SharePoint Alerts Are Retired: Rules and Flows Instead

SharePoint alerts, the Alert Me emails on lists and libraries, are retired. Microsoft turned off creating new alerts for all tenants in January 2026 and stopped existing alerts working in July 2026. The replacements are list and library rules, which email when a column changes or an item is added, and Power Automate flows for anything more.

If someone in your office says "my SharePoint alerts stopped," they are right, and nothing is broken. This guide gives Microsoft's timeline, explains rules and their limits, shows when a flow is needed and how to build the common one, and ends with how to find the alerts you had so nothing important goes unwatched. For the sites these notifications sit on, see how to set up SharePoint for a small business.

What happened to SharePoint alerts?

Microsoft's retirement page sets out four stages (SharePoint Alerts retirement, Microsoft Support, checked on November 7, 2026):

When	What changed
July 2025	Creating new alerts gradually turned off for newly onboarding tenants
October 2025	Expiration activated: each alert lasts 30 days from its first run, and users can re-enable it for another 30 days from Manage my alerts
January 2026	Creating new alerts gradually turned off for all tenants
July 2026	Existing alerts "can't be extended anymore and won't work anymore"

Microsoft's reasoning is that customers "will be better served by modern notification solutions" built on Power Automate or SharePoint Rules, and it points administrators at the Microsoft 365 Assessment tool, which scans a tenant for alerts and produces a Power BI report listing every alert by site. The Alert Me article itself now opens with the same notice: "Starting July 2026, SharePoint Alerts for SharePoint in Microsoft 365 will be fully retired and stop working" (Create an alert to get notified when a file or folder changes in SharePoint, Microsoft Support, checked on November 7, 2026). That article still documents the feature for SharePoint Server, where it continues.

What are rules in SharePoint lists and libraries?

A rule is a one-sentence automation built inside the list or library: when a column changes, when a column equals a value, when an item is created or deleted, or when a date approaches, email someone. Microsoft's steps: open the list or library, select Integrate (or Automate in newer menus) and then Rules, choose Create a rule, pick the condition, and fill in the underlined parts of the sentence: the column, the value and who to notify. New rules appear on the Manage rules page, turned on by default, where you can edit or delete them (Create a rule to automate a list or library, Microsoft Support, checked on November 7, 2026).

The same page lists the constraints that decide whether a rule is enough:

• You can notify "a person, or multiple individuals, or a column but not a group email address." Pointing the rule at a Person column (Assigned to, Requester) is how you notify whoever owns the item.
• "When using a date approaches, you can only have two of this type of rule per list or library."
• "Creating a rule based on a multi-line text column is not supported."
• You need Contribute permission on the list or library to manage rules.
• Emails come from no-reply@sharepointonline.com, so warn people before they filter it as junk.

Rules replace the most common alert ("tell me when something is added here") with no license question and no owner handoff problem; they belong to the list, not to a person. Design the columns to support them: a Status choice column and an Owner person column make most notifications a rule. See SharePoint lists for small business for column design.

When do you need Power Automate instead?

Reach for a flow when the notification needs anything a one-sentence rule cannot express: a condition on two columns, a message to a Teams channel or a distribution group, a daily digest instead of one email per change, an approval, or an update to another system. The SharePoint connector's triggers include When an item is created, When an item is created or modified, When a file is created (properties only), When a file is created or modified (properties only), When an item or a file is modified, and When an item is deleted. It is a standard connector, throttled at 600 API calls per connection per 60 seconds (SharePoint connector, Microsoft Learn, checked on November 7, 2026).

Licensing is usually not a barrier: Microsoft states that "Some Microsoft 365 licenses include limited Power Apps and Power Automate use rights" intended for Microsoft 365 data and standard connectors (Licensing overview for Microsoft Power Platform, Microsoft Learn, checked on November 7, 2026). SharePoint, Outlook and Teams are all standard connectors. Lifecycle is the thing to manage. Microsoft's flow limits state that a flow whose trigger or actions fail continuously is turned off after 14 days, that a flow not triggered within 90 days "might be turned off" unless its owner holds a premium or capacity license (owners are notified 30 days before), and that a run can last at most 30 days before pending steps time out (Limits of automated, scheduled, and instant flows, Microsoft Learn, checked on November 7, 2026). A quarterly flow on a rarely used library needs a second owner who watches for those emails.

