To strikethrough in Outlook, select the text in your email, open the Format Text tab, and click the Strikethrough button. In classic Outlook for Windows, you can also press Ctrl+D, tick Strikethrough, and press Enter. The new Outlook and Outlook on the web put the same button in the message formatting toolbar.
Strikethrough is one of the most useful small formatting tricks in email. Instead of deleting an old price or a changed meeting time, you cross it out and leave it readable, so the reader can see exactly what changed. This guide from Zyrro covers every version of Outlook: classic Windows, the new Outlook, the web version, Mac, and mobile, plus shortcuts, removal, and troubleshooting.
Table of contents:
- What is strikethrough in Outlook?
- How do you strikethrough in classic Outlook for Windows?
- How do you strikethrough with the Font dialog in Outlook?
- How do you strikethrough in the new Outlook and Outlook on the web?
- How do you strikethrough in Outlook on a Mac?
- How do you strikethrough in Outlook on mobile?
- Is there a keyboard shortcut for strikethrough in Outlook?
- How do you remove strikethrough in Outlook?
- Outlook vs Gmail vs Teams vs Slack: how does strikethrough differ?
- When should you use strikethrough in an email?
- Frequently asked questions
What is strikethrough in Outlook?
Strikethrough in Outlook is text with a horizontal line drawn through it, used to show that something is outdated, corrected, or completed without deleting it. It is a font effect: the words stay fully readable, with a single line through each character.
That distinction matters. Because strikethrough is a font effect, it only works in messages formatted as HTML or Rich Text. A plain-text email cannot carry font formatting, so if your message is set to plain text, the button will not do anything useful. If it looks greyed out, check your message format first.
How do you strikethrough in classic Outlook for Windows?
To strikethrough in classic Outlook for Windows, select the text, click the Format Text tab, and click the Strikethrough button in the Font group. The button shows the letters “ab” with a line through them, and it applies the effect immediately.
- Start a new email, or reply to or forward an existing message.
- Select the text you want to cross out, with your mouse or keyboard.
- Click the Format Text tab at the top of the message window.
- In the Font group, click Strikethrough (the “ab” button with a line through it).
- Keep typing, or click the button again to turn the effect off for new text.
If you use the Simplified Ribbon, the button may be hidden. Click the three dots at the right end of the ribbon to reveal more buttons, or switch back to the Classic Ribbon with the small arrow at the bottom-right of the ribbon.
How do you strikethrough with the Font dialog in Outlook?
To strikethrough with the Font dialog in classic Outlook, select the text, press Ctrl+D to open the Font dialog, tick Strikethrough, and press Enter. This is the most reliable keyboard route in classic Outlook, and it is where you find the double-strikethrough option.
- Select the text you want to cross out.
- Press Ctrl+D to open the Font dialog box.
- Under Effects, tick Strikethrough.
- Press Enter or click OK to apply it.
The Font dialog is worth knowing for two reasons. First, it also offers Double strikethrough, two lines instead of one, for a stronger “cancelled” look. Second, it shows exactly which effects are applied to the selected text. To remove the effect, repeat the steps and untick the box.
Tip: If you use strikethrough often, right-click the Strikethrough button and choose Add to Quick Access Toolbar. The button then sits above the ribbon, and pressing Alt shows a number for it, such as Alt+4.
How do you strikethrough in the new Outlook and Outlook on the web?
To strikethrough in the new Outlook for Windows or Outlook on the web, select the text and click Strikethrough in the formatting toolbar under the message. If you cannot see it, click More options (three dots) at the end of the toolbar and choose Strikethrough.
- Start a new message in the new Outlook or in Outlook on the web.
- Select the text you want to cross out.
- Look for Strikethrough in the formatting toolbar below the message subject.
- If it is hidden, click More options (three dots) at the end of the toolbar and choose Strikethrough.
The new Outlook and the web version keep the toolbar short, so the three-dot menu is the part most people miss. If you see no formatting toolbar at all, click Format text at the top of the message window. Unlike classic Outlook, they offer only single strikethrough, not the double-line variant, and no dedicated shortcut.
How do you strikethrough in Outlook on a Mac?
To strikethrough in Outlook on a Mac, select the text and press Shift+Command+X. If that shortcut does not work in your version, use the ribbon instead: open the Format Text tab and click the Strikethrough button.
One difference from Windows: the classic Windows Font dialog route uses Ctrl+D, which does not open the same dialog on a Mac, so the ribbon button is the dependable fallback there. As with every version, the message must use HTML or Rich Text formatting.
How do you strikethrough in Outlook on mobile?
To strikethrough in Outlook on mobile, there is no built-in button in the Outlook app for iPhone or Android, so use Outlook on the web in your mobile browser instead, where the formatting toolbar includes Strikethrough. Open outlook.com in your browser, sign in, compose your message, select the text, and use the toolbar button or its More options menu.
A second workaround, if you only need a crossed-out phrase, is a strikethrough text generator, which produces crossed-out characters using Unicode that you paste into your mobile email. Because those characters carry the line with them, they display crossed out even in apps with no formatting button. Try Zyrro’s strikethrough text generator.
Is there a keyboard shortcut for strikethrough in Outlook?
