Use a screen reader to insert a hyperlink in outlook

This article is for people with visual impairments who use a screen reader program with the Office products and is part of the Office Accessibility content set. For more general help, see Office Support home.

For people who aren't using a screen reader, see Create or edit a hyperlink (in Windows) or Create or remove a hyperlink in a message in Outlook for Mac.

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Use Outlook with your keyboard and screen reader to link from an email to a web page, file on a shared drive, or a bookmark inside the same email.

Notes: 

• New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

• To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft Office.

In this topic

• Create an automatic hyperlink

• Link to a file or web page

• Link to another location in the current email

• Remove a hyperlink

Create an automatic hyperlink

Outlook can turn a web address into a hyperlink automatically.

While composing an email, type a web address (URL) like www.contoso.com, or an email address like someone@example.com, and then press Spacebar or Enter. Outlook changes the text to a hyperlink.

Link to a file or web page

Create a hyperlink to a file or a web page, and give the link a descriptive name.

Link to a file

Tip: To quickly create a link to a recent file, press Alt+N, I. A list of recent files opens. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the file you want, and then press Enter.

1. When you're composing an email, move the cursor to where you want to insert the link.

2. Press Alt+N, I, I. The Insert Hyperlink dialog opens.

3. To create a link to a file in the current folder, press Alt+X.

4. Press the Tab key until you hear "Look in <the current folder>," and then press the Tab key until you hear: "Current folder, tree." By default, the current folder is the Documents folder.

   To change the current folder, press Alt+L. You hear: "<The currently selected folder>." Press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the location you want, and then press Enter to select.

5. Press the Tab key until you hear "Current folder, tree," and then press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the file you want.

6. Press Alt+T. You hear: "Text to display." Type the text you want to appear in the email as the link text.

7. To insert the file link, press Enter.

Link to a browsed page

1. While composing an email, move the cursor to where you want to insert the link.

2. Press Alt+N, I, I. The Insert Hyperlink dialog opens.

3. To create a link to a browsed page, press Alt+X and then Alt+B. The Browsed Pages option is selected.

4. Press the Tab key until you hear the first page in the list of browsed pages.

5. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the page you want.

6. Press Alt+T. You hear: "Text to display." Type the text you want to appear in the email as the link text.

7. To insert the file link, press Enter.

Link to a web page

1. While composing an email, move the cursor to where you want to insert the link.

2. Press Alt+N, I, I. The Insert Hyperlink dialog opens. The focus is on the Address text field.

3. Type the address of the web page.

4. Press Alt+T. You hear: "Text to display." Type the text you want to appear in the email as the link text.

   Tip: It's a good idea to use the title of the web page as the link text. When people click the link and go to the page, the screen reader reads the title first.

5. To insert the link, press Enter.

Link to another location in the current email

You can create internal links to predefined styles such as headings and bookmarks. For instructions on how to create headings in Outlook, refer to Add headings.

Create a bookmark

1. Move the cursor to the link target location. The destination can be a heading, piece of text, or an image.

2. Press Alt+N, K. The Bookmark dialog opens and the focus moves to the Bookmark name text field.

3. Type a name for the bookmark.

   Note: Bookmark names must begin with a letter. They can contain letters, numbers, and the underscore character, for example, Dev_Report_2.

4. To add the bookmark in the list of bookmarks, press Alt+A.

Insert a link to a bookmark

1. While composing an email, move the cursor where you want to insert the link.

2. Press Alt+N, I, I. The Insert Hyperlink dialog opens.

3. Press Alt+A. The Place in This Document option is selected and the focus moves to the bookmark tree.

4. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the bookmark you want, and then press Enter. The bookmark link with the bookmark name is inserted in the email.

Remove a hyperlink

1. While composing an email, select the link text or the hyperlinked image.

2. Press Shift+F10, and then Alt+R. The hyperlink is removed.

See also

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

Use a screen reader to insert a picture or image in Outlook

Keyboard shortcuts for Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Mail

Use Outlook for Mac with your keyboard and VoiceOver, the built-in Mac OS screen reader, to link from an email to a web page or file on a shared drive.

Notes: 

• New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

• This topic assumes that you are using the built-in macOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, go to VoiceOver Getting Started Guide.

In this topic

• Create an automatic hyperlink

• Link to a file or web page

• Remove a hyperlink

Create an automatic hyperlink

Outlook can turn a web address into a hyperlink automatically.

When you're composing an email, in the message body, type a web address (URL) like www.contoso.com, or an email address like someone@example.com, and then press Spacebar or Enter. Outlook changes the text to a hyperlink.

Link to a file or web page

Create a hyperlink to a file or web page, and give the link a descriptive name.

Insert hyperlink to a file

1. In the email you're composing, move the cursor to where you want to insert the link.

2. Press Control+Command+K. The Insert Hyperlink dialog opens.

3. To create a link to a file, press the Tab key until you hear: "<The current tab,> selected."

4. Press the Right or Left arrow key until you hear "Web page or file, tab," and then press Spacebar to select.

5. Press the Tab key until you hear "Select, period," and then press Spacebar to select. You hear: "Choose a file to link to."

6. Press the Tab key to move to the location you want, and then use the arrow keys to browse the items. To navigate between folders and subfolders, press the Right or Left arrow keys until you hear the file you want to link to.

7. Press the Tab key until you hear "Open, button," and then press Spacebar. The file is selected and the dialog closes.

8. To add text that shows in the email instead of the file address, in the Insert Hyperlink dialog, press the Tab key, until you hear "Text to display, edit text," and then type the text.

