Use a screen reader to schedule appointments or meetings in Outlook

In this topic

• Schedule a new appointment

• Schedule a new meeting

• Turn an appointment into a meeting

• Make a recurring meeting

• Make a Microsoft Teams meeting

Schedule a new appointment

1. In Outlook for Mac, press Command+N. A new appointment window opens with the focus in the Subject text field. Type a subject for the appointment.

2. To set a location for the appointment, press the Tab key until you hear "Location, edit text," and type the location you want.

3. To set the start and end date and time for the appointment, press the Tab key until you hear the default date and time. To change the values, type the new values you want.

   Tip: To create an all-day event, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "All day event, unticked," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.

4. To add more information about the appointment, for example, an agenda, press the Tab key until you hear "Entering body," and type the details you want.

5. To set the reminder time for the appointment, press Shift+Tab repeatedly until you hear "Reminder, pop-up button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the option you want, and press Return.

6. To save your appointment, press Shift+Tab until you hear "Save and close, button," and press Control+Option+Spacebar. The new appointment window closes.

Schedule a new meeting

1. In Outlook for Mac, press Control+Option+M. You hear: "Menu bar, Apple." Press the Right arrow key until you hear: "File." Press Control+Option+Spacebar to open the File menu.

2. To open the New submenu, press the Down arrow key once, and press Control+Option+Spacebar. Then press the Down arrow key until you hear "Meeting," and press Return. A new meeting window opens with the focus in the To: text field.

3. To invite people, type the names of the contacts in the To: text field. Press Return after typing each name to make Outlook for Mac complete the entry.

4. To give the meeting a name, press the Tab key until you hear "Subject, edit text," and then type the name.

5. To set a location for the meeting, press the Tab key until you hear "Location, edit text," and type the location you want.

6. To set the start and end date and time for the meeting, press the Tab key until you hear the default date and time. To change the values, type the new values you want.

   Tip: To create an all-day event, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "All day event, unticked," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.

7. To add more information about the meeting, for example, an agenda, press the Tab key until you hear "Entering body," and type the details you want.

8. To set the reminder time for the meeting, press Shift+Tab repeatedly until you hear "Reminder, pop-up button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the option you want, and press Control+Option+Spacebar.

9. To send your meeting invitation, press Shift+Tab until you hear "Send, button," and press Control+Option+Spacebar. The new meeting window closes.

Turn an appointment into a meeting

Invite others to join you and turn an appointment into a meeting.

1. In the appointment window, press Shift+Tab until you hear "Invite, button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar to make it a meeting.

2. The focus moves to a newly created To text field. Type the names of the contacts you want to invite to the meeting. Press Return after typing each name to make Outlook for Mac complete the entry.

3. When done, to send the invitations, press Shift+Tab until you hear "Send, button," and press Control+Option+Spacebar.

Make a recurring meeting

If you're scheduling, for example, a weekly meeting, you can easily turn your meeting into a recurring meeting. This way you don't have to add a meeting for every week separately.

1. When scheduling an event, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Recurrence, button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. A new window opens, where you can select the options for the recurring event, with the focus on the Repeats drop-down menu.

2. To select the frequency of the meeting, press Control+Option+Spacebar, and then use the Up or Down arrow key to find the frequency you want the appointment to recur (Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Yearly). To select, press Control+Option+Spacebar.

3. To browse the other date and time options, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab. When done, press the Tab key until you hear "OK, button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.

Make a Microsoft Teams meeting

You can easily turn your meeting into an online Microsoft Teams meeting.

1. When scheduling a meeting, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Teams meeting, toggle button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.

2. Add any remaining meeting details and send the invitation. Microsoft Teams meeting details are added to the invitation when you send it.

See also

Use a screen reader to read and reply to a meeting request in Outlook

Use a screen reader to set up your email account in Outlook

Keyboard shortcuts for Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with the calendar in Outlook

Use a screen reader to join a meeting in Microsoft Teams

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Calendar

In this topic

• Schedule a new appointment or meeting

• Invite others to make a meeting

• Make a recurring meeting

• Make a Microsoft Teams meeting

Schedule a new appointment or meeting

1. In the Outlook for iOS calendar, tap near the top of the screen with four fingers. You hear: "Calendar navigation menu, button." Swipe right until you hear "New event button," and double-tap the screen. The New Event window opens and the focus is in the Title text field.

2. Use the on-screen keyboard to type a descriptive name for the event.

3. To set the start and end date and time for the event, swipe right until you hear "Start" or "End," followed by the default date and time. To change the date and time, double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear the value you want to change, and then swipe up or down until you hear the value you want. To confirm the selection, swipe left until you hear "Done button," and double-tap the screen.

   Tip: To create an all-day event, swipe left or right until you hear "All-day, switch button, off" and then double-tap the screen.

