Email Rendering Issues in Outlook

Why Outlook Renders Emails Differently

Some email layouts may appear misaligned, spaced incorrectly, or formatted differently when opened in certain versions of Microsoft Outlook. This behavior is expected and is not caused by an issue within Levitate.

Unlike most modern email clients (Gmail, Apple Mail, mobile apps), Outlook desktop applications use the Microsoft Word rendering engine to display emails instead of a web browser engine. Word is designed for document editing — not web display — it interprets email code differently.

These email display differences occur after delivery and are specific to how Outlook renders the message. The email itself is sent correctly from Levitate, but Outlook interprets the HTML and CSS differently than other email clients.

Common Rendering Issues

This limitation primarily impacts older desktop versions of Outlook and can cause:

• Extra or missing spacing
• Padding and margin inconsistencies
• Column width changes
• Images shifting position or resizing
• Font differences
• Layout changes after forwarding an email

What You Can Do

While this cannot be fully prevented due to Outlook’s rendering limitations, you can minimize issues by:

• Keeping layouts simple (fewer columns)
• Avoiding overlapping elements
• Using standard fonts
• Avoiding excessive spacing or large padding values
• Reduce image and column widths slightly
• Avoid edge-to-edge content designs
• Test emails with Outlook if you have users who commonly use it

When to Contact Support

• If Levitate campaigns are not displaying correctly across multiple email clients. 
• If your Levitate campaign is not sending or appears stuck. 
• For help optimizing email templates or images for better cross-client compatibility.