The Outlook integration connects your Microsoft 365 mailboxes to Tekst so that incoming emails can be read, categorized, organized into folders, and (when configured) forwarded. It is the most widely used integration on the platform.
Before you connect Outlook, you choose how Tekst authenticates with Microsoft 365. There are two options, and the choice matters: it determines how resilient the connection is over time and who needs to set it up.
The two account types
When you add an Outlook integration in Tekst, you select one of the following:
- Organization-wide Outlook account (recommended). A Microsoft 365 administrator grants Tekst tenant-wide access once. Tekst then connects to mailboxes using application-level access that is not tied to any single user's sign-in.
- Personal Outlook account. An individual user signs in with their own Microsoft 365 account and authorizes Tekst to access their mailbox (and, optionally, shared mailboxes they can reach).
Why organization-wide is recommended
The organization-wide option uses application-level access that is granted by an administrator and is not bound to any individual user's credentials. This has one important consequence:
- The connection survives password changes and MFA changes. Because there is no user sign-in behind the connection, rotating a password or rolling out multi-factor authentication (MFA) does not break the integration.
- It does not depend on one person's account. If an employee leaves or their account is disabled, the integration keeps working.
- Access can be centrally scoped and audited. An administrator decides exactly which mailboxes Tekst can reach.
By contrast, a personal account is tied to one user's sign-in. If that user changes their password, or your organization introduces or enforces MFA, the saved authorization can no longer be refreshed and the integration will stop syncing until the user reconnects. Personal accounts are best for individuals connecting their own mailbox, or for quickly trying out the integration.
Which should you choose?
| Organization-wide | Personal | |
|---|---|---|
| Who sets it up | A Microsoft 365 administrator | Any user, for their own mailbox |
| Survives password / MFA changes | Yes | No - the user must reconnect |
| Best for | Teams, shared mailboxes, production use | A single user's own mailbox |
For almost all organizations we recommend connecting an organization-wide account. Use a personal account only when an individual needs to connect their own mailbox.
Next steps
- To set up the recommended option, see Connect an organization-wide Outlook account.
- To connect a single user's mailbox, see Connect a personal Outlook account.
- For the exact Microsoft Graph permissions involved, see Microsoft Graph permissions Tekst requests.
If something stops syncing after setup, see the "Troubleshoot the Outlook integration" article.
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