9. To insert the link, press Enter. The dialog is closed and the hyperlink is inserted.

Insert hyperlink to a web page

1. In the email, move the cursor to where you want to insert the link.

2. Press Control+Command+K. The Insert Hyperlink dialog opens.

3. To create a link to a web page, press the Tab key until you hear: "The current tab, selected."

4. Press the Right or Left arrow key until you hear "Web page or file, tab," and then press Spacebar to select.

5. Press the Tab key until you hear "Address, edit text," and then type the web address of the web page.

6. To add text that shows in the email instead of the address, press the Tab key until you hear "Text to display, edit text," and then type the text.

   Tip: It's a good idea to use the title of the web page as the link text. When people click the link and go to the page, the screen reader reads the title first.

7. To insert the link, press Enter. The dialog is closed and the hyperlink is inserted.

Remove a hyperlink

1. In the email, select the link text or the hyperlinked image.

2. Press Command+K, and then press the Tab key until you hear: "Remove link button." To select, press Spacebar.

   The Insert Hyperlink dialog box closes, and the hyperlink is removed from the text. The text itself remains intact.

See also

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

Use a screen reader to insert a picture or image in Outlook

Keyboard shortcuts for Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Mail

Use Outlook for iOS with VoiceOver, the built-in iOS screen reader, to link from an email to a web page or file on a shared drive.

Notes: 

• New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

• This topic assumes that you are using the built-in iOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, visit Apple accessibility.

Create a link

1. When you're composing an email, place the cursor where you want to insert the link.

2. To open the context menu, double-tap and hold the screen.

3. Swipe left twice and then swipe right until you hear "Add link, menu item," and then double-tap the screen. The Add Link menu opens with focus on the Text field.

4. If you want to name the link with something else than just the URL, type the link text using your on-screen keyboard. To go to the keyboard, swipe right until you hear a keyboard element.

5. To add the web address of the page or file you want to link to, from the Text field, swipe right until you hear "URL, text field," double-tap the screen, and type the address.

6. Swipe left until you hear "Done button," and then double-tap the screen. The link is inserted in the email message body.

See also

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

Use a screen reader to insert a picture or image in Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Mail

Use Outlook for Android with TalkBack, the built-in Android screen reader, to link from an email to a web page or file on a shared drive.

Notes: 

• New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

• This topic assumes that you are using the built-in Android screen reader, TalkBack. To learn more about using TalkBack, go to Android accessibility.

Create a link

1. When you're composing an email, place the cursor where you want to insert the link.

2. To open the context menu, double-tap and hold the screen. The context menu opens.

3. Swipe right until you hear "Add link," and then double-tap the screen. The Edit link dialog opens with focus on the Text to display text field.

4. To add a link name, type the link text using your on-screen keyboard.

   Note: Make sure you add a link name, otherwise the link won't be displayed.

   Note: You can find the keyboard by exploring the items on the screen. To explore, place a finger on the screen and drag it around. TalkBack announces the items as you land on them. To select an item, when on the item, lift your finger. Depending on your device settings, you may need to double-tap the screen to insert the character.

5. To add the web address of the page or file you want to link to, from the Text to display text field, swipe right until you hear "Link, edit box," double-tap the screen, and type the address.

6. Swipe right until you hear "Save button," and then double-tap the screen. The link is inserted in the email message body.

See also

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

Use a screen reader to insert a picture or image in Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Mail

Use Outlook on the web with your keyboard and screen reader to link to a web page or file on a shared drive when composing a message with Mail. We have tested it with Narrator, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques.

Notes: 

• New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

• To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft Office.

• This topic assumes that the Reading pane is off.

• When you use Outlook on the web, we recommend that you use Microsoft Edge as your web browser. Because Outlook on the web runs in your web browser, the keyboard shortcuts are different from those in the desktop program. For example, you'll use Ctrl+F6 instead of F6 for jumping in and out of the commands. Also, common shortcuts like F1 (Help) and Ctrl+O (Open) apply to the web browser – not Outlook on the web.

• We're currently updating Outlook.office.com (Outlook on the Web). Some people are already using the new Outlook, and for others the classic version will be the default experience until we complete the update. For more information, go to Get help with the new Outlook on the web. Since the instructions in this topic apply to the new experience, we recommend that you switch from the classic experience to the new Outlook. To switch to the new Outlook, press Ctrl+F6 until you hear "Command, Try the new Outlook," and then press Enter. If you hear "Command toolbar" instead of "Command, Try the new Outlook," you're already using the new Outlook.

In this topic

• Create an hyperlink

• Remove an hyperlink

Create an hyperlink

1. When you're composing an email, place the cursor where you want to insert the link.

2. If you want to name the link with something else than just the URL, type the link text and select it.

3. Press the Tab key until you hear: "Formatting options." Then, press the Right or Left arrow keys until you hear "Insert hyperlink," and press Spacebar. The Insert link dialog opens and you hear: "Insert link dialog."

4. In the Insert link dialog, type the web address of the page or file you want to link to, and press Enter.

5. The Insert link dialog closes and the hyperlink is created in the email message body.

Remove an hyperlink

1. In the email message body, select the hyperlink text.

2. Press the Tab key until you hear: "Formatting options." Then, press the Right or Left arrow keys until you hear "Remove hyperlink, button," and press Spacebar.

3. The hyperlink is removed.

See also

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

Use a screen reader to insert a picture or image in Outlook

Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook

Keyboard shortcuts for Outlook

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Mail

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