Microsoft Bookings vs FindTime: Scheduling Poll in 2026

FindTime no longer exists. Microsoft replaced the FindTime Outlook add-in with Scheduling Poll, a poll built into Outlook, and said the add-in would stop working from December 11, 2023. So the comparison people need now is Microsoft Bookings against Scheduling Poll, and they do different jobs: a poll finds one time that suits a group, while Bookings (or Bookings with me) lets each person pick a free slot from your availability with no vote.

If you used FindTime for meetings with several people, use Scheduling Poll. If you used it to let clients choose a time with you, Bookings with me or a shared booking page is the better fit.

What happened to FindTime#

Microsoft announced Scheduling Poll on July 22, 2022, saying the FindTime add-in "will stop working and be removed from Outlook for Windows, Web and Mac" and that you could "expect the FindTime add-in to stop working as early as December 11, 2023". The removal started that day and was due to finish within the week. A Microsoft Community moderator pointed users to the same post on Microsoft Q&A in November 2023. Microsoft Support now says "as announced in July 2022, scheduling poll has replaced the FindTime Outlook add-in."

What carried over:

• Old polls. Microsoft said FindTime polls "should remain active and actionable" through the voting page and the polls dashboard.
• The name in the URL. The dashboard still lives at a /findtime/dashboard address, which is why the name lingers. The announcement gives outlook.office.com/findtime/dashboard, and the current dashboard article gives outlook.office365.com/findtime/dashboard.
• Rollout by client. Outlook on the web and Mac got Scheduling Poll first, then classic Outlook for Windows by update channel. The Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel (Version 2308) followed in January 2024. GCC High was excluded on the web and Mac.

The same announcement also says the old findtime.microsoft.com page would redirect after "12/12/2022", which doesn't match its 2023 retirement dates.

Side-by-side comparison#

All as of October 2026.

How Scheduling Poll works#

You start a poll from a new email or calendar event in Outlook. Add the attendees, pick a duration and a first date, and Outlook suggests times "based on the best attendee availability". You keep the options you want (up to 15; Microsoft recommends three to five) and send. Attendees vote from the email, the event, their calendar or a secure web page. The organizer then picks a time, or lets Outlook book it.

The organizer dashboard holds the defaults:

• Schedule when attendees reach consensus. Only required attendees' votes decide. Optional attendees' votes break ties, and "the earliest time takes precedence". Microsoft documents auto-scheduling for new Outlook for Windows.
• Hold selected times on my schedule. This adds tentative holds, removed when the meeting is scheduled or the poll is cancelled.
• Lock poll for attendees. Attendees can't suggest new times or change the attendee list.
• Require attendees to verify their identity. Voters sign in with a work or school account or enter an emailed code.
• Default duration and Limit suggestions to meeting hours.

The Microsoft Support pages disagree on one point. The overview article says attendees "can't propose new times", while the voting article describes a Propose another time option that only a locked poll removes. Test it in your tenant before you tell attendees either way.

The limits matter for teams that relied on FindTime. Scheduling Poll isn't supported for Outlook.com consumer accounts or for Gmail, Yahoo, POP or IMAP accounts. The organizer needs an Exchange Online mailbox, and on-premises and shared mailboxes aren't supported. In new Outlook, delegates can't create polls or vote for the calendar owner. Classic Outlook needs a Microsoft 365 Apps for business or enterprise plan that includes Exchange Online.

How Bookings works instead#

Bookings doesn't ask anyone to agree. It publishes your availability and lets each person take a slot, with confirmations, reminders and a Teams link sent automatically. How Bookings works maps the whole product. There are two versions:

• Bookings with me, in Outlook, is one person's page. Microsoft now calls it Personal Bookings. Meeting types can be public, or private and shared only by link, and Microsoft says private ones "can also generate single use links". Bookings with me in Outlook covers the settings.
• Shared booking pages carry services, staff, scheduling policy, custom questions and group capacity. Shared Bookings vs Bookings with me helps you choose.

What we saw when testing (September 2026)#

Bookings fills your calendar continuously rather than from a short list of chosen times. When we captured the public booking pages Microsoft hosts, personal pages used a lead time of 1 hour, a 90-day window and 30-minute steps whenever the meeting type didn't set its own. Slots sat on a grid from midnight, and the earliest one offered was later than now plus the lead time plus 15 minutes. Shared pages defaulted to a 1-day lead time and a 365-day window. If you set nothing, people can book further ahead than a typical poll would ever offer, so set the lead time and window on purpose.

When Bookings is the better tool#

• Clients, students or applicants book you repeatedly, each on their own.
• You want people to book without waiting for anyone else to vote.
• You need services, several staff, group sessions or a page on your website.
• You want reminders and follow-up emails on every appointment.

When Scheduling Poll is the better tool#

• One meeting has to suit several people, some of them outside your organization.
• You want holds on the calendar while people decide.
• You want Outlook to book the meeting as soon as the required attendees agree.
• You don't want to set up a booking page at all.

Using both#

Many teams need both. A hiring panel might agree its kick-off with Scheduling Poll, then send candidates a Bookings link for interview slots (scheduling interviews with Bookings). If you need a poll tool that works the same for people outside Microsoft 365, see Microsoft Bookings vs Doodle. If you want a personal link with more routing and tracking, see Microsoft Bookings vs Calendly.

Pricing and licences#

Neither has its own price. Bookings comes with the Microsoft 365 and Office 365 plans Microsoft lists, and the same licence covers Bookings with me (licence requirements). Scheduling Poll comes with Outlook for anyone whose mailbox is in Exchange Online, with the classic Outlook plan requirement above.

BookingsXP is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft. Microsoft, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Bookings, Outlook and Teams are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. Other product names are trademarks of their respective owners.