How to Download an Email from Outlook (and Save It the Right Way)
Downloading an email from Outlook sounds simple — and often it is. But "downloading" can mean several different things depending on what you're trying to do: saving a single message as a file, exporting a full inbox, archiving for legal reasons, or just keeping an offline copy. The method that works best shifts significantly based on which version of Outlook you're using and what you actually need the saved email for.
What Does "Downloading an Email" Actually Mean?
When most people ask how to download an email from Outlook, they usually mean one of three things:
- Saving a single email as a file on their computer
- Exporting a folder or entire mailbox to a local file format
- Downloading attachments from within an email
These are different actions with different steps, different file outputs, and different use cases. Knowing which one you need is the first decision point.
Saving a Single Email as a File
Outlook supports saving individual emails in a few formats, most commonly .msg and .eml.
In Outlook for Windows (desktop app):
- Open the email you want to save
- Go to File → Save As
- Choose a location on your computer
- Select the file format from the dropdown — .msg is the default and retains full formatting, headers, and attachments
- Click Save
The .msg format is Microsoft-native, meaning it opens cleanly in Outlook but may require a conversion step if you ever want to open it in another email client. The .eml format is more universal and compatible with Apple Mail, Thunderbird, and other clients — but Outlook's desktop app doesn't always offer it natively without a workaround (like dragging the email to your desktop, which sometimes outputs an .eml depending on your system configuration).
In Outlook on the Web (OWA):
The browser-based version of Outlook doesn't offer a straightforward "Save As" option for individual emails. One common workaround is to print the email to PDF using your browser's built-in print dialog. This preserves the readable content but strips out metadata like full headers and embedded attachments.
For users who need the full message with headers intact, downloading from the desktop app or using export tools is more reliable.
Exporting Emails in Bulk: The PST Method
If you need to download a folder, a full inbox, or a large batch of emails, Outlook's Import/Export tool is the right approach.
In Outlook for Windows:
- Go to File → Open & Export → Import/Export
- Select Export to a file
- Choose Outlook Data File (.pst)
- Select which folder or mailbox you want to export
- Choose whether to include subfolders
- Pick a save location and click Finish
A .pst file acts as a portable container for your emails, calendar entries, contacts, and folders. It can be reopened in Outlook later or used to migrate your mailbox to a new account or device.
Important to know: PST files can grow very large very quickly. A mailbox with years of emails and attachments can easily reach several gigabytes. Storage availability and export time are both factors worth considering before starting a full export.
Downloading Email Attachments
Attachments are technically separate from the email body, and downloading them is its own step. 📎
In both the desktop app and Outlook on the Web:
- Open the email
- Hover over or click the attachment
- Select Download (web) or Save As (desktop)
In the desktop app, you can also right-click an attachment and choose Save All Attachments if an email contains multiple files — useful for bulk downloads without saving each one individually.
Key Variables That Affect Your Approach
| Factor | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Outlook version | Desktop (Windows/Mac), OWA, or mobile all have different capabilities |
| Account type | Microsoft 365, Exchange, IMAP, and POP3 accounts behave differently |
| File format needed | .msg, .eml, .pst, or PDF each have different compatibility trade-offs |
| Volume | Single email vs. bulk export requires different tools |
| Intended use | Personal archive, legal hold, migration, or sharing changes what format makes sense |
A Note on Mac and Mobile
Outlook for Mac uses .olm files (not .pst) for its export format. The steps are similar — File → Export — but the output is a different container format with slightly different compatibility. Opening an .olm file on a Windows machine requires conversion.
Outlook Mobile (iOS/Android) doesn't currently support downloading individual emails as files. For archiving or exporting from mobile, the desktop or web version is necessary.
When "Downloading" Means Syncing to a Local App
For users on IMAP or Microsoft 365 accounts, there's another layer: email clients can be set to download and cache messages locally rather than always fetching from the server. This isn't the same as saving a file, but it does affect whether your emails remain accessible offline. In Outlook for Windows, the Cached Exchange Mode setting controls this behavior, and the amount of mail downloaded can be adjusted under account settings.
This distinction matters if your goal is offline access rather than creating a saved file copy — the right solution there is a sync or caching setting, not an export.
How you proceed from here depends heavily on which Outlook environment you're working in, what you need the downloaded email for, and whether you're working with a single message or an entire mailbox. Those specifics — your version, your account setup, and your actual end goal — are what determine which method will actually work cleanly for you. 🗂️