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Microsoft Exchange Zapier integrationAutomate Microsoft Exchange with Zapier.

Microsoft Exchange Zapier integration: 9 triggers, 23 actions and 6 searches. Mail, calendar and contacts all move: draft a reply when a matching email lands, file messages, set up meetings, keep contacts in step with your other tools. Here is what each step does and what it costs.

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Overview

What the Microsoft Exchange Zapier integration is for

This integration connects your Microsoft Exchange mailbox, calendar and contacts to the other apps you use, through Zapier. Exchange can start an automation when mail, events or contacts change, and it can act at the end of one: send, reply, file, flag, schedule or update. Every Exchange trigger is checked on a timer, never pushed.

A reply waiting in Drafts, not in your head. New Email Matching Search watches for the messages your search terms describe, and Create Draft Reply prepares the answer. You read it, adjust it, and Send Draft Email can send it later from another Zap if you want.

An inbox that files itself. Move Email to Folder, Set Categories on an Email and Set Email Importance sort messages that another app has already qualified, so the folder you open first only holds what needs you.

Meetings booked from elsewhere. A signup in another tool can become an Exchange event through Create Event, with Add Attendees to Calendar Event filling in the guest list.

Now what Zapier does not do here. None of the nine triggers is instant: each one waits for the next check of your plan, 15 minutes on Free. Add User to Distribution List only works on Microsoft 365 Business accounts that have an organizational directory. And no Zap goes back in time, so mail that arrived before you switched it on is never processed. If you are still weighing the tool itself, see our Zapier review.

Vocabulary

Zapier vocabulary in one minute

Eight words you will meet in the editor. Each is explained once here, then used as is.

Zap
The automation you build on Zapier: one trigger, then one or more actions that run every time the trigger event happens.
Trigger
The event in an app that starts the Zap, like a new email in Exchange. Once the Zap is on, Zapier waits for it.
Action
What the Zap does once it has started: the step that writes, sends or moves something for you, like Send Email.
Task
The unit Zapier bills: one action your Zap completes successfully. The number on your plan is a count of those.
Polling vs instant
A polling trigger is checked on a timer for new items. An instant one is reported by the app itself. All nine Exchange triggers poll.
Filter
A step that lets the Zap go on only when what arrived meets the condition you set, and stops it otherwise.
Search step
A step that looks up something already in an app, an email, a contact or an event, so later steps can use what it found.
Connection
Your Exchange account, linked to Zapier once, then reused by every step that works with Exchange.
Cost

What a Microsoft Exchange Zap really costs

Zapier bills tasks, not Zaps. The trigger never costs a task, and checking your mailbox for new mail costs nothing however often it happens. A task is counted when an action completes; an action that fails is not counted.

  • Free plan100 tasks a month, unlimited two-step Zaps
  • Trigger and checksNever cost a task
  • Failed actionNot counted
  • Search, filter or second actionMulti-step Zap, paid plan

Exchange is not reserved for paid plans, so it runs on the free plan: 100 tasks a month, unlimited Zaps, each limited to two steps. A second action, a filter or one of the six searches turns the Zap into a multi-step Zap, which needs a paid plan. All nine triggers poll, so the grid below sets how long a new email can wait before the Zap sees it. A few apps and a few actions take more than one task when they complete, so keep an eye on your count once the Zap runs.

Connect

Connect your Exchange account

  1. 01

    Open the Apps page

    Go to the Apps page of your Zapier account and click + Add connection. You need an account on Exchange, plus read or write access on anything you do not own yourself and want the Zap to touch.

  2. 02

    Pick Microsoft Exchange

    Type Microsoft Exchange in the dialog and pick it among the results, then click Add connection. A new tab opens on the Microsoft sign-in page, where the rest of the connection happens.

  3. 03

    Sign in and grant access

    Sign in with the mailbox the Zap should work in, then grant Zapier access to that account. From then on, every Exchange step in every Zap reuses this connection, so you only do it once.

First Zap

Your first Zap: a draft reply for the emails that matter

GoalWhen an email matching your search terms reaches your inbox, the Zap checks one condition, then prepares a draft reply in Exchange that you review before sending.

  1. 01

    Build: pick the trigger

    Create a Zap, choose Microsoft Exchange and New Email Matching Search. Type your Search terms; the field also accepts Advanced Query Search (AQS) syntax.

  2. 02

    Test the trigger

    Run the test. Zapier brings back the three most recent emails matching your search, so pick one that looks like the real thing for the steps that follow.

