How to Fix Outlook “Your message cannot be displayed at the moment” error

Given how many people use (or are forced to use) Outlook, it’s not surprising that errors appear often. Even the Artemis II team had to seek technical support for Outlook issues, and it was earlier this year that Microsoft had to release several emergency patches for Outlook after it became unusable for many. When you’re in the middle of an important communication, it’s irritating to receive an error saying “Your message cannot be displayed at this time.” But the solution is simple.

The method to resolve this error depends on whether you are using Outlook in a web browser or in the desktop client, but both fixes involve clearing your cache. Normally, cache is useful for Outlook because it stores temporary files for faster loading. But when it gets corrupted or overloaded, it can lead to a whole host of problems.

Clearing your cache won’t delete anything important: all your emails, calendar events, and contacts will remain intact. This forces Outlook to create new copies of your emails, fixing sync issues and bringing you the most up-to-date version of your inbox.

The steps to clear the Outlook program cache vary slightly between PCs and Macs.

On a Windows PC

1. Close Outlook completely.

2. Press Win + R on your keyboard to open the Run dialogue.

3. Paste the following file path and then tap Enter: %localappdata%MicrosoftOutlookRoamCache

4. Select all files in the RoamCache folder and delete them by right-clicking and selecting DELETEor with the DELETE key.

On macOS

1. Open Outlook.

2. On the top toolbar, click Tools and then Accounts.

3. Select your account from the left panel.

4. Click on the three dots and select Reset accountthen confirm the reset.

If this solution does not work for your desktop client, you can also try uninstalling and reinstalling the Outlook application.

The method for clearing your cache and cookies depends on the browser you are using. You can clear your entire website data log, but this will log you out of all websites, which is inconvenient. Instead, it is better to clear this data only for the Outlook site. This may be an extra step, but it’s worth it.

In Microsoft Edge

First, if you only want to clear data from your current device and not all devices you’re signed into Edge on, make sure to turn off syncing:

1. Click on the three points at the top right, then select Settings.

2. Select ProfilesSO Synchronize. Turn off sync options. Make sure to re-enable them when you’re done.

Then, to clear your Outlook cookies:

1. Open the Outlook website.
2. Click on the Lockdown icon in the address bar, then choose Cookies and site data > Cookies.
3. Select each of the Outlook cookies under Allowedthen click Withdraw.
4. Refresh the page and log in again.

If that doesn’t work, try clearing all data from the site:

1. With Outlook on the web always open, pPress F12 and choose Open development tools in the pop-up window.
2. Click on the More icon at the top and choose Application.
3. In the left menu under Applicationclick Storage.
4. Check the boxes under Clear site datathen choose Clear selection.
5. Refresh the page and log in again.

In Google Chrome

1. Press F12 to open the Developer Tools when you are on the Outlook site.

2. With this panel open, right-click on the Refresh to the left of the address bar and choose Empty cache and hard reload.

If that doesn’t fix the issue, the Edge steps above work almost the same in Chrome. Click on the Site information icon to the left of the address bar, followed by Cookies and site data > Manage site data on device. Use the garbage can icon for each entry here. Then refresh and log in again.

In Firefox

1. On the Outlook page, click the button Shield icon to the left of the address bar.

2. Click Clear cookies and site datathen validate with Clear once again.

3. Refresh the page and log in again.

In Safari

1. From the top toolbar, select SafariSO Settings.

2. Open it Confidentiality section, then tap Manage website data.

3. To research Outlook using the search bar, then select its entries and choose Withdraw.

4. Refresh the page and log in again.

If these steps don’t resolve your issue, check your browser extensions. Ad blockers, privacy tools, and others may interfere with Outlook operations. Try using your email in another browser; if it works, the problem is with your current system.