Set Outlook as default email client

Every time I double click on an email address it automatically opens up an Microsoft Mail window asking me to sign up… I didn't want to. Is there a setting I can change to make Outlook the default for email?

Of course you can set Outlook to be the default for all email usage.

In Windows 10, you'll need to set the default email client in Settings. Open Settings from the Start menu and search for Default apps.

If Outlook is not set as default for all protocols it supports, scroll to the bottom of the Default Apps page and click Set defaults by app. Find Outlook in the list, tap it then tap Manage. Outlook should have all of the defaults for each protocol listed.

Older Windows versions

While the steps below are specifically for Windows 7 and 8, the process is similar in older versions of Windows and with older versions of Outlook.

Set Outlook as default email client in Options

In Outlook, go to File, Options, General. At the bottom is an option to Make Outlook the default for E-mail, Contacts, and Calendar . It should be checked.

Click the Default Programs button to view the available protocols and extensions and choose which ones open in Outlook by default.

Set Outlook as the default using the Control Panel

Open the Control Panel.
Search for Default Programs. (Use the Search field or switch to Icon view and look for Default Programs.)
Click on Set your default programs link.
From the list of programs, select Outlook. In Windows 8, it's called "Outlook (desktop)".
Click on Set this program as default to make Outlook the default for all email, calendaring, and contact features.
Click Choose Defaults for this program to choose some, but not all, files associations or to view every files type and protocol Outlook supports. (Opens the dialog seen in the second screenshot.)
After setting the defaults, click OK then close the dialog window.