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Export a PST file from Outlook

Outlook for Windows puts a copy of a mailbox, or of a few folders, into a .pst file through its import and export wizard. The steps below are those of classic Outlook for Windows.

Step by step

  1. Open the wizard

    File, Open & Export, Import/Export.

  2. Choose export

    "Export to a file", then "Outlook Data File (.pst)".

  3. Choose what

    Select the whole mailbox or a folder, and tick "Include subfolders".

  4. Choose where

    Give the file's location and name, then Finish.

  5. No password

    Outlook offers an optional password: leave the fields empty and confirm.

Good to know

  • A password-protected PST is not opened by Klarinbox: the protection is not bypassed.
  • If Outlook keeps only part of the mailbox offline (the mail-to-keep-offline setting), the export may hold only that part: check the dates.
  • The new Outlook for Windows and Outlook on the web do not offer this wizard; classic Outlook is needed, or help from the mail administrator.
  • For a departed employee's Microsoft 365 mailbox, the administrator exports it to PST from Microsoft Purview's search and export tools.
  • Outlook for Mac exports to .olm, which Klarinbox does not read.

Then, in Klarinbox

Drop the .pst on Open a PST file: its folders appear, search covers subjects, senders and bodies, and messages marked personal are set aside by default. A generated 6 GB PST shows up there in 4.3 seconds in Edge.

Frequently asked questions

What if Outlook is no longer installed?
The PST opens without Outlook, on Open a PST file. Outlook or the mail administrator is only needed to EXPORT it.