Fixes / Outlook · Checked September 30, 2026

Outlook stuck on Processing or Loading Profile: how to fix it

Short answer

If Outlook stays on "Processing" or "Loading Profile" and never opens, classic Outlook for Windows has frozen while loading your mail profile. The usual causes are an add-in, a leftover Outlook or Office process, or a damaged profile. Most likely fix: end every Outlook process in Task Manager, then press Windows+R, type outlook.exe /safe and press Enter to start without add-ins.

What this message means

When classic Outlook for Windows starts, the splash screen shows its progress: "Starting", then "Loading Profile", then "Processing". At that point Outlook is reading your mail profile, opening your data files (.ost or .pst), loading add-ins and drawing the main window. If one of those steps never finishes, the splash screen stays up with no error message. Your email is almost never lost. The problem is usually in the startup environment: an add-in that hangs, another Office process holding the profile, a corrupted profile or data file, or a bad saved window position. New Outlook for Windows and Outlook for Mac don't use this startup screen.

Common causes

Cause	How to tell
A faulty or slow COM add-in (for example antivirus, PDF, CRM, meeting or VPN add-ins)	Outlook opens normally with outlook.exe /safe (the title bar says "Safe Mode") but freezes again when started the normal way.
A leftover Outlook or Office process is still running in the background and holding the profile	Task Manager lists Microsoft Outlook, or another Office app or Teams, even though you have no Outlook window open. This often happens after an Office update or after Outlook crashed.
The Outlook profile is corrupted	Outlook hangs even in safe mode, but a newly created profile with the same account opens without problems.
A damaged or very large data file (.ost or .pst)	The hang started after a crash, a forced shutdown or a full disk. Outlook sometimes gets past the splash screen after a very long wait, and the Inbox Repair Tool (scanpst.exe) reports errors.
A corrupted saved window position (the Frame value in the registry)	Outlook is stuck on Processing while the process uses almost no CPU. Starting it maximized, or resetting the Frame value, makes it open immediately. Microsoft documents this for Outlook 2016.
Wrong system date or time, or a blocked connection to the mail server	The clock in the Windows taskbar is wrong (even by an hour), or the hang started after new antivirus, firewall or VPN software was installed.

How to fix it

1. End leftover Outlook and Office processes and check the clock

Classic Outlook for Windows (Microsoft 365, Outlook 2021, 2019, 2016) on Windows 10 and 11

Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager (select More details if you see only a short list).
On the Processes tab, select Microsoft Outlook and choose End task. Do the same for any other Office apps (Word, Excel), Microsoft Teams and Skype for Business.
Right-click the clock in the taskbar, choose Adjust date and time, and make sure Set time automatically is on and the time zone is correct.
Wait about 30 seconds, then open Outlook again.

2. Start Outlook in safe mode and turn off add-ins

Classic Outlook for Windows

Close Outlook completely (end it in Task Manager if needed).
Press Windows key+R, type outlook.exe /safe and select OK. Accept the default profile in the Choose Profile box and enter your password if asked.
If Outlook opens, go to File > Options > Add-ins. Next to Manage, choose COM Add-ins and select Go.
Write down or screenshot the checked add-ins, clear all the check boxes and select OK, then choose File > Exit.
Start Outlook normally. If it opens, re-enable the add-ins one at a time (restarting Outlook each time) to find the one that causes the hang, and leave that one off.

3. Reset the navigation pane and the saved window position

Classic Outlook for Windows. The Frame registry fix is documented by Microsoft for Outlook 2016 (registry key 16.0, which also covers Microsoft 365, 2019 and 2021)

Close Outlook. Press Windows key+R, type outlook.exe /resetnavpane and select OK. This removes customizations to the folder pane.
If Outlook still hangs, close it, right-click the Outlook shortcut you normally use, choose Properties, set Run to Maximized and select OK, then start Outlook from that shortcut.
If that doesn't help either, close Outlook, press Windows key+R, type regedit and select OK.
Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Outlook\Office Explorer, select the Frame value, choose Edit > Delete and confirm. Close Registry Editor and start Outlook.

