Outlook work hours and location: set office and remote days
Outlook’s work hours and location setting tells colleagues which days you are in the office and when you work. It can only be set in some clients and shows up approximately in others. Arte Soft, the developer of Cloud Calendars, explains what Microsoft documents.
Where you can set and see it (per Microsoft)
| Client | Set work hours and location | View |
|---|---|---|
| New Outlook for Windows | Yes (work/school, qualifying subscription) | Yes |
| Outlook on the web | Yes | Yes |
| Classic Outlook for Windows | No | Yes, hours approximated to one weekly range |
| Teams | Full recurring-plan setup not established here | Today’s location can be changed from profile menu |
| Outlook for Mac / mobile | Not documented as the recurring-plan setup route on this page | Check the current client; source has rollout qualifications |
| Personal Outlook.com account | No | — |
What most people assume
I can set this anywhere I use Outlook, and everyone sees exactly my hours.
Who can set it, and where
Microsoft says recurring work-hours setup is for work or school accounts with a qualifying Microsoft 365 subscription. Its documented recurring-plan setup is in new Outlook for Windows or Outlook on the web; classic Outlook can display work hours and location. The page separately documents changing today’s location from Teams, so that daily override should not be confused with configuring the full recurring plan. Microsoft also notes that the feature is not yet available for classic Outlook for Windows with GCC High.
Set your weekly plan
Go to Settings, Calendar, Work hours and location. Tick the days you work, choose hours and a location for each (remote, office, or a specific building if your organisation has set up a building directory), optionally tick Share office location details, and Save. Microsoft also offers a no-location choice if you prefer not to share.
For one-off changes in the documented Outlook calendar workflow, open Work plan, adjust the relevant days or location and select Set. Microsoft says you can clear a location by deselecting it. For a Teams daily override, use the profile-picture menu: Microsoft says that location applies for the remainder of the working day and is reflected in Outlook and Teams. Availability of controls depends on the client and organisation.
Who sees it
Microsoft says others see which days you work remotely or in the office. Your work location appears in the Scheduling Assistant and on your profile card next to your availability, and the daily location card shows who else is going in.
How classic Outlook approximates it
Microsoft says the legacy experience supports only one start and end time for the whole week, so it approximates: with 08:00–17:00 on some days and 10:00–19:00 on others, legacy shows 08:00–19:00. Colleagues on classic clients may therefore see a wider working window than your real hours. Microsoft adds that a change to the legacy working-hours time zone updates the modern one.
Worked example: a hybrid week
A fictional consultant works Monday and Wednesday in Building 2 from 08:00 to 17:00, and Tuesday and Thursday remotely from 10:00 to 19:00; Friday off. In Outlook on the web they set each day and Save.
A colleague in classic Outlook sees their hours as 08:00–19:00 every working day, per Microsoft’s approximation, so the consultant adds a note in team chat that remote days start at 10:00. When the consultant goes in on one Thursday, they change just that day through Work plan.
Check: open a test meeting in the Scheduling Assistant and confirm your location shows for each day.
What it looks like
Cloud Calendars overview, using our product images. Provider settings and protocol examples described in this guide are separate from the screens shown here.
What to do
- Use new Outlook or Outlook on the web with a work or school account.
- Set hours and location for each working day; Save.
- Use Work plan for one-off changes.
- Choose no location if you don’t want to share it.
- Tell classic-Outlook colleagues if your hours vary by day.
Questions
- Why can’t I find Work hours and location in classic Outlook?
- Microsoft says you must set it in new Outlook or Outlook on the web; classic Outlook can only view it.
- Why do colleagues see longer hours than I set?
- Microsoft says classic clients show a single weekly range spanning your earliest start and latest end.