Cannot add contact in Outlook.

TerryMurphy-6489 25 Reputation points
2026-07-16T13:10:07.9266667+00:00

I am trying to add a contact to my Outlook People list but keep getting aa error message "Cannot save contact". I have checked on webmail and do not have a problem on line. Anybody had this problem and got around the issue.

Outlook | Windows | New Outlook for Windows | For home
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SD - IA 179.4K Reputation points Independent Advisor
2026-07-17T14:23:54.27+00:00

Thanks for the details. I can assure you the contacts feature is broken from the backend. Earlier in the past, it got broken too, and they fixed it in a week. The support agents on the Engineering Team will surely help you out.

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  1. SD - IA 179.4K Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-07-16T15:08:32.1233333+00:00

    Hi,

    I'm going to run through a few steps with you. Some of these are diagnostic — they help me narrow down what's wrong, not fix it outright. So if nothing changes after a step, that's normal and expected, not a dead end. I'll keep going until we've got this resolved.

    Please try this, and let me know if it works, my community colleague suggested that in a Reddit thread and it worked.

    Try this, please.

    Press Windows + R, type %localappdata%\Microsoft, and press Enter.

    Delete the Olk and OneAuth folders.

    Restart Outlook.

    This only removes temporary Outlook data that will be recreated automatically. Please try reconfiguring the account and let me know.

    I’m eager to hear back and work together to find a solution.

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  2. SD - IA 179.4K Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-07-17T14:02:52.0866667+00:00

    Thanks, Terry. I can assure you this is a server-side issue. Could you please click Help > Ask Support, type "Cannot save contacts" and it should send the diagnostic information to Microsoft. They will reply you with potential solution if any, and any estimated time of arrival of fix.
    User's image

    I hope this information helps. If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to reach out.

    Otherwise, if your problem is resolved, please take a moment to close the thread. Wishing you good luck!

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