  3. 03

    Add the filter

    Add a step with the plus icon, choose Filter, then fill its three boxes: the field to look at, the rule and the value. Pick a text rule for text, a number rule for numbers. A filter makes the Zap multi-step, so it needs a paid plan.

  4. 04

    Add Create Draft Reply

    Add the Exchange action Create Draft Reply and map the Email ID from the trigger. Decide whether Reply to All should be on, then test the step and open Drafts to read the result.

  5. 05

    Publish

    Click Publish to switch it on. With a filter, this is a multi-step Zap that needs a paid plan, and new mail is picked up at your plan's interval.

Triggers

The 9 Exchange triggers

9 events start a Zap when something happens in Microsoft Exchange. Zapier checks for them at the interval your plan allows.

1

Calendar Event Start

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers at a specified time before an event in your calendar starts.”

Starts the Zap a set amount of time before one of your calendar events begins, so you can prepare people or documents ahead of the meeting.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one.
When to use it
you want a reminder or a briefing sent through another app before each meeting.
Watch out
the required Time Before must be 16 minutes or more on the free plan, and 6 minutes or more on higher plans.
2

New Attachment

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new email with attachments arrives.”

Fires on new emails that come with attachments, and ignores the ones without, which saves you a filter on that point.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one.
When to use it
files sent by email have to land in a storage tool or a shared drive without anyone dragging them over.
Watch out
check at the test what the trigger returns about the files, before you map them into the next step.
3

New Calendar Event

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new event is created in your calendar.”

Reacts when an event is created in your Exchange calendar and passes it on to the rest of the Zap.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one.
When to use it
every new meeting should leave a trace in a spreadsheet, a CRM or a team channel.
Watch out
changes to an existing event do not count here; Updated Calendar Event covers those.
4

New Contact

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new contact is added to your account”

Picks up each contact newly added to your Exchange account, so the person can be copied elsewhere without retyping.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one.
When to use it
the contacts you save in Exchange belong in a mailing list or a CRM too.
Watch out
contacts that existed before the Zap was published are not picked up; only new ones count.
5

New Email

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new e-mail is received in your inbox.”

The broadest trigger of the list: any new message received in your inbox starts the Zap, with no condition of its own.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one.
When to use it
every incoming email should be logged, or you plan to sort them with a filter right after.
Watch out
a busy inbox means many runs, so narrow it with New Email Matching Search when you only care about some messages.
7

New Flagged Email

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when an email is flagged.”

Turns a flag you set in Exchange into the start of a Zap: flagging a message becomes your way of telling Zapier to act on it.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one.
When to use it
you want a follow-up in a task manager each time you flag an email for later.
Watch out
a Zap that writes where its own trigger watches can restart itself, so think twice before flagging from the same Zap.
8

New Message in Folder

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when a new message in folder is created.”

Watches one folder instead of the whole inbox, and fires when a new message appears in it.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one.
When to use it
you already sort certain messages into a dedicated folder, and that folder should feed another app.
Watch out
do not point an action of the same Zap at the folder it watches.
9

Updated Calendar Event

Polling trigger

In Zapier“Triggers when an event is updated.”

Catches changes made to events already in your calendar and hands the updated event to the Zap, so nothing edited slips by unseen.

How it fires
Zapier goes and looks at regular intervals, and how often depends on your plan: every 15 minutes on the free one.
When to use it
a copy of your meetings lives somewhere else and has to follow every change.
Watch out
a Zap that writes into the calendar its trigger watches can restart itself.
Actions

The 23 Exchange actions

Microsoft Exchange gives you 23 actions. For each one: what it does for you, when to reach for it, and what to watch out for.

1

Add Attendees to Calendar Event

Action

In Zapier“Adds attendees to a calendar event.”

Puts new people on an existing event. The Event is required.

When to use it
someone registers in another app and should be invited to a session that already exists in your calendar.
Watch out
with Merge with existing attendees? disabled, the new attendees replace the current list instead of joining it.
2

Set Categories on an Email

Action

In Zapier“Sets the categories applied to an email.”

Applies a list of category names to a message. Email ID and Categories are required, and you can mark it read or unread at the same time.

When to use it
sort mail by client or status from information held in another app.
Watch out
existing categories on the email are replaced, not added to.
3

Add User to Distribution List

Action

In Zapier“Adds a user to a distribution list or group. Only available in Microsoft 365 Business accounts that have organizational directories.”

