Why is the Search in New Outlook Mac 2024 is not working?

Search issues in Outlook for Mac are commonly caused by Spotlight indexing problems or Outlook profile configuration.

For Outlook for Mac 2024, the following are known causes and fixes for search returning no results or behaving unexpectedly:

1. Spotlight indexing not finished

• After creating a new profile, adding an account, or importing data (PST/OLM), Spotlight may still be indexing.
• While indexing is incomplete, Outlook can show “No Results.”
• Leave the Mac powered on and Outlook open for some time, then try the search again.

2. Profile name contains special characters

• Search can fail if the Outlook profile name includes special characters such as /.
• To check the profile name:
  1. In Finder, go to Applications.
  2. Right-click Microsoft Outlook > Show Package Contents.
  3. Open Contents > SharedSupport > Outlook Profile Manager and review the profile name.
• If the profile/identity name has special characters, rename the profile folder:
  1. Open: /Users/<Username>/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/Outlook/Outlook 15 Profiles/
  2. Rename the profile folder and remove any special characters.

3. Outlook profile or folders excluded from Spotlight

• If the Outlook profile folder or one of its parent folders is listed under Spotlight Privacy, Spotlight will not index mail, and Outlook search will fail.
• Remove the Outlook profile path from the Spotlight Privacy tab so Spotlight can index it again.

4. Outlook 15 Profiles folder in the wrong location

• The Outlook profile folder must be under: ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/Outlook
• If it has been moved elsewhere, Outlook search will not work correctly until it is restored to this path.

5. Corrupted Spotlight index for Outlook If the above do not resolve the issue, the Spotlight index for Outlook may be corrupted. Rebuild it:
6. Restart the Mac to restart Spotlight services.
7. Open Finder > Applications > Utilities > Terminal.
8. Run:

      mdimport -L
   

   • If more than one instance of Microsoft Outlook Spotlight Importer.mdimporter appears, delete the unused Outlook app, empty Trash, restart the Mac, and repeat step 3.
9. Reindex the Outlook database (replace <user_name> and <my_profile_name> with actual values):

      mdimport -g "/Applications/Microsoft Outlook.app/Contents/Library/Spotlight/Microsoft Outlook Spotlight Importer.mdimporter" -d1 "/Users/<user_name>/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/Outlook/Outlook 15 Profiles/<my_profile_name>"
   

10. Allow time for reindexing to complete, then exit and restart Outlook and test search again.

If search still does not work after reindexing and allowing time for indexing to complete, reinstalling Office for Mac may be required.

References:

• Troubleshoot search issues in Outlook for Mac
• Troubleshooting Outlook search issues
• Outlook for Mac stops responding when using the search feature