Google Workspace Sync for Microsoft Outlook
Email, calendar, and contact data are regularly synchronized between your Google Account and Microsoft Outlook with Google Workspace Sync for Microsoft Outlook (GWSMO).
However, some types of data aren't synchronized and some features in Outlook function differently when you use GWSMO. Data might also look a little different in certain Google Workspace products, such as Gmail.
Synchronization frequency
GWSMO synchronizes data every time your users start Outlook and on the following schedule:
- Email—Every minute
- Calendar—Every 10 minutes or immediately after you create or receive a meeting invitation
- Contacts—Every 20 minutes
- Global Address List—Every 24 hours
- Notes—Every 60 minutes or immediately after creating or changing a note
- Tasks—Every 2 hours
Synchronized data
| Mail data in your old Outlook profile | Imports to your Google Workspace profile in Outlook | Can be used in Outlook with GWSMO | Syncs with Google Workspace | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Email messages | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Email state (Read and Unread) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Deleted items | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Import is optional. |
| Folders and subfolders | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Outlook folders map to Gmail labels. Subfolders appear as nested labels. |
| Subfolders nested under Inbox (and other system folders) | ✔ | ✔ |  |
Gmail doesn't nest labels under Inbox, Sent Mail, or other system labels. Instead, labels appear as Inbox/folder_name. |
| Junk email | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Import is optional. Junk email is labeled Spam in Gmail. |
| Drafts | ✔ | ✔ | ||
| Attachments | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Attachments larger than 25 MB don't sync with Gmail. |
| Executable attachments | Not allowed in Gmail. | |||
| Posts in mailbox folders | ✔ | ✔ | ||
| Importance levels | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Message flags | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Flags appear as stars in Gmail. |
| Follow-up dates and reminders (used with flags) | ✔ | Not imported or synced with Gmail but can be used in Outlook after importing. | ||
| Arrow icons marking replies and forwarded messages | ✔ | ✔ | Appear for messages you reply to or forward in Outlook, but won't sync with Gmail or other Outlook clients. | |
| Rules | ✔ | Not imported or synced but can be recreated in Outlook. You can create equivalent filters in Gmail that apply for both interfaces. | ||
| Signatures | ✔ | Not imported or synced but can be recreated in Outlook and Gmail. | ||
| POP messages | |
✔ | POP mail protocol messages in your primary inbox import from your old profile and are synced with Gmail (might not be desired). POP messages that arrive after importing aren't synced. | |
| POP or IMAP account | ✔ | Account settings don't import, but you can recreate the account in your Google Workspace profile. | ||
| Category definitions | ✔ | ✔ | Categories aren't available in Gmail. | |
| Category assignments | ✔ | Not imported, but you can categorize messages in Outlook after importing. | ||
| S/MIME send | S/MIME send is not available in GWSMO. |
Related topics
Calendars
| Calendar data in your old Outlook profile | Imports to your Google Workspace profile in Outlook | Can be used in Outlook with GWSMO | Syncs with Google Workspace | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default calendar | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Includes events, descriptions, attendees, and locations. |
| Other calendars you own in Calendar | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Must reside in the Outlook Calendar folder, or in a Calendar subfolder. |
| Other calendars you own that aren't in Calendar | ✔ | Calendars that aren't in the Outlook Calendar folder don't sync. | ||
| Free or Busy status for Google Workspace users | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Free or Busy status for non-Google Workspace users | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Requires admin to turn on the Google Calendar service. |
| Tentative/Out of Office status | ✔ | ✔ | Available in Outlook, but either status appears as Busy in Google Calendar and to other Outlook users. | |
| Calendar attachments | ✔ | |
Available in Outlook, but attachments added to a calendar event in Outlook don't sync with other users' calendars. Instead, when looking at the event in Google Calendar, users receive the invite with a note in the description that the attachment was removed. |
|
| Category definitions | ✔ | ✔ | Categories aren't available in Google Calendar. | |
| Category assignments | ✔ | ✔ | ||
| Optional attendees | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Rich content in event descriptions (images, links, tables, bold, or italic) | ✔ | |
|
You can add rich content to a calendar description in Outlook but the formatting might not show on other users' calendars. If you're using Outlook 2016, save events in RTF format for the formatting to be synced. Learn more. |
| Event reminders | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Calendar resources | |