4. Create a new Outlook profile

Classic Outlook for Windows. New Outlook for Windows has no profiles, so skip this step for it

Close Outlook. Press Windows key+R, type outlook.exe /profiles and select OK (or hold Shift while you start Outlook).
In the Choose Profile box, select Options, then New. Type a name such as Outlook2 and select OK.
Sign in with your email address when prompted and finish adding the account.
Pick the new profile in the Choose Profile box and select OK. If Outlook opens, the old profile was corrupted.
To make the new profile the default, open Control Panel, search for Mail, open Mail (Microsoft Outlook) > Show Profiles, choose the new profile under Always use this profile and select OK.

5. Repair Office

Windows 11 and Windows 10 (menu names differ, see steps). Click-to-Run installs such as Microsoft 365, 2019 and 2021 offer Quick Repair and Online Repair

Close all Office apps.
Windows 11: open Settings > Apps > Installed apps, find Microsoft 365 (or Microsoft Office), select the three dots (...) and choose Modify.
Windows 10: open Settings > Apps > Apps & features, select Microsoft 365 (or Microsoft Office) and choose Modify.
Choose Quick Repair and select Repair. Restart the PC and test Outlook.
If Outlook still hangs, run the repair again and choose Online Repair. This downloads a fresh copy of Office and takes longer.

6. Repair or rebuild the Outlook data file

Classic Outlook for Windows. Rebuilding the .ost file only applies to Microsoft 365, Exchange, Outlook.com and IMAP accounts, where the mail is stored on the server

Close Outlook.
Run the Inbox Repair Tool, SCANPST.EXE. On Microsoft 365 and other Click-to-Run installs it is usually in C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\Office16 (or C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\root\Office16 for 32-bit Office on 64-bit Windows).
Select Browse, choose your .pst or .ost file (usually in %localappdata%\Microsoft\Outlook or Documents\Outlook Files), then select Start and Repair.
For a Microsoft 365, Exchange or Outlook.com account, you can instead rename the .ost file in %localappdata%\Microsoft\Outlook (for example add .old to the end). Outlook builds a new one and downloads your mail again. Don't do this with a .pst file, because a .pst is the only copy of its contents.

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Still not fixed?

Microsoft 365 users can run Microsoft's classic Outlook startup troubleshooter from https://aka.ms/SaRA-OutlookWontStart (requires Windows 10 or later). It checks for most of the causes above automatically. Also make sure both Windows and Office are fully updated (Settings > Windows Update, and File > Account > Update Options > Update Now once Outlook opens). If Outlook still won't start, open your mail in a web browser (outlook.office.com for work or school accounts, outlook.com for personal accounts) so you can keep working, and contact your IT department or Microsoft Support. On a work PC, ask IT to check group policies, security software and add-ins deployed to your machine. Remember that Outlook 2016 and 2019 no longer connect to Microsoft 365 services, so on those versions the real fix may be an upgrade.

Questions people ask

Why is Outlook stuck on Processing?

Outlook is waiting on a step that never finishes, usually an add-in, a background Office process holding the profile, a corrupted profile or data file, or a bad saved window position. Starting with outlook.exe /safe quickly tells you whether an add-in is the cause.

How long should I wait before assuming Outlook is frozen?

A normal start takes seconds. After a large update or a new data file it can take a few minutes. If the Processing screen is still there after 5 to 10 minutes and Task Manager shows Outlook using almost no CPU or disk, it is stuck and you should end it and troubleshoot.

Will creating a new Outlook profile delete my emails?

No. For Microsoft 365, Exchange, Outlook.com and IMAP accounts your mail is on the server and downloads again into the new profile. If you use a POP account or a .pst file, add that .pst to the new profile under File > Open & Export > Open Outlook Data File.

Is it safe to delete the .ost file?

Yes, for Microsoft 365, Exchange and Outlook.com accounts, because the .ost file is only an offline copy that Outlook rebuilds from the server. Items that were never synced (such as unsent drafts) can be lost, so rename the file instead of deleting it. Never delete a .pst file, because it may be your only copy.

Does this happen in new Outlook or Outlook for Mac?

No. The Loading Profile and Processing screen only exists in classic Outlook for Windows. If new Outlook for Windows freezes, end it in Task Manager and reopen it, or uninstall it and reinstall it from the Microsoft Store.

Sources

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