99+ Best Free Outlook Templates for 2026
Paul Newham 
Looking for free Outlook email templates? We’ve got a great tip for you. Stripo is one of the best HTML email builders around. It has 1600+ pre-designed templates you can use in Microsoft Outlook. And a great drag-and-drop editor for custom formatting and design.
HTML emails are much more effective for marketing and business transactions. They are visually appealing and stand out in the inbox. Whatever you want to use HTML email for, we’ve picked out some of the best Outlook templates Stripo has to offer. We’ve also included how to import HTML email templates into Outlook. And for tips for building HTML emails for Outlook.
Free Outlook Email Templates for Newsletters
Email is a personal and timely channel. And Outlook is preferred by over 11% of email users worldwide, mostly by large corporations. Still, you need to make emails elegant, fully responsive, and informational.
If you’re looking for the best Outlook email templates, Stripo has you covered. It has 1600+ email templates you can export to Outlook. There are free templates for all use cases.
Just create an account here and get 1600+ free newsletter templates
We collected some of our favorite templates to make it easier for you to find the perfect template.
This is a more traditional email newsletter template. It works because people have expectations about what a newsletter should look like.
It’s also very easy to customize for pretty much any purpose. The colour scheme is very neutral. The layout is clear and simple. That also helps with readability. This template is particularly good if you have lots of stories to share. Then you can link other recent posts further down.
This is another very common type of newsletter template. It combines headlines, snippets and images for multiple stories. Plus, of course, links through to the articles.
One thing I really like about this template is the image of the author and the intro text. For me, too many newsletter templates waste space with huge images in the header. Especially on mobile devices, people are going to find it hard to see what the email is about. With this one, the first thing people see is the top story. And that’s what newsletters are about, right? Getting people to click through to read your stories.
I also like the layout. It’s simple and easy to scan. Notice also the button in the “Connect With Us” header at the top. It’s obvious how people can get in touch, but you can easily change it to fit any call to action.
Free Outlook Email Template for Real Estate
There’s a time and a place to experiment when you create Outlook templates. But you have to match form to purpose. Is real estate the right place for more ‘out there’ designs? You could try and see if they work. Or you could just let the properties speak for themselves. Which is what this template does.
It’s a classic, simple design. The main focus is on the property images. It fits multiple homes without becoming overcrowded. It makes good use of white space. And provides headline details with links to view each listing.
Free Seasonal Templates for Outlook
Free Outlook Email Templates for Christmas
There’s a balance to be struck with templates for Christmas. You want some seasonal colour. But not so much that it makes the email cluttered and hard to read.
This template does it perfectly. The ‘Bring Joy to Those in Need This Christmas’ works perfectly for a nonprofit email campaign. The pictures for different ways to donate make the difference clear. It’s very easy for subscribers to choose how they want to get involved. Check out our full nonprofit email marketing guide for campaign examples.
Make your main message immediately clear when you’re doing Christmas promotions. That’s what this template does. Christmas shoppers are looking for deals and convenience. That’s all covered right at the top. Christmas Sale. 30% off Everything. All with a splash of doggos, humour and a clear CTA.
Free Outlook Email Templates for Halloween
The challenge for Halloween emails is to use all those dark, spooky colors in a way that isn’t drab or hard to read.
I like the Happy Halloween design at the top of this template, it’s eye-catching. And the key messages about deals and discounts are nice and clear. With a touch of urgency to make subscribers get the offer.
This Halloween template is perfect for restaurants and bars. Showcase your holiday specials and make it easy for people to reserve a table.
Notice how the colour scheme switches once the menu items start. Bold blocks of colour, including black buttons. They work well together with the images, but they’d be too much for a whole template. The contrast works well.
Free Outlook Email Templates for Other Holidays
This is a great Easter template for ecommerce promotions. It’s simple, colourful and clear, all at the same time. The ‘Shop by Age’ section with cards for ages makes it easy for subscribers to find what they are looking for.
