Personal Technology Tips in Plain English
How To Change The Default Font in Microsoft Outlook 2007
After installing Microsoft Office 2007 on my computer, I’ve been bewildered by the massive changes in the menus and features vs. the last version. It’s taken me months to find some of the routine functionality in the new version I’m so used to using.
Microsoft definitely wasn’t thinking about you and me when they redesigned MS Office from the ground up this time.
Sometimes you have to look for higher guidance when trying to find that needle in a haystack that you just KNOW is in there somewhere – especially with Microsoft products.
One of the small issues I’ve had from day one when using the new Microsoft Outlook 2007 program, is when I’m composing a new email.
For some reason, Microsoft choose to give an obsure font fame by making it the default font. The problem is that not everyone has that font installed on their computer.
Thus when a recipient receives your email, it may or MAY NOT look like what you see on your computer screen when you typed it — since the recipient’s computer may substitute some other random font in it’s place. That immediately takes away your control to present yourself in a professional and intended way.
So I finally ventured out to figure out how to change that random default font to ARIAL – a font that everyone has and is used to. Here’s how you can change your default font in Microsoft Outlook 2007 yourself:
With Microsoft Outlook 2007 running, go to the menu bar at the top:
- Click on TOOLS >> OPTIONS
- And on the pop-up dialog box, click on the MAIL FORMAT tab

- Next, click on STATIONERY AND FONTS button
- This will pop-up another dialog box – where you should click on the PERSONAL STATIONERY tab
- Here you’ll see FONT… buttons for NEW and REPLY email messages as well as one for when PLAIN TEXT is selected. Click on the FONT button for NEW email messages first
- Another pop-up dialog box will open where you can finally make your font/style/size selections for the default
- (if you want to change the default font for when you REPLY to message, do the same with the FONT button for “when replying to email messages”)
- Close out of all the options dialog boxes by clicking on OK, OK, OK
Now you’re done! The next time you compose or reply to a message, you should see your personal default font being used.
Hope this helps. Let me know if you’ve been successful and/or how frustrated you are too with Microsoft burying things like this so deep in unintuitive ways.
I love tech, gadgets and the web. Hope you pick-up a useful tip or two here today that helps you use technology to your advantage! Better yet, why not share your own expertise in a comment on a post today to help the other readers that land here for answers!
July 25, 2008 - 10:26 am
The only problem I am still having, and can not figure out how to fix it, is that I selected the times new roman font, and made it “bold and Italic”. When I make a new e-mail, it works. But when I reply, it’s not bold or italic. The font is the right “times new roman” and the color is the correct one I selected, just the style is not bold or italic. Any advice????
February 25, 2009 - 11:30 am
I have similar problem as well. It seems the clipboard memory is messed up since I am copying and pasting a lot I would notice my fonts changes from the source but the odd thing is the source is all the same font through out the document then all of a sudden not just the destination area change but all my document that I was working on would change and you cannot use undo. Afterward all the replies that I would do the remain part of the day would be shrinking in size too small to read. Yet the font size is still saying size 14 for Time New Roman.
April 13, 2009 - 7:10 pm
Font question. Evedently I uninstalled the type font that is used throughout VISTA, including the email subject lines and some window titles. It used to be nice and small and contemporary, but noe it is a font that is somewhat pixelated. What font did I mistakenly uninstall, and where do I go to re-install? I have tried in the “Font and Stationary” setting in OUTLOOK, because it was changed from Consolas (spelling??) to something else weird, but I fixed that … just don’t know where to go to fix, or what font to choose. Any help?? Do I need to go through APPEARANCE – if so, what Item would it be listed as? James@iacobucci.com
April 13, 2009 - 8:55 pm
@Mario – you can select TOOLS / OPTIONS / STATIONERY & FONTS — and then change the font preferences for each type of correspondence (NEW, REPLY, etc). Hope that works!
July 13, 2009 - 1:36 pm
Not sure if it’s the correct way to change the default font in Outlook 2007. If you open the .htm file in Word for the theme you are using and change the font, size, color and save it you will have it saved in Outlook as well. A few things I noticed. If I changed the font size, my default font changed to Times New Roman when I saved, but if I used the button on the toolbar to enlarge the font it stayed the same size I made it upon save and exit. Be sure to reopen the file once you’re done to be sure it saved your changes. If you don’t know which theme you are using, open up Tools > Options > Mail Format > Stationery and Fonts in Outlook. Then use Microsoft search to find that file. Once you have the name and location you can easily access it in Word. Hope this helps.
October 12, 2009 - 5:42 am
Creat a batch file with this content:
rem Set Outlook 2007 to arial font
c:
cd windows\fonts
ren SEGOE*.* SEGOE*.*.ORG
copy arial.ttf SEGOEUI.*
copy arialbd.ttf SEGOEUIB.*
copy ariali.ttf SEGOEUII.*
copy arialbi.ttf SEGOEUIZ.*
November 4, 2009 - 6:42 am
i have succesfully find the options to change the default font… however…
when i compose a new mail using a stationary created in web expression which uses only verdana … i still get the themes new roman which i don’t like.. on my html presentation mail.. any suggestions please?
thank you
February 11, 2011 - 8:42 pm
I have tried the above umpteen times, but every sinle time in the Signautres & Stationery >> Personal Stationery area, the FONT button for “Replying or forwarding messages” is grayed out. I have no clue now to make it operational. Yes, I have done the HTML stuff. Thanks in advance.
November 8, 2011 - 11:41 am
I’m using Outlook 2007. I select Rich Text, ARIEL BOLD for my Send and Receive email font. BOLD appears if I DON’T exit Outlook 2007 w/ Windows7. If I exit and re-enter Outlook 2007, the font is Regular, not Bold, when I compose or reply to an email. How can this be corrected?