Flagged emails are like electronic speed bumps. You know you should address them, but never quite get around to it.
The next time you’re tempted to blow off that email thread with the sales department, consider these key steps for clearing flagged messages in Outlook:
The “flag” feature in Outlook is used to mark email messages in your inbox that you intend to pay attention to in the future. Additionally, flagged emails also appear on the To-do list.
In this article, you will get more attention to Flagging Emails and How to find flagged emails in Outlook.
What does it mean to flag an email?
Flagging an email means marking an email message that reminds you to follow up or act later.
Once you mark the email with the red flag, those messages will appear in the To-Do Bar, in Tasks, and in the Daily Task List in Calendar.
I Personally flag specific email messages to grab certain information, which consumes time to find that buried email message.
How To Flag Outlook Email for Follow-Up?
Flags make it easier to find and track email messages in Outlook, marking a flag on a specific email message from your inbox and shorting in the group is quite interesting.
Here is the step-by-step process:
- Open Microsoft Outlook >> Select your folder
- Click on Home Tab >> Go to the Tag section
- Click Flag logo follow-up.

You can select the flag according to your requirement (Today, tomorrow, this week, next week, no date, Custom), and your selection will remind you for your follow-up.
How to see flagged emails in Outlook?
Once you have marked some emails with flags, and now you want to find out these emails, here are a few methods to pick Outlook flag emails.
- Open Microsoft Outlook >> Select the folder you like to search flagged emails within.
- Go to the search bar and click on it >> Search Tab appears with multiple options to help users search for the specific nature of emails.
- Click on Flagged which results in emails shorted with flagged only.

Another option is to type “[followupflag:followup flag]“ in the Instant Search box, and all your flagged email message results are shorted.

How To View Flagged Emails in Outlook by Search Folder?
You can also separate the flag email in a separate folder using a Search Folder. This step copies all your flagged emails into the specific folder which is later exercised according to your requirement.
Here is the step to execute:
- Click on Folder >> New Search Folder

- A New Search Folder dialog box appears, click on Mail flagged for follow-up option, and Hit OK.

- You can observe a new folder name For Follow Up is created in the navigation section just below the search folder, the folder only consists of Outlook-flagged emails.

Microsoft Outlook to-do list is also designed to keep and remind the user of upcoming events like red flags emails or tasks.
Use Instant Search
Instant Search can be used to find flagged items within the selected folder or across all mail folders.
On the Home tab, in the Find group, click Filter E-mail, and then click Flagged.
The above example applies to what you need to follow up on your email messages, most managerial ranks use to assign a task to a specific employee or colleague and ask them to complete it in a specific period like tomorrow.
Flag the message for yourself by clicking follow up and clicking for tomorrow, While composing an email message click on follow up and specify the period.

Once you select the flag color according to your requirement, the info bar displays the option:

Flagging in Outlook itself is a huge subject and makes your job easier with Outlook, other than Outlook email service providers like Gmail, you will not get additional flagging options, the time frame options are missing.
How to Show Flagged Emails in Outlook on Top?

To show flagged emails at the top of your inbox in Microsoft Outlook, you can use the “Sort by” feature or customize your current view settings. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to do this:
Flagged Emails on Top using Group by Function
Choose a folder where you’d like the flagged emails to appear at the top, then select the “View” tab and click on “View Settings“.

That will take you to the advanced view setting dialog box, which consists of more than half a dozen options, the functionality of every option is different, select “Group By”.

In the Group By dialog box, uncheck the check box “Automatically group according to arrangement” option, select Flag Status from the Group items by drop-down, and then select Ascending or Descending according to your requirement.

Finally, Click OK to Close the dialog boxes, and now all flagged emails will be positioned at the top of the email list under the group Follow-up Flag.
Click on Flag Symbol
You can also arrange the flagged emails at the top of the email list by sorting the messages by flag status.
First, select your folder, click on the “view” tab, and under the layout section, click on the “reading pane“, and from the drop-down select “OFF“

That completely changes the interface of the folder, now Click on the flag icon to sort the emails by flag status, and all flagged messages will be arranged at the top of the list.

These are a quick couple of methods you can arrange “Outlook Flagged Emails on Top“.
How to Remove Flagged Emails from Task List in Outlook?
Microsoft Outlook automatically adds an email message to the To-Do List when you flag it (see screenshot).
The flagged email will disappear from the mailing list if you delete it from the To-do List.
Select the task from the to-do list and click the right mouse button from the dropdown list select and click Remove the task.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What does it mean to flag an email in Outlook?
Flagging an email to mark as a reminder for that email, the email you flagged will be added to your to-do list, which will remind your attention.
How to see all Flagged Emails in Outlook?
All the flagged emails are added to the to-do list, when you click on the to-do list all the flagged emails are available there.
What does Red Flag mean on Outlook Email?
In Microsoft Outlook, a red flag indicates a follow-up or reminder. When you flag an email, you’re marking it for future reference or action.
It’s a visual tool to help users remember to respond to, read, or take any other necessary action related to a particular email message.
Essentially, the red flag serves as a reminder or a bookmark within your inbox.
Flag Email in Outlook Meaning?
Flag in Outlook means marking it for follow-up or attention.
Final Words
In conclusion, Flagged Emails will show up in the recipient list, but they will not be visible to anyone else.
Flagged emails do not move out of the Inbox, but cannot be deleted or moved to another folder, or deleted from the recipient.
Flagged emails cannot be unflagged. Flagged emails cannot be moved to another user’s Inbox. Flagged emails cannot be sent to the trash.
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