4. To set a location for the meeting, swipe right until you hear "Location button," and double-tap the screen. Start typing the location. The suggested locations list updates as you type. To select a location, swipe right until you hear the location you want, and then double-tap the screen.

5. To set the alert time for the event, swipe right until you hear "Alert," followed by the current alert value, and then double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear the option you want, and then double-tap the screen.

6. To add more information about the event, for example, a meeting agenda, swipe right until you hear "Description button," and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear "Multiline text field," and double-tap the screen. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the details, and when finished, tap near the top of the screen with four fingers, swipe right until you hear "Done," and then double-tap the screen.

7. When you're done adding the event details, tap near the top of the screen with four fingers, swipe right until you hear "Done button," and then double-tap the screen.

Invite others to make a meeting

Invite others to join you and turn an appointment into a meeting.

1. When you're editing or creating an event, in the Edit Event or New Event window, swipe right until you hear "People," and then double-tap the screen. The People window opens, the focus is on an editable text field, and the on-screen keyboard is in the bottom half of the screen.

   Note: To learn how to open and edit calendar events, refer to section "Open, read, and edit calendar events" in Basic tasks using a screen reader with the calendar in Outlook.

2. Swipe right until you hear "Type a name or email address," and double-tap the screen. Use the on-screen keyboard to start typing a contact name. The list of suggested contacts is updated as you type. To select a contact, swipe right until you hear the name you want, and then double-tap the screen. Repeat this for all contacts you want to invite.

3. When you're done, tap near the top of the screen with four fingers, swipe right until you hear "Done," and then double-tap the screen.

Make a recurring meeting

If you're scheduling, for example, a weekly meeting, you can easily turn your meeting into a recurring meeting. This way you don't have to add a meeting for every week separately.

1. When you're creating an event, in the New Event window, swipe right until you hear "Repeat, None, button," and then double-tap the screen. The Repeat menu opens.

2. To select the frequency of the meeting, swipe right until you hear the frequency in which you want the meeting to occur. To select, double-tap the screen.

3. To move the focus moves back to the New Event window, swipe left until you hear "Back button," and then double-tap the screen.

Make a Microsoft Teams meeting

You can easily turn your meeting into a Microsoft Teams meeting.

1. When you're editing or creating an event, in the Edit Event or New Event window, swipe right until you hear "Teams meeting, switch button, off" and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "On." Outlook adds the online meeting details and the link to the Description field.

See also

Use a screen reader to read and reply to a meeting request in Outlook

Use a screen reader to set up your email account in Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with the calendar in Outlook

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Calendar

In this topic

• Schedule a new appointment or meeting

• Invite others to make a meeting

• Make a recurring meeting

• Make a Microsoft Teams meeting

Schedule a new appointment or meeting

1. In the Outlook for Android calendar, swipe right or left or slide one finger near the bottom right corner of the screen until you hear "Add new event button," and then double-tap the screen. The New Event window opens.

2. Swipe right until you hear "Title, edit box," and double-tap the screen. Use the on-screen keyboard to type a descriptive name for the event. When done, swipe down-then-left to close the on-screen keyboard.

3. To set the start and end date and time for the event, swipe left until you hear the default date and time. To change the date or time, double-tap the screen, swipe left or right until you hear the option you want, and then double-tap the screen. To confirm the selection, swipe left or right until you hear "OK button," and double-tap the screen.

   Tip: To create an all-day event, swipe left or right until you hear "All day event, switch" and then double-tap the screen.

4. To set a location for the meeting, swipe right until you hear "Location," and then double-tap the screen. To type the name of the location you want to use, double-tap the screen and start typing. The suggested locations list updates as you type. To select a location, swipe right until you hear the location you want, and double-tap the screen.

5. To set the alert time for the event, swipe right until you hear "Alert," followed by the current alert value, and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear the option you want, and then double-tap the screen.

6. To add more information about the event, for example, a meeting agenda, swipe right until you hear "Description," and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear "Editing, edit box," and double-tap the screen. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the details, and when finished, swipe down-then-left to close the on-screen keyboard. Swipe left until you hear "Done," and then double-tap the screen.

7. When you're done adding the event details, swipe left until you hear "Save," and then double-tap the screen.

Invite others to make a meeting

Invite others to join you and turn an appointment into a meeting.

1. When you're editing or creating an event, in the Edit Event or New Event window, swipe right until you hear "People," and then double-tap the screen. The Add People window opens and the focus is in the Type a name or an email address text field.

   Note: To learn how to open and edit calendar events, refer to section "Open, read, and edit calendar events" in Basic tasks using a screen reader with the calendar in Outlook.

2. Use the on-screen keyboard to start typing a contact name. The list of suggested contacts updates as you type. To select a contact, swipe right until you hear the name you want, and then double-tap the screen. Repeat this for all contacts you want to invite.

