reported something similar before pulling a coworker in directly. Check a shared mailbox first if one is available, since that sidesteps any question about whether someone else should be viewing a specific message. A response in that Q&A thread noted that a fault appearing consistently across multiple clients points to a likely server-side cause needing admin or Microsoft 365 support involvement rather than a local fix (Microsoft Q&A). Similar reasoning applies here, even though that response addressed a different bug.
Run those four checks, then compare your results against the table below.
| Test result | What it may indicate | Where to go | Escalate now? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fails only in the first client, not the second | Possible local app, cache, or pending update issue | Single-client section below | No, unless low-risk steps don't help |
| Fails in both clients tested, one message only | Possible message-specific fault | Isolation section below | If a resent copy also fails |
| Fails in both clients tested, several unrelated messages, only you affected | Worth checking with an admin as a possible account-level issue | Multi-message section below | Yes, soon, with details in hand |
| Fails in both clients tested, several messages, coworkers or a shared mailbox also affected | Worth checking with an admin as a possible service-side issue | Multi-message section below | Yes, promptly |
Treat the middle column as a lead worth following, not a confirmed diagnosis. A fault spanning multiple clients could just as easily trace back to permissions, mailbox configuration, or something about the message content itself, not only a problem on Microsoft's servers.
It fails in the first client but not the second
If the error only shows up in one place, treat what follows as maintenance, not a confirmed fix for this specific wording. There's no published build number tied to this error, so these are low-risk steps meant to rule out the obvious before escalating anything.
- Restart the affected client. It's the first step suggested before a different Outlook issue got escalated to backend support, and it costs nothing to try (Microsoft Q&A, about 14 months ago).
- In classic Outlook, check for a pending update through File > Office Account > Update Options > Update Now, the same path Microsoft has directed users to for a separate, confirmed desktop bug involving reply and forward errors (Microsoft Support). That fix addressed a different issue entirely, so treat this as general upkeep rather than a proven remedy here.
- In Outlook on the web, try a different browser or clear your browser cache. That's a basic step suggested for the unrelated backend error above (Microsoft Q&A), not a documented fix for this one. Available Microsoft documentation doesn't offer a client-specific repair step for new Outlook beyond the same restart-and-update basics.
If restarting and updating don't fix it, stop there. Rebuilding a profile or disabling add-ins isn't backed by anything specific to this error, and guessing further risks undoing settings for no confirmed payoff. Log it as unresolved, use the working client as a temporary workaround, and decide from there whether it's worth contacting support.
It fails in both clients you tested, but only one message
When the same message won't display no matter which client opens it, isolate that specific item before assuming your whole mailbox is affected.
- Ask the sender to resend the message, then try opening the resent copy. Comparing the original against a fresh copy is a reasonable troubleshooting habit for checking whether a fault is tied to that specific item, though it isn't a documented Microsoft step for this error.
A resend is a workaround, not a repair. A successful resend lets you move forward with that piece of correspondence, but it doesn't prove the original message's problem is fixed, and it won't preserve the original's send time or thread position.
- If the message lives in a shared mailbox, or a colleague already has legitimate access to that exact item, ask them to try opening it from their own account. This only applies to content someone is already authorized to view. Don't forward private mail solely to test it.
Skip vague advice about checking "other locations" for the same message. Saved searches, exports, and similar features won't help if the underlying item can't render in the first place.
If the resend opens fine but the original still doesn't, that's a message-specific fault worth reporting with both examples in hand. If the resend also fails too, that doesn't automatically confirm the whole account is affected either; broaden the investigation using the checks above before settling on a single cause, and bring both examples along when you escalate.
When several messages fail across every client
If several unrelated messages fail no matter which client you open them in, the picture shifts from one item to something wider, and coordination with an admin matters more.
- Ask your admin whether Microsoft has reported any ongoing service issues before spending more time on local troubleshooting. A fault spanning multiple clients and multiple items is worth ruling out as a tenant-wide or Microsoft-side incident, though confirming that other users see it too matters more than this step alone.
- Confirm whether coworkers or a shared mailbox show the same symptom, using the check from earlier. If they do, that lines up with an account- or service-side cause, similar to how a response in the Microsoft Q&A thread framed a cross-client search failure as more likely a backend issue than something fixable locally (Microsoft Q&A).
- Some Outlook problems only get resolved through a change Microsoft makes on its own backend, on its own schedule, rather than anything a user can trigger locally. That's what happened with a separate Outlook.com sending defect, ultimately fixed by a production-side service change (Microsoft Support).
One message failing across two clients isn't evidence of a broader outage on its own. Confirm the scope first, several unrelated messages and ideally another affected user, before assuming a service-wide problem is behind it.
What to tell support or your admin
Whichever branch above you land in, having these details ready before you contact anyone saves a round trip:
- The exact error wording, the client or clients it appeared in, and when it started.
- Whether it follows one message or shows up on several unrelated ones.
- Whether a second, authorized user, such as a coworker with legitimate access or a shared mailbox, can open the same item.
- Whether a resent copy of the message opens without error.
- Your account type: personal Outlook.com, or a work or school Microsoft 365 account.
Personal Outlook.com accounts should use Microsoft's consumer support channel. Work or school accounts should go through an IT or Exchange administrator first. Only generate a network capture, known as a HAR file, if support specifically asks for one and the failure is reproducible. The separate Q&A case included HAR output that exposed backend error details, including a 500 Internal Server Error tied to the EmailSearchWorkflow module (Microsoft Q&A), which is why support may ask for one here too. Follow whatever capture instructions support provides so the file gets handled correctly.
What to do now
Open the message in one additional client today, ideally pairing desktop with web. If it only fails in the first client, restart it, check for a pending update, and stop there to report the issue if that doesn't help. If it follows the message into every client you test, ask for a resend before assuming your account is affected, and send both examples to support if the original still won't open. If it follows you across clients and touches several unrelated messages, check whether coworkers see it too, then loop in your admin or Microsoft support with the details from the checklist above.
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