If you spend a lot of the day working with email, Outlook is a great way to manage it. Microsoft's latest online offering at Outlook.com is superb, too, and it allows you to maintain full control over your inbox from any PC.
Outlook.com also supports integrations with third-party add-ins, and there are some really great ones out there that can enhance your experience and make you even more productive. Here are some of the best Outlook add-ins.
How to enable add-ins
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Once you're logged in to Outlook.com, enabling add-ins is simple. Just follow these steps:
- Click on the settings cog.
- Select manage integrations.
- Search for the add-in you want or browse the catalog.
- Slide the toggle switch to on when you want to activate it.
You'll now find your integrated add-ins within your email window when you read or compose messages.
PayPal
If you ever use PayPal to move money, you should definitely activate it in your Outlook inbox. It does exactly what you'd hope it would: allow you to send money to folks without having to leave the comfort of your inbox.
It's also a great one-click way to send money to someone should they email you to remind you that you owe them. There's no excuse to forget!
Giphy
Cat GIFs are important. No? OK, well, GIFs are a great way to lighten the mood in any correspondence, and Giphy is the place to get them.
By enabling Giphy in your Outlook.com inbox, any time you want a quirky moving image to send in an email you just click, search, insert and you're done. Now, go forth and send felines to all thy friends.
Translator for Outlook
If you deal with contacts from different countries, you don't have to make them translate text to English before sending you messages. Instead, you can do the "hard" work for them.
Translator for Outlook is powered by Microsoft Translator, and it does exactly what you'd expect. If you receive an email in a tongue other than your own, click the translate button and the side panel opens up with words in your desired language. It's simple and effective.
Timyo
Timyo is a neat way to politely specify the reaction you expect to your email. Rather than writing out exactly when you want a response, you can use Timyo to keep it all in check.
It's a simple add-in that pops open when you need it. It's also a great way to keep track of responses you're expecting, especially if you send a lot of email.
Trello
Trello is a really popular tool for planning all kinds of projects and workflows, and it's something we use daily at Windows Central.
One of the neat things you can do is enable the add-in for Outlook, and with a single click you can pop open your Trello boards and add an email as a new "card," or list item. It strips all the information from the message to put on the card, so you don't miss out anything.
Bing Nearby
If you need to send location information for a point of interest or find somewhere near you, such as a restaurant, Bing Nearby is a great tool to have at your disposal.
You just search for what you're looking for, and with one click you can add the full address and map information to a message. It's simple, but it works, and it works well.
Your favorites
These are some of our favorite add-ins for Outlook.com, but what about you? If you have a gem we missed, be sure to share it in the comments below.