Adds a person to a distribution list or group by email address. Distribution List and User Email are required.

When to use it
a new hire or a new member should start receiving the group's mail.
Watch out
it only works on Microsoft 365 Business accounts that have organizational directories.
4

Copy Email

Action

In Zapier“Create a copy of an email in another folder.”

Leaves the original in place and puts a duplicate in another folder, the required Destination Folder.

When to use it
a message needs to stay in the inbox and also sit in an archive folder.
Watch out
the same precaution as with moving: avoid copying into a folder watched by the Zap's own trigger.
5

Create Event

Action

In Zapier“Create an event in the calendar of your choice.”

Adds an event to the calendar you choose, with a subject and a start and end date and time, all three required.

When to use it
a booking or a signup in another app should block time in Exchange.
Watch out
with All Day Event? set to true, the times you mapped are ignored and only the date stays.
6

Create Contact

Action

In Zapier“Creates a new contact.”

Saves a new person in your Exchange contacts. Only First Name is required, the rest is up to what you map.

When to use it
a lead captured by a form should be in your Exchange contacts without retyping.
Watch out
nothing here checks for an existing contact; put Find a Contact in front if duplicates matter.
7

Create Draft Email

Action

In Zapier“Creates a draft of an email that can then be reviewed and sent out.”

Writes a complete email into your Drafts without sending it: recipients, subject, body format and body are all required.

When to use it
a human should read the message before it leaves, for example a message assembled from data in another app.
Watch out
the draft waits until someone sends it, by hand or with Send Draft Email.
8

Create Draft Reply

Action

In Zapier“Creates a draft reply for an email.”

Prepares an answer to a given email and leaves it in Drafts. The Email ID of the original message is required.

When to use it
recurring questions deserve a ready-made answer you only need to check.
Watch out
with Reply to All set to true, the reply addresses every recipient of the original.
9

Create Folder

Action

In Zapier“Create a new mail folder.”

Makes a new mail folder under the name you give in Folder Name, the only required field.

When to use it
each new project or client in another tool deserves its own folder in your mailbox.
Watch out
pick the name from data the trigger carries, so each run makes the folder it should.
10

Delete Contact

Action

In Zapier“Deletes an existing contact.”

Takes a contact out of Exchange, picked in the required Contact to Delete field.

When to use it
someone unsubscribes or leaves in your main tool and should vanish from Exchange too.
Watch out
map the contact from a search step, so the Zap deletes the right one.
11

Delete Email

Action

In Zapier“Delete an email from a shared or own mailbox.”

Removes an email from your own mailbox or from a shared one, given its required Email ID.

When to use it
automatic messages you have already copied elsewhere only clutter the inbox.
Watch out
map the Email ID from the trigger or a search, never a fixed value.
12

Delete Event

Action

In Zapier“Deletes an existing event.”

Cancels an existing calendar event, chosen in the required Event field.

When to use it
a booking cancelled in another app should free the slot in Exchange.
Watch out
find the event first with Find Calendar Event when the trigger does not hand it over.
13

Flag / Unflag Email

Action

In Zapier“Update the follow-up flag on an email.”

Changes the follow-up flag on an email. The Email ID and the Flag Action to apply are required.

When to use it
mail that needs your attention should stand out in your mailbox, based on a rule decided elsewhere.
Watch out
a Zap that writes where its own trigger watches can restart itself, so keep the trigger elsewhere.
14

Forward Email

Action

In Zapier“Forwards an existing email to new recipients.”

Passes an existing email on to new recipients. The Email ID and the To Email(s) addresses are required.

When to use it
certain messages should reach a colleague or a shared address that is not on the original thread.
Watch out
map the Email ID from the trigger, not a fixed value, or every run forwards the same message.
15

Mark Email as Read/Unread

Action

In Zapier“Update the read status of an email.”

Switches the read status of a message, set in the required Mark as field.

When to use it
automatic notifications you have already logged elsewhere should stop showing as unread.
Watch out
marking unread works too, which helps bring a message back to your attention.
16

Move Email to Folder

Action

In Zapier“Move an email to a specific folder.”

Takes an email out of where it is and puts it in the Destination Folder you pick. Both that folder and the Email ID are required.

When to use it
messages already handled by the Zap should leave the inbox.
Watch out
a Zap that writes where its own trigger watches can restart itself, so choose the folder with care.
17

Remove Categories From Email

Action

In Zapier“Remove one or more categories from an email.”

Takes one or more categories off a message, chosen in the required Categories to Remove field, with the Email ID.

