Outlook stuck on Trying to connect [Fix]

In this article, we will see what you can do if Outlook is stuck on Trying to connect. This issue can occur on any version of Microsoft Office including Microsoft 365. Due to this issue, the Outlook desktop app does not receive email. Hence, it is important to fix this issue.

Fix Outlook stuck on Trying to connect

Use the following suggestions if Outlook is stuck on Trying to connect and you are not receiving email on the Outlook desktop app. Before you proceed, make sure that your internet connection is working fine. You can power cycle your router and see if it helps.

Start Outlook in Safe Mode
Create a new Outlook profile
Troubleshoot in a Clean Boot state
Disable IPv6
Temporarily disable your antivirus
Enable Modern Authentication
Repair or reinstall Office

Below, we have explained all these fixes in detail.

1] Start Outlook in Safe Mode

An add-in might be causing this issue. To check this, we suggest you start Outlook in Safe Mode. If the issue disappears in Safe Mode, your next step is to identify the problematic add-in responsible for this problem.

Exit Outlook Safe Mode and launch it in normal mode. Now, disable all add-ins and restart Outlook. After that, start enabling add-ins one by one and restart Outlook every time you enable an add-in. When the error reappears, the add-in you have just enabled is the culprit.

Read: Outlook stuck on Loading Profile or Processing screen

2] Create a new Outlook profile

The problem might also be associated with your profile in Outlook. To confirm this, create a new Outlook profile and then check if the same issue appears in that profile. If not, you can keep using that profile and delete the previous one.

3] Troubleshoot in a Clean Boot state

One possible cause of this issue is a conflicting third-party application or service. The third-party application or service conflicts can be identified by troubleshooting the program in a Clean Boot state. Start your computer in a Clean Boot state.

Now, launch Outlook and see if the problem persists. If Outlook works fine in the Clean Boot state, this means that a third-party application or service is responsible for this issue. Now, you need to identify that problematic application or service. You can do so by enabling and disabling some background third-party applications and services.

4] Disable IPv6

According to Microsoft, users can experience connectivity issues with Outlook if IPv6 is enabled on their computer systems. These connectivity issues can be fixed by disabling IPv6. You can also try this. Disable IPv6 and see if it helps.

5] Temporarily disable your antivirus

Your antivirus might be causing this issue with Outlook. To check this, disable your antivirus program temporarily and see if the issue disappears. If this fixes the issue, you can whitelist the Outlook exe file in your antivirus program. If you are using a third-party antivirus, refer to its support website to know the right way to perform this action.

7] Enable Modern Authentication

If the issue still persists, you can modify the Windows Registry. Incorrect modifications can make your system unstable. Therefore, follow all the steps carefully. We recommend you create a system restore point and backup your Registry before proceeding. This will help you restore your system if any problem occurs.

Open the Registry Editor and go to the following path:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Common\Identity

Make sure that the Identity key is selected on the left side. Now, select the EnableADAL value on the right side. If the value is not there, create it manually. To do so, right-click in the empty space on the right side and select “New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.” Give the name EnableADAL to the newly created value.

Now, double-click on the EnableADAL value and type 1 in its Value data. Click OK to save changes and restart your computer for the changes to take effect. This will enable Modern Authentication in Outlook.

8] Repair or reinstall Office

You should repair or reinstall Microsoft Office. This can fix the issue. Run an Online repair and see if it helps. If this does not work, completely uninstall Microsoft Office with the help of the SaRA tool and then reinstall it. You can download Office by logging in to your Microsoft account. Before uninstalling Office, make sure that you have its product key.

That’s it. I hope this helps.

Why won’t my Outlook connect to the server?

There can be many reasons for this, like unstable internet connection, issues with Microsoft Services, corrupted Outlook data files, conflicting add-ins, etc. You can try removing and adding your account in Outlook.

How do I unfreeze Outlook?

If Outlook keeps crashing or not responding, wait for some time. If it stays frozen, terminate the process via the Task Manager and then relaunch it. Launch Outlook in Safe Mode and see what happens.