How to send a mail merge with cc, bcc and attachments from Word and Outlook
Use a mail merge add-in for Microsoft Word to send personalized emails through Outlook with CC and BCC addresses taken from your Excel list, plus attachments for everyone or per recipient.
By Nur Islam- 5:12 video
- 7 steps
- 99.4K views
Jump to a step (7)
Word's built-in mail merge only fills the To field. If each email also needs a manager on CC, a BCC for your records, or an attached file, you are stuck sending them one by one.
The video uses a paid Word add-in from MAPILab that adds a Merge and Send option to Word's mail merge. You set up the merge the usual way (Excel contacts, a Word template, merge fields), then use the add-in to choose the To, CC and BCC columns, the subject and the attachments.
The add-in has a 30-day free trial, after which you need to buy a plan. The emails are sent through the Outlook desktop app on your computer. If you prefer a free, no add-in option, see the Power Automate mail merge guide linked in the FAQ.
What you need
- Microsoft Word and the Outlook desktop app on Windows
- A mail merge add-in for Word (the video uses MAPILab's, with a 30-day free trial)
- An Excel contact list with columns for email, name, CC and BCC
Step by step
0 of 7 done-
01
Install the add-in
Download the add-in, unzip it and run the installer. Close Word and any other Office apps first, because the add-in installs into Word. Click Finish when it is done.
-
02
Prepare the contacts and template
In Excel, list your contacts with an email column and separate columns for
CCandBCC. In Word, write your email template. -
03
Connect the contacts and insert merge fields
In Word, go to Mailings, click Select Recipients and choose Use an Existing List. Pick the Excel file. Use Insert Merge Field to add fields such as
Name, then click Preview Results to check the text. -
04
Set To, CC, BCC and subject in Merge and Send
Click Merge and Send, the option the add-in adds. Choose the email column for To, the
CCcolumn for CC and theBCCcolumn for BCC. Leave BCC empty if you do not have that column.For the subject, either pick a column for a personal subject line or type one subject for everyone.
-
05
Add attachments
To send the same file to everyone, click Insert File and choose it. To send a different file to each person, add a column to your Excel list with the full file path for each recipient and use that column for attachments.
-
06
Change the sending delay
Open the sending settings and look at the delivery option. Sending is set to start after 3 minutes by default. Set it to
0if you want the emails to go out right away. -
07
Send and check Outlook
Click the Send button (it shows the number of messages, for example
Send 5 messages) and confirm with Yes. Outlook opens and asks which account to send from, which matters if you have several accounts. Watch the Outbox as the emails go out, then open a few in Sent Items to check the CC, BCC and attachment.
Tips and common problems
- The add-in is free for 30 days only. After that you need a paid plan to keep using it.
- Close Word and other Office apps before installing, or the add-in may not load.
- The default 3-minute sending delay can make it look like nothing happened. Set it to
0to send right away. - For a different attachment per person, the Excel column must hold the full file path to each file.
- Pick the right sending account when Outlook asks, especially if you have more than one mailbox set up.
Quick version
In the short version: install the Word add-in, prepare your Excel contacts with separate CC and BCC columns, write the template in Word, connect the contacts and insert the merge fields, preview, then open the add-in's Merge and Send option. Choose the To, CC and BCC columns, type your subject, add attachments, adjust the sending settings and click Send. Watch the short.
Questions
Can Word mail merge add CC or BCC?
Not with the built-in mail merge. It only fills the To field. A Word add-in such as the one in the video adds CC, BCC and attachment options.
Is the mail merge add-in free?
It has a 30-day free trial. After that you need to buy a plan.
Is there a free way to send a mail merge with CC and attachments?
Yes. A Power Automate flow can read contacts from Excel and send each email with CC and its own attachment, using standard connectors. See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcNqe3hRZxk
