Mobile email access is invaluable to many users, but issues such as failed installation and app crashes can disrupt the experience of the user for Outlook on Android.
Microsoft Outlook is an email client many workers use on both desktop and mobile devices. The Outlook mobile app enables Android and iOS users to access email messages, calendars, contacts and collaboration features from anywhere. While this provides flexibility for remote and hybrid users, problems with the Outlook app can occur and interrupt work.
How to fix 4 common Outlook issues on an Android device
Users can often resolve Outlook problems without intervention from the IT department. For example, trouble sending or receiving emails might mean that the device doesn't have a good internet connection. Likewise, other problems might resolve after a reboot or update to the device.
When troubleshooting isn't as simple as performing a software update, IT and users should follow steps based on the kind of issue present. The most common Outlook issues that arise in the Android app are failed installation, authentication problems, app crashes and message delivery failure.
1. Failed installation
Some users might find that they're unable to install Outlook on their devices. When this happens, the troubleshooting steps are similar to those for installation problems on any other app.
Not every device vendor installs Outlook at the factory, but many do.
First, check to see if the Outlook app came preinstalled on the device. Not every device vendor installs Outlook at the factory, but many do. The problem could be a simple oversight on the user's part.
After confirming that Outlook isn't already installed, make sure the device has enough free space to accommodate the app. To see how much free space is available, open Settings, and tap Storage. On some devices, this is located in the Device Care section.
Outlook currently requires about 296 MB of space, although this number will change as Microsoft creates new builds. The user must also leave some free space on the device for data storage and operational overhead. Microsoft recommends devices have at least 1 GB of space available.
If the device has an LTE or 5G connection, make sure that its settings allow app installation over a cellular network. Some devices only allow installation when connected to Wi-Fi. To check, open Settings, and click on Network Preferences. From there, see whether the device can download apps over any network.
2. Authentication and logon issues
Users might also experience authentication issues when they open Outlook on an Android device. As a first step, the user should try accessing their mailbox on Exchange Server from another device. If the user is unable to log on from the other device, there's probably an account problem. For example, they might be typing in an incorrect password, or the account might be locked after too many unsuccessful logon attempts.
If the user is able to access their mailbox from a secondary device, the problem is most likely tied to the Android device in some way. However, it might be indirectly related to the user's email account. For example, Outlook might try to use cached credentials to access the user's mailbox. This can happen when the user accesses Outlook from multiple devices. If the user logs in to their account from a different endpoint and changes their password, the Android device won't know that the password change has occurred. As such, if Outlook is configured with cached credentials, the app will try to access Microsoft Exchange with an incorrect password.
In many cases, this problem fixes itself. If Outlook can't access Exchange Server, it will simply prompt the user for a different password. If that doesn't happen, the user should either remove and reinstall Outlook or clear the cache files.
To clear Outlook's cache, open the phone's Settings, and click Apps, followed by Outlook. On the next screen, tap Storage. Finally, tap the Clear Cache button and the Clear Data button. This removes all the data associated with Outlook. The next time the user launches Outlook, the app downloads a fresh copy of this data from Exchange Server.
Logon issues can also occur when an organization requires multifactor authentication (MFA) for Microsoft 365 access. If the device is running an outdated version of Outlook or the Android OS, it might never even display the MFA prompt to the user. Without the prompt, the user doesn't have a way to log on. The fix for this problem is to make sure that both Outlook and the Android OS are up to date.
One more possibility is that a firewall rule, an ISP or Microsoft 365 is blocking the protocols used during authentication into an Exchange Server mailbox. Over the past few years, Microsoft has pushed organizations to phase out legacy authentication protocols. The company has even included a setting in Microsoft 365 that blocks the use of all legacy protocols. Some legacy authentication protocols, such as SMTP, Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) and ActiveSync, have known vulnerabilities or aren't compatible with MFA. If a client tries to access Exchange Server using IMAP but the organization or the ISP blocks IMAP, access will fail. The best workaround is for the user to go to the Google Play Store and download an up-to-date version of Outlook.
3. Application crashes
Another common problem for mobile Outlook users is frequent app crashes. If Outlook crashes all the time, check whether the app has the resources it needs to run. Users should make sure the device has ample storage space and free up memory by closing any apps running in the background.
If there are plenty of hardware resources available but the issue continues, the next step is to remove and reinstall Outlook. To remove Outlook, open the phone's Settings, and tap on Apps. Next, select Outlook, followed by Uninstall. After the app removal is complete, download a fresh copy from the Google Play Store.
If reinstalling the app doesn't fix the problem, the user should clear the Outlook cache. Corrupt items within the cache can sometimes cause performance issues in Outlook.
4. Message delivery failure
When Outlook has trouble sending or receiving new emails, the problem is almost always related to internet connectivity or a sync issue with Exchange Server. It's also possible that the server itself is experiencing a temporary issue. Check for outages, and use the Microsoft 365 admin center to determine if there are any current issues with Microsoft Exchange.
If these steps don't resolve the issue, clear the app cache and all related data, and then uninstall Outlook. Before reinstalling the app, update the Android OS, and verify that the device has a good internet connection. Once the OS is up to date and the internet connection is stable, install a fresh copy of Outlook from the Google Play Store.
Brien Posey is a former 22-time Microsoft MVP and a commercial astronaut candidate. In his more than 30 years in IT, he has served as a lead network engineer for the U.S. Department of Defense and a network administrator for some of the largest insurance companies in America.
