Remove Search Bar in Outlook app - how to solve

After updating to version 24.0.2, some users of the Microsoft Outlook app have noticed an unexpected addition to their interface - a search bar located above the message list. Depending on the user's reading pane settings, this new feature may appear crowded and inconvenient. The Outlook team, however, has acknowledged this issue and has implemented a fix that is expected to be released in the upcoming February 13th public update.

In the meantime, there are a couple of workarounds that users can try in order to alleviate this problem. The first workaround involves adjusting the reading pane settings. By clicking on "View" and then selecting "Reading Pane Bottom" or "Off", users can move the reading pane to the bottom or turn it off completely, thus creating more space and reducing the search bar's intrusion.

Alternatively, for those who urgently need to remove the app search bar, the second workaround suggests reverting to the build before the issue started. Following a few simple steps, users can revert to the previous installation and eliminate the search bar from their Outlook app. Detailed instructions on how to perform this rollback can be found in the provided video transcript.

It is important to note that the Outlook team plans to release an update on February 13th specifically targeting this issue. Therefore, users are advised to mark this date in their calendars and check back to confirm whether the problem has been permanently resolved.

With Microsoft addressing the concerns raised by users, it is hopeful that the annoying search bar in Outlook will soon be a thing of the past.