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How to stop double spacing in emails and email signatures in Outlook on Mac?

Vh 20 Reputation points
2026-04-19T08:58:37.17+00:00

I have no option for 'format' when using Outlook email - on my Mac . No tab option for single spacing. I have tried clearing data via Help tab and Clear Application Data - cleared Experimental Features and Identities. However NONE of that has fixed the double spacing issue. I have also highlighted all the email text and right clicked to try and find other clearing options. But nothing has worked. I'm using Microsoft Outlook for Mac v 16.108

Any suggestions friends??

Outlook | MacOS | New Outlook for Mac | For home
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  1. Jhun Buala 5,155 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-04-19T10:31:22.51+00:00

    Hi Vh,

    Good day. In regards with your double spacing issue with your Outlook, this is usually caused by hidden paragraph formatting, an HTML line spacing, and not a visible setting, which why you can't find a simple line spacing option toggle. Try to do an HTML reset by forcing single space via Outlook Signature settings.

    1. Go to Outlook > Settings > Signatures.
    2. Select your signature.
    3. Delete everything in the signature box.
    4. Open TextEdit (Mac) > Format > Make Plain Text.
    5. Retype or paste your signature there first.
    6. Copy it from TextEdit.
    7. Paste it back into Outlook signature editor. This strips out hidden HTML spacing that causes the double spacing.

    As an alternative incase the problem is in normal emails and not just signature:

    1. Compose a new email.
    2. Select all by pressing Command + A.
    3. Go to the menu bar: Format > Paragraph Styles > “No Spacing” (if visible).
    4. If not visible, Switch format: -Format > Make Plain Text -Then switch back to Rich Text.
    5. This will reset the spacing engine internally.

    I hope this works.

    Regards,
    Jhun

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  1. Q&A Assist
    2026-04-19T08:58:55.2833333+00:00
    AI generated content. This question contains an answer created with AI from Q&A Assist. Learn more

    Outlook for Mac does not expose a classic “Format > Line spacing” control in the ribbon, so double spacing in messages and signatures is usually caused by how the text is entered (paragraph breaks vs. line breaks) and by the default font/paragraph settings.

    Use these approaches to reduce or avoid double spacing:

    1. Use line breaks instead of paragraph breaks
    • When composing an email or editing a signature, pressing Enter/Return inserts a new paragraph, which often looks like double spacing.
    • Instead, use Shift+Return to insert a line break within the same paragraph. This keeps lines closer together.
    1. Set a more compact default font for messages
    • In Outlook for Mac, open the Outlook menu in the macOS menu bar and select Settings.
    • Select Fonts.
    • For New mail and Reply or forward, select the Font... button.
    • Choose a font and Size that look correct (for example, a standard size like 11 or 12 pt) and select OK.
    • This ensures new messages and replies start from a consistent, controlled format instead of inheriting odd spacing from pasted content.
    1. Adjust zoom instead of changing spacing If the text only looks too spread out because of zoom, adjust zoom rather than spacing:
    • While composing a message, place the cursor in the message body.
    • Select Format > Zoom.
    • Pick a zoom percentage or enter a custom value. This changes how large the text appears while composing, without altering actual spacing.
    1. Rebuild signatures using clean formatting If a signature is double-spaced because it was pasted from another app (e.g., Word or a web page), rebuild it using Outlook’s default formatting:
    • Open Outlook Settings > Fonts and ensure the default New mail font and size are set as desired.
    • Create a new signature and type it manually.
    • Use Shift+Return between lines (name, title, phone, etc.) so they stay single-spaced.
    1. Use accessible font and spacing practices To keep text readable without excessive spacing:
    • Select the message text.
    • On the Format Text tab, use the Font group to choose an accessible font (such as Arial or Calibri) and a size of 11 pt or larger.
    • In the Paragraph group, open the Paragraph dialog and adjust spacing under Spacing to keep white space reasonable while avoiding overly large gaps.

    These steps rely on controlling how line breaks are inserted and standardizing fonts, which removes most double-spacing behavior in Outlook for Mac messages and signatures.

    References:

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