When to use it
a category should come off once another app says the job is done.
Watch out
pick the exact categories to strip; the others on the email stay untouched.
18

Reply to Email

Action

In Zapier“Creates a new reply to a specified email message.”

Answers a specific message right away. Only the Email ID of the message is required.

When to use it
an acknowledgment should go back to the sender without waiting for you.
Watch out
unlike Create Draft Reply, nothing is held back for review.
19

Send Draft Email

Action

In Zapier“Send a draft email that was previously created.”

Sends a draft that already exists, identified by its required Draft Email ID.

When to use it
drafts are prepared by one Zap, then released by another once a condition is met elsewhere.
Watch out
the step needs the ID of the draft, so it follows a step that created or found it.
20

Send Email

Action

In Zapier“Send an email from your Exchange account.”

Sends a new message from your Exchange account at once. To, Subject, Body Format and Body are required.

When to use it
a confirmation or a notification has to go out without anyone reviewing it.
Watch out
there is no draft stage, nothing waits for your review.
21

Set Email Importance

Action

In Zapier“Update an email's importance level.”

Updates the importance level of a message, chosen in the required Importance field, alongside the Email ID.

When to use it
emails from accounts marked as key in your CRM should be raised in your inbox.
Watch out
the Email ID must come from an earlier step, the trigger or a search.
22

Update Calendar Event

Action

In Zapier“Updates a calendar event information.”

Edits an existing event, the required Event field, and can also set it as an online meeting or hide the attendee list.

When to use it
a change of date or room in another tool has to reach the Exchange event.
Watch out
the same Merge with existing attendees? setting decides whether guests are added or replaced.
23

Update Contact

Action

In Zapier“Updates a contact.”

Rewrites the details of a contact already in Exchange. The Contact is required.

When to use it
a phone number or a company changes in your CRM and Exchange should follow.
Watch out
the step needs to know which contact; put Find a Contact before it when the trigger does not carry it.
Searches

The 6 Exchange searches

6 search steps look for data that already exists in Microsoft Exchange, so a later step can use it.

A search step reads, it does not write. In the editor, Exchange searches sit at the bottom of the Action event list, under the SEARCH heading, and some action fields offer + Add search step to insert one right before. Three settings decide what happens when the result is not what you expected.

1

Find Calendar Event

Search

In Zapier“Finds a Calendar Event in your calendar.”

Looks for an event in your calendar from a required Search Term, matched against the subject and the event identifiers.

When to use it
a later step has to update or delete a meeting that only another app knows by name.
Watch out
searching by UniqueId cancels every other filter of the search.
2

Find a Contact

SearchFind or create

In Zapier“Search for a contact.”

Searches your Exchange contacts and returns the one it finds to the next steps. The editor also shows Find or Create Contact: the same search with the create box ticked, not a separate operation.

When to use it
before Update Contact or Delete Contact, or to avoid creating a duplicate.
Watch out
whether it wants an exact value is up to Exchange, so check at the test.
3

Find Emails

Search

In Zapier“Finds emails based on search criteria.”

Finds emails from a required Search Value across your mailbox and hands them to the following steps.

When to use it
an action needs the Email ID of a message the trigger did not provide, for instance to forward or flag it.
Watch out
several messages can match; decide with the multiple-results setting which one goes on.
4

Find Emails in Specific Folder

Search

In Zapier“Searches for emails within a specific folder rather than across all mailboxes.”

Narrows the email search to one folder, the required Folder, instead of every mailbox.

When to use it
you know the message sits in an archive or a project folder and want to avoid matches elsewhere.
Watch out
a message moved out of that folder will no longer be found here.
5

Get Attachment by ID

Search

In Zapier“Retrieves a specific email attachment using its ID.”

Fetches one attachment of an email, given the required Email ID and Attachment ID.

When to use it
a file from a known message has to be passed to a storage or document tool.
Watch out
both IDs must come from earlier steps; check at the test which ones the trigger or search returns.
6

Get Calendar Events in Date Range

Search

In Zapier“Retrieves calendar events within a specific date range.”

Brings back the events between a required start and end date and time.

When to use it
a Zap has to know what is already booked over a period before it schedules anything new.
Watch out
several events can match the range, so set the multiple-results option to what the next step expects.

