Send & Receive Issues

Fix Word Comment Mention Emails Not Delivered in SharePoint

Tauseeq Magsi Oct 12, 2026 868 views

Question details

Users are not receiving email notifications or task assignments when they are @mentioned in Microsoft Word document comments stored in SharePoint.

Fix Word Comment Mention Emails Not Delivered in SharePoint

Product: Microsoft Word
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Collaborating on Word documents hosted on SharePoint or OneDrive and using the @mention feature in comments to alert colleagues.
Observed behavior: The mentioned users do not receive the expected email notifications, leading to missed communications and delayed task assignments.

Before you start

Before proceeding, ask the affected user to check their Junk Email or Clutter folders, and verify that the Word document is actively saved and synced to SharePoint or OneDrive.

Solution 1Recommended

Contact Microsoft 365 Administrator for Account Review

Use this solution if the mention email delivery issue is isolated to a single user, as it indicates a potential account-specific configuration error.

When email notifications fail for only one specific user while others receive them normally, the root cause is usually tied to that user's Exchange mailbox settings, routing rules, or a backend sync issue in Microsoft 365.

End-users generally cannot fix backend mailbox routing issues themselves and will require administrative assistance.

Identify the scope of the issue

Test the @mention feature with multiple colleagues in the same shared document to confirm whether the issue affects only one specific person or the entire team.

Contact your IT administrator

Reach out to your organization's Microsoft 365 administrator and provide them with the email address of the affected user and the URL of the SharePoint document.

Open a support request

The administrator must log into the Microsoft 365 admin center, navigate to 'Support', and open a new service request so Microsoft engineers can investigate the user's notification settings and service configuration.

Contact Microsoft 365 Administrator for Account Review

Admin Access Required: Only personnel with Global Administrator or Exchange Administrator roles can open official service requests for mailbox routing issues in the Microsoft 365 admin center.

Solution 2

Verify Document Permissions and Access

Ensure the mentioned user has the correct permissions to access the SharePoint site and the specific document.

Free Microsoft Office alternative

Experience Seamless Collaboration with WPS Office

If complex Microsoft 365 configurations and SharePoint syncing issues are slowing down your workflow, consider switching to WPS Office. It provides a lightweight, highly compatible, and user-friendly environment for editing documents and collaborating with your team without the hefty subscription fees.

1. Download WPS Office: Visit the official WPS website and click the free download button for your operating system.
2. Install the software: Run the downloaded installer and follow the simple on-screen instructions to set up the suite.
3. Open and collaborate: Launch WPS Writer, open your existing .docx files, and enjoy smooth document editing and team collaboration.

Completely free and lightweight Office suiteFully compatible with Microsoft Word (.docx) and Excel formatsFamiliar user interface requires zero learning curveBuilt-in cloud collaboration and easy file-sharing features

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is the @mention feature grayed out or unavailable in my Word document?

The @mention feature requires the document to be actively saved in OneDrive for Business or SharePoint. If you are working on a locally saved file, the feature will be disabled. Upload or save the file to a supported cloud location to enable mentions.

Can external guest users receive comment mention emails?

Yes, guest users can receive mention emails as long as they have been officially added to your organization's Azure Active Directory as a guest and have been granted access permissions to the specific SharePoint document.

How long does it typically take for a Word mention email to arrive?

Usually, the email notification is generated and delivered within a few minutes. However, during periods of high server load or depending on your organization's Exchange batching settings, it can occasionally be delayed.

Outlook & Email Problems