Copilot Is Coming to Outlook Classic With AI Email Drafting

Copilot is coming to Outlook Classic with a built-in “Draft an email message” feature that can create, rewrite, refine, and expand emails directly inside the compose window, as reported by Windows Latest.

Microsoft plans to add the feature to Outlook Classic by the end of 2026. It will also be available in New Outlook, Outlook on the web, and the Outlook mobile apps.

Copilot Email Drafting Will Be Enabled Automatically

The new Copilot compose experience will appear directly inside Outlook’s email editor.

Eligible users will not need to enable it manually. Microsoft plans to turn the feature on by default when the rollout reaches supported accounts.

Administrators will also not need to make configuration changes before users can access it.

A Microsoft 365 Copilot License Is Required

The feature will not appear for every Microsoft 365 subscriber.

Users will need an active Microsoft 365 Copilot license to access the AI-powered email drafting tools. Standard Microsoft 365 plans without Copilot will not receive the feature.

Microsoft may automatically enable the compose integration when a user upgrades to an eligible Copilot plan.

What Copilot Can Do in Outlook Classic

Copilot will support several email-writing tasks directly from the compose box, including generating emails from prompts, rewriting drafts, refining wording and structure, expanding short messages, and making final adjustments before sending.

The direct integration should make Copilot feel like a standard Outlook feature instead of a separate AI tool.

Users Can Opt Out of the Feature

Microsoft plans to enable the feature automatically for eligible users.

People who do not want Copilot inside the compose window will need to disable it or opt out after it becomes available.

The company has not detailed the exact opt-out process for Outlook Classic.

More Copilot Features Are Coming to Classic Outlook

Microsoft is also expanding Copilot beyond email drafting.

Copilot in Classic Outlook will gain the ability to schedule meetings, reducing the number of steps needed to create calendar events from email conversations.

Microsoft has also fixed an Outlook crash linked to Copilot-generated email drafts.

Another recent fix addressed an issue that caused the Copilot button to disappear from Classic Outlook, preventing eligible users from accessing the feature.