3. When you're done, swipe left until you hear "Done," and then double-tap the screen.

Make a recurring meeting

If you're scheduling, for example, a weekly meeting, you can easily turn your meeting into a recurring meeting. This way you don't have to add a meeting for every week separately.

1. When you're creating an event, in the New Event window, swipe right until you hear "Repeat, Never," and double-tap the screen. The Repeat menu opens.

2. To select the frequency of the meeting, swipe right until you hear "Frequency, never," double-tap the screen, and then swipe right until you hear the frequency in which you want the meeting to occur. To select, double-tap the screen.

3. To save the changes, swipe left until you hear "Save," and double-tap the screen. The focus moves back to the New Event window.

Make a Microsoft Teams meeting

You can easily turn your meeting into a Microsoft Teams meeting.

1. When you're editing or creating an event, in the Edit Event or New Event window, swipe right until you hear "Off, Teams meeting, switch," and then double-tap the screen. Outlook adds the online meeting details and the link to the Description field.

See also

Use a screen reader to read and reply to a meeting request in Outlook

Use a screen reader to set up your email account in Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with the calendar in Outlook

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Calendar

In this topic

• Schedule a new appointment or a meeting

• Turn an appointment into a meeting

• Check the availability of the people you invite

• Make a recurring meeting

• Make an online meeting

Schedule a new appointment or a meeting

You can schedule a personal appointment in your calendar, for example, to remind you of an activity. You can also turn an appointment into a meeting by adding attendees.

1. In Outlook, press Ctrl+Shift+2 to open the calendar. You hear "Loaded," followed by the number of events and the number of calendars currently selected.

2. To create a new event, press Ctrl+N. An event details window opens with the focus on the event title text field. You hear: "Add details for the event. Add a title."

3. To browse the event options, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab.

   • To name the event, type a name in the Add a title field.

   • If you are creating a meeting, press the Tab key. You hear: "Invite attendees." To add a contact, type the contact, and then press Enter.

   • To set the start and end date and time for the event, press the Tab key until you hear the default values. To change the date, when on the start or end date, press the SR key+Right arrow key once, press Enter to open the drop-down calendar, then use the arrow keys to browse the drop-down calendar, and press Enter to select. To change the hours, type the new values.

   • To set a location for the meeting, press the Tab key until you hear "Search for a room or location," and then type the location you want.

   • To add more information about the event, press the Tab key until you hear "Add a description or attach documents," and then type the details you want.

4. When you're done, press Shift+Tab until you hear "Send button" (for a meeting) or "Save button" (for an appointment), and then press Spacebar.

5. The new event window closes, and the focus moves to Calendar.

Turn an appointment into a meeting

Invite others to join you and turn an appointment into a meeting.

1. In the event details window, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear: "Invite attendees."

2. To add a contact, type or paste the email address of an attendee, and then press Enter. Repeat for other attendees.

Check the availability of the people you invite

After you enter names in a meeting invitation, Outlook can help you pick a time when every invitee is available.

1. In the event details window, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear a meeting time suggestion, under Schedule. 

2. To browse for more suggested times, press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the suggested time slot you want. You will hear the suggested time as you move. To select a time, press Spacebar.

3. If you cannot find any available time for that particular day, you can check invitee availability for another day. To browse for other days, under Schedule, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Open month picker, button collapsed," and then press Spacebar. Press Shift+Tab until you hear the currently selected day, and then use the arrow keys to browse the days. To select a day, press Enter.

Make a recurring meeting

If you're scheduling, for example, a weekly meeting, you can easily turn your meeting into a recurring meeting. This way you don't have to add a meeting for every week separately.

1. In the event details window, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear: "Repeat."

2. To select the frequency of the meeting, press Spacebar, and then use the Down arrow key until you hear the frequency in which you want the meeting to occur. To select, press Spacebar.

Make an online meeting

You can easily turn your meeting into an online meeting using Skype or Microsoft Teams.

In the event details window, do one of the following:

• If either Skype or Microsoft Teams is available to you, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear either "Off, Teams meeting, toggle switch" or "Off, Skype meeting, toggle switch." The option you hear is determined by your administrator. Press Enter to turn the meeting into an online meeting.

• If both Skype and Microsoft Teams are available, press the Tab key or Shift+Tab until you hear "Add online meeting," then press the Down arrow key to select between the available options, and press Enter to confirm your selection.

Outlook adds the online meeting details and the link in the event body after the invitation is sent.

See also

Use a screen reader to read and reply to a meeting request in Outlook

Use a screen reader to set up your email account in Outlook

Use a screen reader to format text in your email in Outlook

Keyboard shortcuts for Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with the calendar in Outlook

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Calendar