How do you replace an alert with a flow?

The most common retired alert was "email me when a file is added to this library." Rebuilt as a flow:

1. In Power Automate, create an automated cloud flow and choose the SharePoint trigger When a file is created (properties only). Pick the site and the library.
2. Add a Condition if only some files matter, for example a Document type column equal to Contract, or a folder path.
3. Add Send an email (V2) from the Office 365 Outlook connector, or Post message in a chat or channel from the Teams connector, and include the file name, the link and who added it from the trigger's dynamic content.
4. Name the flow for the library and the audience, add a co-owner from the team, and save.
5. Upload a test file, confirm the message, then record the flow in the same place you track the library's owner.

For a digest, use a scheduled flow that runs each morning, a Get files (properties only) action filtered on Modified in the last day, and one email with the list. For anything that ends in a decision, the pattern is in our SharePoint approval workflow guide, and if the "alert" was really someone asking for a form submission to reach them, see SharePoint forms.

How do you find and clean up the alerts you had?

Individuals can still open a list or library's menu and select Manage my alerts to see what they had subscribed to and delete it. For the whole tenant, run the Microsoft 365 Assessment tool Microsoft recommends; its Alerts report lists every alert by site collection and web, which becomes your to-do list: for each, decide rule, flow or nothing. In our experience most old alerts were set by people who have since changed roles, so expect to drop more than you rebuild.

What this does not do, and the limits to plan around

• Alerts cannot be re-enabled or recreated in SharePoint in Microsoft 365; the feature continues only in SharePoint Server.
• Rules cannot notify a group address, run on multi-line text columns, or exceed two date-approaches rules per list or library.
• Rules send one email per event; digests, conditions and Teams posts need Power Automate.
• A flow runs under its creator's connections and can be turned off after 14 days of errors or 90 days without triggers; name a co-owner.
• The SharePoint connector is limited to 600 calls per connection per minute, which matters for busy libraries with several flows.

Frequently asked questions

Can I still create a SharePoint alert?

Not in SharePoint in Microsoft 365. Microsoft turned off creating new alerts for all tenants in January 2026 and stopped existing alerts working in July 2026. Use a rule or a Power Automate flow instead.

Do rules work on document libraries as well as lists?

Yes. Rules are available on lists and libraries, so "notify me when a file is added" or "when Status changes to Final" can be a rule on a library, provided you have Contribute permission.

Can a SharePoint rule notify a group or a shared mailbox?

Microsoft states a rule can notify a person, several people or a Person column, but not a group email address. To notify a group, distribution list or Teams channel, use a Power Automate flow.

Do SharePoint rules or flows cost extra?

Rules are part of SharePoint. Flows that use standard connectors such as SharePoint, Outlook and Teams are covered by the limited Power Automate rights Microsoft includes with Microsoft 365 licenses; premium connectors need a Power Automate plan.

Will my flow stop if the person who built it leaves?

It can, because a flow runs under its creator's connections. Add a co-owner from the team when you build it, or create it with a service account, and watch for Microsoft's emails about flows being turned off after errors or inactivity.

How quickly does a rule send its email?

Rules react to the change event rather than on the old alert schedule; Microsoft's rules article does not state a delivery time. If timing is critical, test it on your list and, for anything that must be immediate, use a flow with an instant trigger.

Sources

Checked on November 7, 2026.

• SharePoint Alerts retirement, Microsoft Support: the timeline, replacements and the Microsoft 365 Assessment tool.
• Create an alert to get notified when a file or folder changes in SharePoint, Microsoft Support: the retirement notice and Manage my alerts.
• Create a rule to automate a list or library, Microsoft Support: rule conditions, limits, permissions and the sender address.
• SharePoint connector, Microsoft Learn: triggers and the 600 calls per 60 seconds limit.
• Limits of automated, scheduled, and instant flows, Microsoft Learn: 30-day run duration and the 14-day and 90-day turn-off rules.
• Licensing overview for Microsoft Power Platform, Microsoft Learn: Power Automate rights in Microsoft 365 licenses.