Mastering Email Formatting: Non-Printing Characters in Outlook

If you've ever waged war against rogue formatting while drafting emails in Microsoft Outlook, you'll know the struggle: unpredictable spaces, hard-to-find extra line breaks, and misbehaving tabs. The good news? Non-printing characters, those invisible helpers, exist to help you out in your formatting battles. But there’s a catch—while Classic Outlook offers this functionality, the newer Outlook seems to have left it out of the package. Let’s dissect this issue, reveal workarounds, and uncover just how these magical formatting symbols can save your day—whether or not you’re a seasoned Outlook user.

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What Are Non-Printing Characters, and Why Do They Matter?​

Non-printing characters, sometimes lovingly referred to as "formatting marks," are symbols used to display behind-the-scenes formatting in your documents or emails. They show you what’s actually happening in your Word doc or email layout, thanks to specific invisible codes that dictate elements like:

• Spaces (represented as a simple dot, "·")
• Tabs (displayed as arrows, "→")
• Paragraph Breaks (marked as the Pilcrow symbol, "¶")
• Line breaks (visualized via ↵)
• Non-Breaking Spaces (shown as a degree sign, "°")

These visual cues do not appear in the final, recipient-viewed email or document but help you troubleshoot formatting. For example, they allow you to catch double spaces (common in quick copy-and-pasting scenarios), sneaky paragraph breaks, and the misuse of tabs.
In short, these characters are the map to your formatting kingdom, ensuring consistency, precision, and—most importantly—your peace of mind when you hit "Send."

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Displaying Non-Printing Characters in Classic Outlook​

For those using Classic Outlook, enabling non-printing characters is like summoning your very own formatting guardian angels. Here's how you do it:

Via the Toolbar​

1. Open a new email, draft, or reply in Classic Outlook.
2. Navigate to the "Format Text" tab in the toolbar.
3. Click on the Pilcrow icon ("¶"). This toggle enables or disables non-printing characters as per need.

Using a Keyboard Shortcut​

If clicking isn't your thing, simply press Ctrl+Shift+8 on your keyboard. This immediate toggle is one of the underappreciated gems of Microsoft’s design.
Oh, and don’t worry about your recipients ever seeing this mess of symbols—it’s purely for the composer’s eyes.

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What Can You See?​

Once activated, this feature in Classic Outlook will display:

• Spaces (“·”): Helpful to find and eliminate those pesky double spaces.
• Tabs (“→”): Crucial when you’re formatting tables or aligning content.
• Paragraph Marks (Pilcrow, “¶”): Distinguish between hard paragraph breaks and manual line breaks.
• Line Breaks (“↵”): Useful for eliminating unwanted line wraps.
• Non-breaking Spaces (“°”): Often used in technical or professional content to ensure specific character groupings stay together.

These formatting cues guide you to draft seamless emails without slip-ups.

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The Problem With Non-Printing Characters in “New” Outlook​

Now for the frustrating news: if you’re using New Outlook (the shiny modern update meant to unify desktop and web versions), this feature is conspicuously absent. As of December 2024, the ability to display non-printing characters is not supported. Yes, you read that right—no formatting cheat codes in the updated framework. On the web version of Outlook? Same sad story.
How Microsoft missed the memo on this being a universally adored feature is baffling. However, for now, we're left to bake our own workarounds or wait for them to (hopefully) reintroduce this feature in upcoming updates.

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Workarounds: Making Lemonade out of Non-Printing-Less Lemons​

Until Microsoft brings back non-printing characters in New Outlook, clever users can still rely on good old Microsoft Word and a few other smart tricks. Here’s how to survive and thrive without integrated non-printing symbols in the Outlook environment:

Option 1: Use Microsoft Word​

1. Open Microsoft Word, and activate non-printing characters:
   • Click on the "¶" Pilcrow icon in the "Home" tab.
   • Or use the Ctrl+Shift+8 shortcut.
2. Type or paste your text in Word, using the formatting guides to layout your email to perfection.
3. When satisfied, press Ctrl+A (Select All) and Ctrl+X (Cut).
4. Paste it directly into your Outlook email body (Ctrl+V).

A note of caution: While most of the formatting will carry over to Outlook, some elements—like tab spacing—may not translate seamlessly. To double-check formatting, paste the email back into Word post-transfer and review.

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Option 2: Adjust Editor and Formatting Settings​

You may also tinker with Outlook’s built-in Editor settings as a pseudo-replacement:

1. In your draft email, head to the "Options" tab.
2. Under the "Editor" drop-down, navigate to and enable spelling and grammar checks that flag common "non-printing" use cases, such as double spaces between words.
3. For paragraph customizations, use the existing ribbon tools:
   • Add or remove space after paragraphs.
   • Use line spacing settings.

While this isn’t 1:1 perfection, it still ensures a baseline level of formatting precision.

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Option 3: Pressure Microsoft​

If you’re feeling bold (or just fed up), tell Microsoft this feature is critical to your workflow:

• Head to the "Help" tab in New Outlook.
• Use the "Support" feature to submit feedback directly to Microsoft’s Product Team.

You might not get an instant fix, but user feedback holds more sway than you think—Microsoft does listen when the collective voice grows loud enough.

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Final Thoughts: Is This Oversight Worth The Switch to New Outlook?​

Microsoft’s New Outlook has introduced a host of updated features, but this glaring omission tarnishes its sheen for power users who deeply rely on formatting visibility. While the workarounds above are valid, they’re not a permanent solution—and frankly, they shouldn’t need to be. Microsoft has already unified much of Word’s toolbar functionality into the New Outlook design. Doesn’t it make sense to integrate non-printing characters as well?
For dedicated users of email formatting precision, this update may leave you sticking with Classic Outlook for now—highlighting once again that newer doesn’t always mean better. Stay tuned for updates on whether Microsoft prioritizes this fix (hint: keep that feedback rolling in!).
Until then, whether you’re writing formal proposals, mass distributions, or just the classic “FYI,” let non-printing hacks and fallback methods keep your layouts as polished as ever.
What do you think of the New Outlook’s perplexing lack of non-printing characters? Are these formatting marks a vital part of your email routine? Share your thoughts and frustrations below! We'd love to hear your take on this overlooked feature—or how you’ve adapted!

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Source: How-To Geek How to Display Non-Printing Characters in Microsoft Outlook