Use a screen reader to create bulleted or numbered lists in outlook

Screen reader content

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 Microsoft Support home.

Use Outlook with your keyboard and Narrator, the built-in Windows screen reader, to quickly create bulleted and numbered lists.

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 Windows screen reader, Narrator. To learn more about using Narrator, go to Complete guide to Narrator.

In this topic

• Create a bulleted or numbered list

• Create a nested list

• Change the indentation of a list

• Change the bullet or number style

Create a bulleted or numbered list

1. While composing an Outlook message, at the start of a new line, swipe right with one finger until you hear: "More Options button, button collapsed, double-tap to expand." Double-tap the screen. The More Options menu expands. You hear: "Discard, button."

2. Do one of the following:

   • To start a bulleted list, swipe right until you hear "Off, bullets, button," and double-tap the screen. A filled circle bullet list item is created.

   • To start a numbered list, swipe right until you hear "Off numbering, button," and double-tap the screen. A numbered list item is created.

   The focus moves to the email message body.

3. Type the list item text using the on-screen keyboard. To go to the keyboard, swipe right until you hear a keyboard element.

   Note: If the on-screen keyboard is not available, swipe right or left until you hear "More options, button expanded," and double-tap the screen to collapse the More Options menu.

4. To add another list item, select Enter on the on-screen keyboard.

5. To finish the list, select Enter twice on the on-screen keyboard. The focus moves to an empty line below the list.

Create a nested list

You can create a list within a list, such as nested bullets in a bulleted list or outline-style numbering in a numbered list.

1. In an existing list, type the item that should come before the nested list, and select Enter on the on-screen keyboard to create a new list item after it. To go to the keyboard, swipe right until you hear a keyboard element.

2. With the cursor at the start of the line for the new item, swipe right or left with one finger until you hear: "More Options button, button collapsed, double-tap to expand." Double-tap the screen. The More Options menu expands. You hear: "Discard, button."

3. Swipe right until you hear "Format," and then double-tap the screen. The Format menu opens.

4. Swipe right until you hear "Increase indent button," and double-tap the screen. Outlook automatically increases the indent for that item and makes it part of a nested list.

5. Type the text of the first nested list item.

6. To add another nested list item, select Enter on the on-screen keyboard, and then type its text.

Note: The bullet or numbering style for the nested list item is based on the style of its parent item. You can change these styles to any available bullet or number style. To learn more, refer to Change the bullet or number style.

Change the indentation of a list

1. Select the entire list. To select text, navigate to text you want to select, and then triple-tap the screen.

   Note: If, for example, you want to select a paragraph, in the message body, swipe up or down on the screen with one finger until you hear "Paragraphs," swipe left or right to browse to the paragraph you want to select, and then triple-tap the screen. After selecting the paragraph, swipe up or down on the screen with one finger until you hear: "Items."

2. Swipe right with one finger until you hear: "More Options button, button collapsed, double-tap to expand." Double-tap the screen. The More Options menu expands. You hear: "Discard, button."

3. Swipe right until you hear "Format," and then double-tap the screen. The Format menu opens.

4. Do one of the following:

   • To add indent to the right, or move the list farther away from the margin, swipe right until you hear "Increase indent button," and double-tap the screen.

   • To add indent to the left, or move the list closer to the margin, swipe right until you hear "Decrease indent button," and double-tap the screen.

5. The indent is added to the list and the focus moves to the message body.

Change the bullet or number style

If you want to change the style of existing bullets or numbers, you can choose any style from the bullet or number library.

1. Select a list or nested list where you want to change the style. To select text, navigate to text you want to select, and then triple-tap the screen.

2. Swipe right with one finger until you hear: "More Options button, button collapsed, double-tap to expand." Double-tap the screen. The More Options menu expands. You hear: "Discard, button."

3. Swipe right until you hear "Format," and then double-tap the screen. The Format menu opens.

4. Do one of the following:

   • To change the bullet style, swipe right until you hear "Bullets, button," and then double-tap the screen. The Bullets submenu opens.

   • To change the numbering style, swipe right until you hear "Numbering, button," and then double-tap the screen. The Numbering submenu opens.

5. Swipe right or left to browse the styles. Narrator announces the styles as you move. The currently selected style is announced as "selected." To select a style, double-tap the screen.

After selecting a new style the submenu closes, and the focus moves to the email message body.

Note: If your list contains nested lists, their style is not affected by this. You need to place the cursor inside the nested list to change its style separately.

See also

Use a screen reader to align text and paragraphs in Outlook

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

Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Outlook Mail

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