Is there a keyboard shortcut for strikethrough in Outlook? There is no single universal shortcut that works in every version. Classic Outlook for Windows has no dedicated toggle key, the new Outlook and the web version have none either, and only the Mac version has a commonly cited shortcut.
| Outlook version | Fastest strikethrough method |
|---|---|
| Classic Outlook for Windows | Font dialog: Ctrl+D, then Alt+K, then Enter; or add the button to the Quick Access Toolbar |
| New Outlook for Windows | Formatting toolbar button (or More options menu); no dedicated shortcut |
| Outlook on the web | Formatting toolbar button (or More options menu); no dedicated shortcut |
| Outlook for Mac | Shift+Command+X; ribbon button as fallback |
| Outlook mobile apps | No built-in button; use Outlook on the web or paste generated crossed-out text |
Important: Do not use Ctrl+5 just because it appears in strikethrough shortcut searches. Ctrl+5 is the strikethrough shortcut in Microsoft Excel, not in Outlook, and pressing it in an email will not cross out your text.
How do you remove strikethrough in Outlook?
To remove strikethrough in Outlook, select the crossed-out text and apply the same method again: click the Strikethrough button a second time, or reopen the Font dialog with Ctrl+D in classic Outlook and untick Strikethrough.
If the line will not go away, the formatting may be coming from the paragraph style rather than the selected words. Select a slightly wider range, including the spaces around the phrase, and toggle it off again.
Outlook vs Gmail vs Teams vs Slack: how does strikethrough differ?
Outlook, Gmail, Teams, and Slack all offer strikethrough, but in different ways, which explains why a method learned in one app fails in another. Outlook treats it as a ribbon font effect with no universal Windows shortcut.
| App | How strikethrough works | Keyboard shortcut |
|---|---|---|
| Outlook | Ribbon or toolbar button; Font dialog in classic Windows | None universal on Windows; Shift+Command+X on Mac |
| Gmail | Formatting toolbar button in the compose window | Alt+Shift+5 on Windows (see our guide to strikethrough in Gmail) |
| Microsoft Teams | Toolbar button in the compose box, or tilde syntax in some views | See our guide to strikethrough in Teams |
| Slack | Single tilde syntax, toolbar button, or shortcut | Ctrl+Shift+X on Windows, Cmd+Shift+X on Mac |
The practical lesson: stop transferring shortcuts between apps. Excel’s Ctrl+5, Google Docs’ Alt+Shift+5, and Slack’s Ctrl+Shift+X are all real shortcuts, but none of them is Outlook’s.
When should you use strikethrough in an email?
Strikethrough works best when the reader needs to see both the old and the new information: a corrected meeting time, where the old time is crossed out and the new time follows it; a price change, where the old price stays visible; and a completed task item, where the crossed-out item proves it was done rather than deleted.
Use it sparingly, though. A whole paragraph of crossed-out text is hard to read, and screen readers may not convey the line at all, so never rely on strikethrough alone for something critical. Pair a cancelled item with a short plain sentence, such as “Moved to Friday,” so the meaning survives even if the formatting does not.
Frequently asked questions
What is the keyboard shortcut for strikethrough in Outlook on Windows?
There is no dedicated strikethrough keyboard shortcut in Outlook for Windows, in either classic Outlook or the new Outlook. The fastest keyboard route in classic Outlook is the Font dialog: press Ctrl+D, press Alt+K to tick Strikethrough, and press Enter. You can also right-click the ribbon button and add it to the Quick Access Toolbar for an Alt+number shortcut.
How do you strikethrough in Outlook on a Mac?
On a Mac, select the text and press Shift+Command+X to toggle strikethrough on or off. If that shortcut does not work in your version of Outlook for Mac, select the text, open the Format Text tab, and click the Strikethrough button. The message must use HTML or Rich Text formatting, since plain-text messages cannot show font effects.
How do you remove strikethrough in Outlook?
Select the crossed-out text and click the Strikethrough button again, or in classic Outlook press Ctrl+D and untick Strikethrough in the Font dialog. If the line persists, widen your selection to include the spaces around the phrase and toggle it off again, since the formatting may be attached to the surrounding paragraph rather than only the visible words.
Can you strikethrough text in an Outlook subject line?
No, you cannot apply Outlook’s strikethrough formatting to a subject line, because subject lines are plain text and do not support font effects. The formatting button only works inside the message body. If you need crossed-out characters in a subject line, paste Unicode crossed-out text from a generator instead, since those characters carry the line with them as plain text.
Why is my Outlook email showing strikethrough?
An email usually shows strikethrough because the text carried formatting from the original message when you replied or forwarded it, or because a template applied the effect. It rarely means anything is broken. Select the crossed-out passage and click the Strikethrough button to toggle it off, or in classic Outlook press Ctrl+D and untick Strikethrough.
What does Ctrl+D do in Outlook?
In classic Outlook for Windows, Ctrl+D opens the Font dialog box while you are composing a message. From there you can tick Strikethrough, or Double strikethrough, and confirm with Enter. Ctrl+D is not itself a strikethrough toggle; it opens the dialog where the effect lives, which is why it is paired with Alt+K in the keyboard method described above.
Outlook’s strikethrough is simple once you know your version: a ribbon button in classic Outlook, a toolbar button in the new Outlook and on the web, a shortcut on the Mac, and a browser or generator workaround on mobile. Pick the method for your version and avoid Excel’s Ctrl+5. Zyrro’s Gmail, Teams, and Slack guides cover the same trick in those apps.