✔ | ✔ | Calendar resources added using the Outlook address book aren't synced to Google Workspace. For details, go to Calendar resources added using the Outlook address book don't sync. |
Related topics
Personal contacts
| Personal contact data in your old Outlook profile | Imports to your Google Workspace profile in Outlook | Can be used in Outlook with GWSMO | Syncs with Google Workspace | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal contacts in Contacts | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Includes all fields (for example, File As, images, or notes). |
| Personal contacts not in Contacts | ✔ | To sync, contacts need to be in the Outlook Contacts folder or in a subfolder of Contacts. | ||
| Multiple contact folders | ✔ | ✔ | |
Contacts folders from Outlook don't sync to Google Workspace. Instead, all contacts appear in Google Contacts. You can organize your contacts using labels within Google Contacts. |
| Rich formatting in notes | ✔ | ✔ | Rich formatting remains in Outlook only if you don't update contacts from your Google Account. | |
| Personal distribution or mailing lists | ✔ | ✔ | |
Your mailing lists from Outlook don't sync to Google Workspace. You can still email a list from Gmail by creating a Google Group. |
| Notes larger than 16 KB | ✔ | ✔ | These notes are truncated in Google Workspace, but the full note remains in Outlook. | |
| Follow-up flags, dates, and reminders | ✔ | ✔ | Flags aren't available in Google Contacts. | |
| Category definitions | ✔ | ✔ | Categories aren't available in Google Contacts. | |
| Category assignments | ✔ | ✔ | Categories aren't available in Google Contacts. | |
| User-defined fields for a contact | ✔ | ✔ | ||
| Attachments | ✔ | ✔ | Attachments aren't available in Google Contacts.
The phrase "Attachments could not be synced" is appended to the contact's Notes field. The attachment is still available in Outlook. |
Related topics
Global contacts
Your domain's Directory is available in Outlook if it's turned on by the domain administrator. Learn more about how to Set up and manage the Directory.
| Global contact data and features | Imports to your Google Workspace profile in Outlook | Can be used in Outlook with GWSMO | Syncs with Google Workspace | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domain contacts (individual and group addresses) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Out-of-domain contacts | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Added to the global Directory. |
| Autocomplete | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Works for user, group, and resource addresses you've emailed at least once. |
| Rich field data for each user | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Outlook shows the attributes that match the fields assigned to a contact in Google Workspace Directory. Custom attributes won't be visible. |
| Sender/recipient information from the Global Address List (GAL) | You can't view GAL information for a sender or recipient when you point to their email address in an Outlook message. | |||
| Check Names (aliases from the GAL) | The GAL doesn't sync email aliases so Outlook's Check Names feature cannot find them.
You can't check the group members list from Outlook when you use GWSMO with Outlook. |
Notes
| Outlook Notes in your old Outlook profile | Imports to your Google Workspace profile in Outlook | Can be used in Outlook with GWSMO | Syncs with Google Docs | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notes (in top-level Notes folder) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Outlook notes sync to plain text files stored in Docs. |
| Notes (in subfolders) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Notes subfolders in Outlook sync with folders in Docs. |
| Category assignments | ✔ | ✔ | Categories aren't available in Docs. |
Related topic
Tasks
| Outlook Tasks in your old Outlook profile | Imports to your Google Workspace profile in Outlook | Can be used in Outlook with GWSMO | Syncs with Google Tasks | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tasks | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Notes in tasks | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Due dates | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Task status marked complete | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Marking a task completed in Outlook checks it off in Google Tasks. However, marking it completed in Tasks doesn't complete the task in Outlook. |
| Other task status (In Progress or Deferred) | ✔ | ✔ | Not available in Google Tasks. | |
| Reminders | ✔ | ✔ | Not available in Google Tasks. | |
| Start dates | ✔ | ✔ | Not available in Google Tasks. | |
| Category assignments | ✔ | ✔ | Not available in Google Tasks. | |
| Top-level folders in Tasks | ✔ | ✔ | Appears as separate task lists in Google Tasks. | |
| Subfolders in Tasks | ✔ | ✔ | Google Tasks only has top-level task lists. Tasks in Outlook subfolders sync to the parent list in Google Tasks. |
Related topic
Journal entries
| Outlook Journal data in your old Outlook profile | Imports to your Google Workspace profile in Outlook | Can be used in Outlook with GWSMO | Syncs with Google Docs | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Journal entries | ✔ | ✔ |
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