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How to Generate Microsoft 365 Daily Email Activity Reports
Question details
The user wants to generate a 90-day report displaying daily inbound and outbound email counts for specific users and shared mailboxes, which can be exported to Excel.
- Product
- Microsoft 365
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Tracking daily email activity for Microsoft 365 users and shared mailboxes over a 3-month period.
- Observed behavior
- The default Microsoft 365 email activity report only provides total counts for a selected timeframe and lacks a day-by-day inbound and outbound breakdown.
Ensure you have Microsoft 365 global admin, Exchange admin, or report reader permissions before attempting to access mail activity data, and have a spreadsheet application ready to open the exported CSV files.
View Default Email Activity Reports in Microsoft 365 Admin Center
Use the built-in Admin Center to view overall total email activity, even though it does not provide granular daily inbound and outbound metrics.
The native Microsoft 365 admin center provides high-level usage statistics. While this will not give you a day-by-day breakdown, it is a quick way to verify overall email traffic volumes.
Log in to the Microsoft 365 Admin Center using your administrator credentials.
Go to Reports, then click on Usage in the left-hand navigation menu.
Locate the Email activity widget and click 'View more' to see total sent and received counts over 7, 30, 90, or 180 days.
Generate a Daily Breakdown Report using PowerShell
Since the default dashboard lacks daily breakdowns, running a custom script via Exchange Online PowerShell is the most effective workaround to get exportable daily counts.
Analyze Your Exported Email Activity Reports with WPS Office
While Microsoft 365 requires advanced PowerShell scripts to generate daily email reports, opening and analyzing those exported CSV files shouldn't be complicated or expensive. WPS Office is a lightweight, highly compatible alternative to Microsoft Office that lets you view, format, and analyze your reports seamlessly.
- 1. Open the Exported Report: Launch WPS Spreadsheet and open the CSV or XLSX file generated by your PowerShell script.
- 2. Format the Data: Select your data columns and apply cell formatting to clearly distinguish between dates, inbound counts, and outbound counts.
- 3. Insert a Pivot Chart: Go to the Insert tab and create a Pivot Chart to visually analyze the daily email activity trends over your 90-day period.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can't I see daily inbound and outbound counts in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center?
The native Microsoft 365 Email Activity report is designed to show aggregated total counts over predefined periods (like 7, 30, or 90 days) rather than a granular day-by-day breakdown.
Can I request Microsoft to add daily email reporting features?
Yes, you can submit feature requests directly through the Microsoft Feedback Portal. Product teams frequently review this portal to prioritize future updates based on user demand.
Is there a limit to how far back I can trace emails in Microsoft 365?
Default message trace in the Exchange admin center allows you to search email routing data for the past 90 days. For data older than 90 days, you need to rely on historical search features or third-party archiving tools.
What is the best way to open the exported CSV email report?
You can open the exported CSV file using any standard spreadsheet software, such as WPS Spreadsheet or Microsoft Excel. These tools allow you to easily sort, filter, and convert the raw data into visual charts.
