How to fix Outlook's "Your message can't be displayed right now" error

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Given how many people use (or are forced to use) Outlook, it's no surprise that errors pop up often. Even the Artemis II crew had to seek tech support for Outlook issues, and it was earlier this year when Microsoft had to issue multiple emergency Outlook patches after it became unusable for many. When you're in the middle of important communication, getting an error that says "Your message can't be displayed right now" is irritating. But the fix is simple.

The method of solving this error depends on whether you're using Outlook in a web browser or the desktop client, but both fixes involve clearing your cache. Normally, the cache is helpful for Outlook, as it stores temporary files for faster loading. But when it becomes corrupted or overloaded, it can lead to a whole host of problems. 

Clearing your cache won't delete anything important — all your emails, calendar events and contacts will remain intact. Doing so forces Outlook to create new copies of your emails, fixing sync problems and bringing you the most up-to-date version of your inbox.

Fix Your message can't be displayed right now on Outlook's desktop client

The steps for clearing Outlook's program cache vary slightly across PC and Mac.

On a Windows PC

1. Close Outlook completely.

2. Press Win + R on your keyboard to open the Run dialog.

3. Paste the following file path, then hit Enter: %localappdata%MicrosoftOutlookRoamCache

4. Select all files in the RoamCache folder and delete them by right-clicking and selecting Delete, or with the Delete key.

On macOS

1. Open Outlook.

2. In the upper toolbar, click Tools and then Accounts.

3. Select your account on the left panel.

4. Click the three dots and select Reset Account, then confirm the reset.

If this solution doesn't work for your desktop client, you can also try uninstalling and reinstalling the Outlook app.

How to fix Your message can't be displayed right now error in Outlook Web

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The method to clear your cache and cookies depends on the browser you're using. You can erase your entire log of website data, but that will log you out of all websites, which isn't convenient. Instead, it's best to clear this data only for the Outlook site. This can take an extra step, but is worth it.

In Microsoft Edge

First, if you want to only clear data on your current device and not all devices where you're signed into Edge, make sure to disable sync:

1. Click the three dots at the top-right, then select Settings.

2. Select Profiles, then Sync. Turn off the syncing options. Make sure to re-enable these when you're done.

Then, to clear your Outlook cookies:

1. Open the Outlook website.
2. Click the Lock icon in the address bar, then choose Cookies and site data > Cookies. 
3. Select each of the Outlook cookies under Allowed, then click Remove.
4. Refresh the page and sign back in.

If this doesn't work, try clearing all site data:

1. With Outlook on the web still open, pPress F12 and choose Open DevTools in the popup.
2. Click the Plus icon along the top and choose Application.
3. On the left menu under Application, click Storage.
4. Check the boxes under Clear site data, then choose Clear selected. 
5. Refresh the page and sign back in.

In Google Chrome

1. Press F12 to open Developer Tools while you're on the Outlook site.

2. With that panel open, right-click the Refresh button to the left of the address bar and choose Empty Cache and Hard Reload.

If this doesn't fix the problem, the Edge steps above work nearly the same in Chrome. Click the Site information icon to the left of the address bar, followed by Cookies and site data > Manage on-device site data. Use the trash can icon for each entry here. Then refresh and sign back in.

In Firefox

1. While on the Outlook page, click the Shield icon to the left of the address bar.

2. Click Clear cookies and site data, then confirm with Clear once more.

3. Refresh the page and sign back in.

In Safari

1. From the top toolbar, select Safari, then Settings.

2. Open the Privacy section, then hit Manage Website Data.

3. Search for Outlook using the search bar, then select its entries and choose Remove.

4. Refresh the page and sign back in.

In case these steps don't fix your problem, check your browser extensions. Adblockers, privacy tools and similar might interfere with Outlook's operations. Try using your mail in another browser; if it works, the problem lies with your current one.