You have probably seen it: a yellow bar across the top of Outlook saying Your account settings are out of date, sometimes with a Fix account button. This message appears when Outlook can no longer authenticate with the mail server — most often because you changed your password, your organisation changed its sign-in policy, or an authentication token expired.

Try the Fix Account Button First

Click the Fix account button if it is visible. Outlook will open a sign-in dialog. Enter your current email address and password. If your account uses two-factor authentication, complete that step too. In many cases, this is all you need to do.

If There Is No Button, or It Does Not Work

  1. Go to File > Office Account.
  2. If you see a Sign Out button, click it. Then sign back in with your credentials.
  3. If that does not help, go to File > Account Settings > Account Settings, select the affected account, and click Repair.

Check Windows Account Connection

For Microsoft 365 or Outlook.com accounts, Windows itself needs to be connected. Open Settings > Accounts > Email & accounts and look for your Microsoft account. If it shows an error, click it and choose Fix. Similarly, under Access work or school, check for any warning signs on a connected work account.

Clear Stale Tokens

Open Control Panel > Credential Manager > Windows Credentials and remove any entries referencing your email address or MicrosoftOffice. Restart Outlook and sign in fresh.

If You Recently Changed Your Password

Outlook stores your old password and tries it repeatedly before showing this message. After clearing stored credentials (above), re-enter your new password when Outlook prompts you.

For persistent issues on a work account, your IT administrator may need to re-provision your account or check for Conditional Access policies that are blocking older authentication methods. You can also ask us for guidance.