If you’re looking for a Hannukah template, this is a great template you can easily customize. The recipe cards at the bottom can be changed to blog posts or products. The font and design supports RTL languages like Hebrew.
Ever noticed how the biggest sales event of the summer holidays is the end of the holidays? This is a classic back-to-school template. The header is bright, eye-catching and has a great visual design. But it also explains what the email is about at a glance. The personal note in a handwritten font fits the school aesthetic.
Free Outlook Email Templates for Thank You Emails
Thank you emails are automated emails you send out following a transaction. So someone signing up for a subscription. Or placing an order.
Thank you emails are a courtesy, a way to connect with customers. In ecommerce, they are also important to confirm orders and build trust. The template above does that perfectly. It’s pretty minimalist as far as visuals go. But that just makes it easy to add your own images and colour.
This is a different kind of thank you template. It’s basically a receipt. Sending receipts via email is standard practice in ecommerce. But this template shows receipts don’t have to be drab and boring. Sending a receipt via email is a way to get your brand in front of a customer. To reinforce your identity with them as a business they want to buy from again.
Note the personalization in the first line. Little touches like that help to establish a connection with customers.
Free Outlook Email Templates for Notifications
Notification emails take many shapes and sizes. Notifying a customer an order has been received and processed. Telling them their account or password details need updating. Letting loyalty program members know they are due a reward.
With notifications, the purpose must come first. I’ve talked a lot about using colour or attractive images when you create email templates so they grab attention. Notification templates are an exception. I like the template above because it focuses on what it’s about. No distractions. It’s text-led with a prominent, clear headline. It’s easy to adapt for any purpose.
Not that you can’t have any imagery at the top of a notification email. A lot of templates do. I prefer it when the images relate to the message. Like this one. The mail icon is widely understood as meaning email. So including it supports understanding.
A very important type of notification email is subscription confirmation. It’s good practice to confirm every sign-up with an email. It’s called double opt-in. This template is a very simple and attractive option. It’s got five elements. Logo, background image, headline, text, and a button. And that’s all you need. And you can customize all the other content blocks to suit any kind of subscription.
Free eCommerce Templates for Outlook
Free Outlook Email Templates for Product Recommendations
Visuals are simply a must in ecommerce. People want to see what they are buying. Plus, good images grab attention. But I’ve avoided templates that lean on big, professionally made graphics at the top. You can do this if you like. But if you are using a pre-made template, you want one you can customize quickly and easily.
This is what I’d call a classic product template. It looks just like a product listing page on a website. When you’re promoting products via email, you want to offer a good selection. But without your email becoming too crowded.
This template has a lot on it. But it does a good job of keeping everything clean and clear. It uses a neutral colour scheme. And plenty of white space to separate elements. And of course, it focuses on product imagery over details.
This template is packed with links and CTAs. It’s a sales-oriented template. You want to maximise opportunities for people to click and convert. I like the headers separating different collections above the product images. Subtle but useful recommendations.
I like the clarity and spacing of this template. Look at how it organizes everything with separate blocks. It creates visual appeal with the images without using loud colours. After all, you want the focus to be on the products, not the design.
You’ll notice the headers in both these templates are more or less identical. An image, a title, a brief strapline paragraph, and a link button to your online store. It’s a standard formula for driving traffic to your store.
Finally, I like this template as it shows what product images can do. Like the first one, the colour scheme is very neutral. And then the rest of it is about products with short descriptions. Notice how the layout of the pictures creates a little more visual interest.
Free Outlook Email Templates for Abandoned Cart Emails
Like product recommendation emails, there is a ‘classic’ format for abandoned cart emails, too. The template above is a good example. It’s a capture of the actual shopping cart. With a note at the top asking the customer if they would like to continue. And a link to do so. This template is flexible for any kind of abandoned cart email.
