How to Change Working Hours in Outlook

While each Outlook app uses the default working hours —8 AM to 5 PM, you may already have your own custom work schedule.

In such cases, you can personalize the Outlook options and choose the preferred working hours. That way, whenever a meeting organizer wants to invite you, he/she can clearly view and choose the most appropriate time slot within your available working hours on the Scheduling Assistant.

On Desktop

1. Open the Outlook app.
2. Click the File menu at the top.
3. Then, select Options in the bottom left corner of the window.
4. On the next window, select Calendar from the sidebar.
5. In the right pane, scroll to the Work time section.
6. Now, choose the preferred working hours next to the Start time and End time fields.
7. Additionally, you can choose other options like starting day of the week and work week.
8. Click OK when done.

On Mac

1. Open the Outlook app.
2. Click Outlook in the top left corner and select Preferences.
   
3. On the next window, select Calendar under the Other section.
   
4. Under the Work Schedule section, choose appropriate working hours next to the Work day starts and Work day ends fields.
   
5. Additionally, make other changes like the first day of the week or workweek if necessary.

On Outlook.com (Free Online Version)

1. Open a browser and sign in to your Outlook.com account.
2. Click the gear icon in the top right corner.
   
3. Next, select Calendar > View.
4. Under the Meeting hours section, set the working hours by choosing an appropriate time next to the Start time and End time fields.
   
5. Configure other options like work week if necessary.
6. Click Save to apply changes.

On Outlook Web (Microsoft 365)

1. Sign in to the Outlook web app.
2. Click the gear icon in the top right corner.
3. Next, select Calendar > Work hours and location.
   
4. Now, select the working days.
5. Choose the start and end time of the working hours next to each day. 
6. To add different working hours within the same day, click the Plus icon for the respective day. 
   
7. Then, set the start and end time for another working hour.
8. Click Add a location to set a location: Office or Remote if you want.
9. Click Save when done.

How to Set Multiple Working Hours in Outlook?

Sometimes you may not have a fixed schedule throughout the week. Or, you could have two shifts of working hours on the same day.

For instance, from Monday to Thursday, the working hour starts at 9:00 AM and ends at 5 PM. However, on Fridays, you work two shifts — 10 AM to 2 PM on the day shift and 5 PM to 7 PM on the night shift.

However, Microsoft has yet to roll out such a feature on other Outlook apps except the Outlook OWA version. So, you can only set one start time and end time for working hours at a time in Outlook settings. 

As a workaround, you can still create a recurring appointment/meeting at specific times for that particular day. Then, use the Out of Office status to let others know that you are unavailable for that time period.

1. Open the Outlook app.
2. Select the Calendar tab. Look for it in the sidebar or bottom left corner depending on your Outlook app.
3. Under the Home tab, click New Appointment. 
4. Click Make Recurring.
   
5. On the next prompt, choose the Start and End time of the working hour for particular days.
6. Under the Recurrence pattern, select Weekly and choose the work days having a different working hour.
   
7. Next to the Show as field, select the Out of Office option.
   
8. Make other changes according to your preferences and click OK when done.
9. Click Save & Close to save the appointment.