4 Ways to Fix Outlook Error 500 ‘Something Went Wrong’

Quick Tips

• Ensure a stable internet connection and verify your Microsoft Outlook subscription status.
• Clear the browser cache, disable extensions, or try different Outlook URLs.
• Check Microsoft’s service health status and adjust user roles if needed.
• Utilize the Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant (SaRA) for diagnostics and troubleshooting.

Preliminary Fixes

• Troubleshoot your internet connection: Ensure you have a stable and reliable internet connection. Outlook error 500 often occurs when Outlook struggles to communicate with the email server due to connectivity issues.
• Check your subscription: Microsoft Outlook typically requires a valid subscription to access its full range of features and services. By addressing subscription concerns upfront, you can save valuable time and avoid unnecessary troubleshooting steps.
• Check user permissions: Sometimes, the error occurs due to user permissions. In Outlook, user permissions dictate what a user can or cannot do within the application, and misconfigured or insufficient permissions can lead to various errors, including error 500.
• Clear browser cookie and cache or disable extensions: Outlook operates seamlessly through web browsers. However, errors like Outlook error 500 can sometimes stem from browser issues. Addressing these issues often provides an effective solution to Outlook error 500.
• Try a different URL to access Outlook: Sometimes, the main Outlook URL (outlook.office.com) might be experiencing issues. Try using these alternate URLs: mail.office365.com or outlook.live.com or outlook.office365.com.

Fix 1: Check Microsoft’s Service Health

Step 1: Go to the Microsoft 365 admin center and sign in with your credentials.

Step 2: Once logged in, click on Show all from the side pane. 

Step 3: Now, click on Health and choose Dashboard from the side pane. 

App and service icons will appear next to each other, and their health will be displayed next to them. If you see any incidents or advisories, you can wait until Microsoft resolves them.

Check out the following fix if you don’t see any service health issues.

Fix 2: Remove User Roles

The Global Administrator role grants you access to all settings, so you don’t need to assign multiple admin roles. If you aren’t the global admin, contact someone who can reassign your roles.

Step 1: Visit the Microsoft admin center, enter your credentials, and log into your account.

Step 2: Click on Users from the side pane and choose Active Users from the drop-down menu.

Step 3: Choose the name of the affected user account from the list of active users.

Step 4: In the modal, click on Manage roles.

Step 5: Now, uncheck all roles except Global Administrator and click the Save Changes button at the bottom. 

The changes will take effect after a few minutes. If you are already logged in from that account, sign out and try logging in again.

Fix 3: Enable Outlook on the Web

If you receive the protocol disabled message or Outlook error 500, enabling Outlook web access (OWA) might fix the issue. This error occurs when an administrator removes your permission to access Outlook web.

Note: The steps below can only be executed by an administrator. If you are not the administrator, contact the concerned person.

Step 1: Open the Exchange admin center on a Windows or Mac computer using your preferred browser and log in with your credentials.

Step 2: Click on Recipients on the left pane > choose Mailboxes from the drop-down menu.

Step 3: Now, select the user account for which you want to enable Outlook Web.

Step 4: From the right pane, under Email apps & mobile devices, click on Manage email apps settings.

Step 5: In the Manage settings for email apps screen, toggle on Outlook on the web. Finally, click the Save button.

Fix 4: Use Microsoft’s Diagnostics Tool

Microsoft provides a diagnostic and troubleshooting tool called the Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant (SaRA). This tool helps users diagnose problems with Office apps, including Outlook. To use it, follow the below steps.

Step 1: First, download SaRA from Microsoft’s official site.

Step 2: Once downloaded, click Install and open the tool. 

Step 3: Select Outlook on the web option and click Next.

Step 4: In the Select the problem you’re having screen, choose I can’t run Outlook on the web and click Next.

From here on, follow the instructions and troubleshoot your connectivity issues. Once you finish the steps, restart or refresh your Outlook account by logging out and logging in. This would fix the error.

FAQs