Microsoft is retiring Copilot Prioritize, an AI feature in Outlook designed to help users identify important emails and manage their inboxes more easily. The removal process will begin on October 26, 2026, and is now expected to be completed by the end of March 2027. The change affects users who currently have access to Copilot Prioritize. Once the feature is removed, they will no longer be able to use it to automatically prioritize incoming messages.
What the feature did
Copilot Prioritize analyzed incoming emails and assigned them high, normal, or low priority based on factors such as the sender, message content, and user-defined instructions. Users could customize its behavior to highlight messages that needed their attention, such as emails from a manager or those related to an important project.
The feature had some limitations. It did not evaluate certain automated notifications, meeting-related messages, encrypted emails, or messages stored outside the Inbox.
Why Microsoft is removing it
Microsoft says the decision is part of an effort to simplify the Copilot experience in Outlook and focus its investments on other capabilities. The company has not confirmed that low usage, poor performance, or cost was the reason for retiring the feature. The change is limited to Copilot Prioritize and does not mean that Copilot as a whole is being removed from Outlook.
When it will disappear
Microsoft initially expected the removal to be completed by mid-November 2026. However, an update to its announcement on October 22 extended the expected completion date to the end of March 2027. The rollout will begin on October 26, 2026, and the feature will be removed gradually across Outlook clients. This means some users may continue to see Copilot Prioritize while the rollout is underway. Microsoft says administrators do not need to make any configuration changes for the retirement. However, organizations may want to inform affected users about the change.
What users can do next
Users who relied on Copilot Prioritize can continue organizing their inboxes with existing Outlook tools, including Focused Inbox and custom inbox rules. These options can help separate important messages from less relevant emails, although they do not provide exactly the same AI-powered prioritization experience. The retirement is a change to one specific Outlook feature, not the end of Microsoft’s AI email tools. Other Copilot capabilities in Outlook, including email summaries and AI-assisted drafting, remain separate features. For everyday users, the removal means losing one way to automatically identify important messages. Anyone who regularly relied on Copilot Prioritize may want to review their inbox settings and consider alternative ways to keep track of emails that need attention.
