How do you use Copilot in Outlook to search emails?

You open Copilot with the Copilot button near the top of Outlook and ask it in plain words, like “find every email from the last 14 days where I promised something and didn't follow up.” Microsoft's page on chatting with Copilot in Outlook says it answers questions about your inbox and calendar, and with the paid Copilot add-on license it can work across your inbox, calendar, meetings, chats and company data. Without that license you still get Copilot Chat, but Microsoft says it only reaches limited data, so a real search across your whole mailbox is where the paid license earns its keep.

What I'd do is ask for a list, not a paragraph: the person, what you promised and the date, plus a link to each email, so you can check them fast. Then spot check a few against your Sent folder, because Copilot reads and judges, it doesn't keep a ledger, and a promise you made on the phone was never in your email to begin with. Once the search works, you can save it and have it run every week. My guide to finding forgotten follow-ups with Copilot in Outlook has the exact prompts, the Monday schedule and what breaks.