Simplicity works for abandoned cart emails. But you might want a template that makes a bit more of an impact. This is a great example. It’s all about the product image. Showing customers what they have left behind is a great way to nudge them into buying. Just make the image big, bold and attractive.
Visually, it’s all very pleasing, with smooth layouts and an attractive colour scheme. Note the newsletter signup. If the customer has changed their mind about the product, maybe they can be tempted to join the newsletter.
How to Save Email Templates in Outlook
So you’ve picked a free Outlook email template. You have customized the design and added your content. Now you want to send it in Outlook. What next?
First, you have to be using the Outlook app in Windows. HTML template imports are not available in Outlook for Mac.
Here are the steps to take to import a new template:
- Download your finished template as an HTML file.
- In Outlook, navigate to File > Options > Quick Access Toolbar.
- In the “Choose Commands From” dropdown, select “All Commands.”
- Go to “Attach File” and click “Add”.
- Click “OK” to confirm.
- Now click Compose to create a new email.
- At the top of the email message window, you’ll see a new “Attach File” option. Click it.
- Choose your downloaded HTML file.
- Choose “Insert as Text”.
Your template will now appear as the main body of the email. Save it to user templates, give it a subject line, and send it as a new message!
Check out our guide on how to create an email template in Outlook for a more detailed description. It includes the steps to create message templates and how to import and send HTML template designs into Outlook.
Things to pay attention to when using Outlook Email Templates
A word of warning. Outlook has a reputation for not displaying HTML templates the way they are intended. Some versions of Outlook are worse than others. It’s all because Outlook’s rendering rules are all primed for Microsoft Word. Not HTML or CSS. So it doesn’t interpret HTML code as well as other email clients.
But don’t fret. There are fixes. Here are the main things to pay attention to.
Always test your templates in Outlook before you send
Before you finish editing, send your template to an Outlook inbox as a test. Or best of all, send it to different Outlook inboxes across different versions. If you don’t have access to multiple Outlook versions, use a testing tool. Read our guide to the best email testing tools.
Look for any anomalies in how the template displays. Check if the layout looks and if custom fonts aren’t replaced. Test out all links and buttons. For anything that doesn’t work, see if you can fix or change it in the editor.
Stick to simple backgrounds
Outlook has a particular problem with template backgrounds. More specifically, it doesn’t render multiple background images well. So avoid having different background images in different elements. Stick to a single background image. Or just use your brand colors instead.
Button shape is an issue
Do you prefer to have nice rounded link buttons in your emails? Or did you choose a template partly because of its curves? Outlook displays all buttons as rectangles by default. This may or may not annoy you. It seems like a small thing. But if you’ve used images, say, with nice rounded shapes in them, hard angles on the link buttons could jar. Especially if there are lots of them.
There’s not much you can do. The only fix is to change the button code using Vector Markup Language (VML). But if you don’t know how to do this. All you can do is adjust the rest of your design to suit squared buttons.
Use spacers instead of margins
Margins are a CSS style command that adds space around an element. This is great for creating clean layouts with plenty of white space to keep everything clear. But Outlook won’t render margins. If you use them, your layouts will appear cramped and ugly.
The good news is that spacers offer a better alternative to margins anyway. Spacers are components that you use just to add space. They are also commonly used in the best HTML email editors and templates.
Outlook Email Templates Conclusion
Outlook templates help you send great-looking emails. They also save you a lot of time and effort. Stripo is a great tool for creating email templates with 1600+ Outlook templates. Remember our tips for things to pay attention to with Outlook emails.
For more email templates, check out our collection of the best free responsive email templates and free Mailchimp templates. Most of these will work with Microsoft Outlook, too.
Outlook won’t be a good tool to send marketing emails as your email list grows. You’ll be better off with dedicated email marketing software. We collected and reviewed the best free and cheap email marketing tools and the top email newsletter software to help you choose one. You can also connect Stripo to free SMTP servers to send your campaigns.
If you often get writer’s block when writing email copy, have a look at our review of the best AI writing tools.