Managing meetings and events using Outlook on the web for business
Dear @Livan Torres,
I understand it can be frustrating to be a group owner but not have the same category management options you're used to on your personal calendar.
Based on official Microsoft documentation and many discussions on this topic, the issue is not with your permissions, but with a fundamental design limitation of Microsoft 365 Group calendars.
The "Manage Categories" command is generally only available for your own personal mailbox calendar and is not a feature that is currently supported for Microsoft 365 Group calendars. Being an owner of the group grants you administrative control over membership and settings, but it does not currently enable the ability to create, edit, or delete the master category list for the group's calendar. You may be able to assign existing, default categories to individual events (for example, by right clicking the event), but you cannot manage the master category list itself.
Since this is a known limitation, here are a couple of alternative approaches you could consider:
- Use a Shared Mailbox Calendar: A common workaround is to use the calendar within a Shared Mailbox instead of a Microsoft 365 Group. In my experience, these calendars often behave more like a personal calendar, allowing for full category management. Please refer to this document: About shared mailboxes, shared folders, and shared calendars in Outlook | Microsoft Support
- Use a Personal Calendar: You could also create a standard calendar in your own mailbox and share it with the necessary colleagues. If you grant the appropriate permissions (e.g.,
Owner), other users may be able to apply the categories you have set up, although they might not be able to manage the master list themselves.
Because this is a frequently requested feature, Microsoft is likely aware of the demand. I encourage you to submit feedback directly to Microsoft through the Outlook application (Help > Feedback) or You can send feedback directly via Outlook · Community. This is the most direct way to influence future product updates.
I’m sorry that I’m not able to provide any additional direct assistance in this case, as I don’t have the ability to intervene or make changes to these kinds of product limitations myself. That said, I genuinely want to express my understanding and empathy for your situation, and I do support the view that improvements in this area would meaningfully help deliver a better overall user experience. If you decide to submit feedback or create a post on the feedback portal, please feel free to share the link here. I’d be more than happy to upvote it on your behalf to help increase its visibility.
I hope this explanation clarifies the situation. While there isn't an immediate fix, I hope one of the suggested workarounds is suitable for your needs. Please let me know if you have any other questions.
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