Try the example, then check the result.
Download the fictional material and follow the steps below. The video uses English illustrative diagrams; it does not present a live app recording. Product controls may vary by version.
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The video uses English illustrative diagrams; it does not present a live app recording. English captions. Product menus may differ in your account.
Quick answer. Select a permitted practice message in Outlook on the web, use Categorize, and choose or create Action Needed. Confirm the category appears on that same message and the message remains in Inbox.
Use the fictional practice file and independent answer check. Work in a copy or a permitted demo account.
Before you start. Use only a permitted fictional mailbox or local illustrative message index; do not categorize an unrelated real message. Outlook on the web and Outlook.com can place Categorize in slightly different menus. A category is an organizer in your account, not a new folder and not a message sent to anyone.
1. Identify the one message
In a permitted fictional mailbox, locate Harbor Workshop room checklist and verify its subject and Inbox location against the practice index. Confirm it has no Action Needed category yet. Leave the separate supply-order message untouched so the exercise has an explicit control item.
Checkpoint: Practice target: M-312 in Inbox; M-313 untouched.
2. Choose a category rather than Move
Select M-312 and open Categorize in the top toolbar or message menu. Choose the existing Action Needed category or create that name if your practice account has no such category. Microsoft documents categories as tags for Outlook on the web. Do not choose Move, Archive, Forward, or a rule during this task.
Checkpoint: Practice target: only M-312 receives Action Needed.
3. Verify the same message stays in Inbox
Return to the Inbox list and locate M-312 by subject. Confirm the colored Action Needed category appears on it. Open the message or inspect its folder location to confirm it remains in Inbox. The tag alone is not evidence of a successful folder move; there should be no move in this exercise.
Checkpoint: Practice target: M-312 tagged and still in Inbox.
4. Check the unaffected message
Locate Harbor Workshop supply order, M-313. It should still be in Inbox and should not show Action Needed. This negative check catches an accidental multi-select operation that tagged two messages. If both are tagged, clear the category from M-313 in the practice mailbox only.
Checkpoint: Practice target: M-313 untagged and still in Inbox.
5. Understand who sees the tag
Microsoft says categories are for your own organization; people receiving the email do not see the categories you assign. A category can help you find or group messages without changing their contents or recipients. If the goal is to remove a message from Inbox, use a folder or archive workflow as a separate deliberate action.
Checkpoint: Private organization state, no email transmission.
Verify the result
Expected after a permitted practice check: M-312 shows the Action Needed category and remains in Inbox. M-313 remains in Inbox without that category. No email should be sent or forwarded. Microsoft says recipients cannot see a private category assigned in the owner's Outlook view.
If it still does not work
Use only a permitted fictional mailbox or local illustrative message index; do not categorize an unrelated real message. Outlook on the web and Outlook.com can place Categorize in slightly different menus. A category is an organizer in your account, not a new folder and not a message sent to anyone.
Official sources
- Use categories in Outlook (checked 20 October 2026).
- Organize your inbox in Outlook (checked 20 October 2026).
Any video panel without a marked actual-app capture is an illustrative diagram of the fictional exercise.
Practice downloads.
The exercise files contain invented information. Save a local copy before editing.