The three settings every search exposes

  1. Successful if no search results are found?
    Left on its default, a search that finds nothing stops the Zap there and the steps that depended on it are skipped. Switched on, the Zap carries on empty-handed.
  2. Create X if it doesn't exist yet?
    Ticking it turns the search into a find-or-create: the setting above disappears and Zapier asks for the fields needed to create the missing item. On Exchange, only Find a Contact offers it.
  3. If multiple search results are found?
    Three ways out when several items match: keep the first one, which is the default, stop the Zap, or hand all of them on at once.
When it breaks

When it breaks

Zapier attaches a help article titled Common Problems with Microsoft Exchange to this app. Beyond it, six traps come straight from the fields and from Zapier's general rules.

Read them before you publish. For a general method when a Zap misbehaves, see our Zapier troubleshooting guide.

  • Time Before set too short

    Calendar Event Start needs at least 16 minutes of Time Before on the free plan, and at least 6 on higher plans. A shorter value does not fit the rule.

  • Categories wiped out

    Set Categories on an Email replaces the categories already on the message. To remove only some, use Remove Categories From Email instead.

  • Guest list replaced

    With Merge with existing attendees? disabled, Add Attendees to Calendar Event and Update Calendar Event replace the current attendees instead of adding to them.

  • Distribution list unavailable

    Add User to Distribution List only works on Microsoft 365 Business accounts that have organizational directories. Other accounts cannot use it.

  • Old mail is never processed

    A Zap only reacts to what arrives after you switch it on. Messages already in the inbox are not picked up; moving that backlog is a separate job.

  • A Zap that sets itself off

    A Zap that writes into the very place its own trigger watches can start again and again and burn through tasks. Keep the watched folder and the target apart.
Need help

Need help automating Microsoft Exchange with Zapier?

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FAQ

Questions about Microsoft Exchange on Zapier

01Is the Microsoft Exchange Zapier integration free?
Yes. Exchange is not reserved for paid plans, so it runs on Zapier's free plan. That plan includes 100 tasks a month and as many Zaps as you like, each built of two steps: one trigger and one action. A Zap like New Email then Send Email fits. Add a second action, a filter or one of the six Exchange searches and the Zap becomes multi-step, which requires a paid plan.
02How many tasks does an Exchange Zap use?
One task for each action that completes successfully. The trigger costs nothing, and neither do the checks Zapier runs on your mailbox, however many there are. An action that fails is not counted. So a Zap that creates a draft reply for each matching email uses one task per draft. Add Set Email Importance after it and each run costs two tasks, because every successful action is counted on its own.
03Is the Exchange integration real time on Zapier?
No. All nine Exchange triggers are polling triggers: Zapier asks Exchange for new items at a fixed interval set by your plan. That is every 15 minutes on Free, every 2 minutes on Professional, and every minute on Team and Enterprise. On paid plans you can also change how often it checks, or run a check by hand from the editor. The actions, once the Zap starts, run in order within that same run.
04What does it take to connect Exchange to Zapier?
An account on Exchange, plus read or write access on anything you do not own yourself and want the Zap to touch, a shared mailbox for example. Then, from the Apps page of your Zapier account, click + Add connection, search for Microsoft Exchange, click Add connection, sign in in the tab that opens and grant access. The connection is saved and every Exchange step reuses it. If the Zap has to touch a mailbox or a calendar that belongs to someone else, make sure that access exists before you build anything on it.
05Why won't Calendar Event Start accept a short reminder time?
Because Time Before has a floor that depends on your plan. On the free plan it must be 16 minutes or more; on higher plans, 6 minutes or more. Pick a value above the floor. Time Before (Unit), which is required too, sets whether the number counts minutes or another unit, so read both fields together. If your plan changes, check the value again, since the floor is not the same on the free plan and on higher plans. Run the trigger test before you publish.
06What if the Exchange operation you need is missing?
First check whether a search can fill the gap: Find Emails, Find a Contact or Find Calendar Event can provide the ID an existing action needs. If the operation itself is absent, open the Microsoft Exchange page on Zapier, which shows the current list of triggers, actions and searches. Today that is nine triggers, 23 actions and six searches. Anything else needs another route, such as handling that step outside Zapier.
07Zapier, Make or n8n for Microsoft Exchange?
Compare them on criteria, not on a ranking. Speed: on Zapier every Exchange trigger polls, so the interval of your plan sets the delay; check how the other tool watches the mailbox. Coverage: Zapier offers nine triggers, 23 actions and six searches here, so list the moves you actually need. Cost: Zapier bills each successful action, so count the steps per email and multiply by your monthly volume. Whichever tool you pick, test on real mail first.
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