How to archive emails in Outlook on Mac
How to archive emails in Outlook on Mac: select them and click Archive in the toolbar, choose Message → Archive, or press Control-E; the messages move to the Archive folder of that account. To put old mail into a file instead, use File → Export, which writes an .olm archive. The .olm opens only in Outlook for Mac, so for emails you want to read anywhere, drag them out as .eml files and save them as PDFs in SaveMail, with nothing uploaded.
Three kinds of archive in Outlook for Mac
Outlook for Mac has no AutoArchive dialog, which is the first thing Windows users look for. What it does have covers the same needs in a different shape.
| Feature | What it does | Where the mail ends up | Frees space? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Archive command | Moves selected messages out of the inbox | Archive folder in the same account | No |
| File → Export (.olm) | Writes a copy of mail, contacts and calendar to a file | An .olm file on disk; originals stay unless you delete them | Yes, after deleting |
| Online Archive | Second mailbox for Microsoft 365 accounts, admin-enabled | Server-side archive mailbox | Yes |
| Save as .eml and convert to PDF | A copy independent of Outlook | Your disk, any format | Yes, after deleting |
The Windows features, including AutoArchive, are compared in how to archive emails in Outlook.
Have the email as a file (EML, MSG, MBOX)? Convert it to PDF in your browser: nothing is uploaded.
How to archive emails in Outlook on Mac with the Archive command
- Select one or more messages in the list. Shift-click selects a range.
- Click Archive in the toolbar, choose Message → Archive from the menu bar, or press Control-E.
- For Gmail, iCloud and other IMAP accounts, the first time Outlook asks which folder should serve as the archive and offers to create one named Archive. Confirm it. Microsoft 365 and Outlook.com accounts already have an Archive folder.
Archived messages remain in the account, searchable with the usual search box, and sync back to the server, so you will see the same Archive folder on your phone and on the web. Nothing is deleted and the mailbox does not get smaller.
Where the archive folder and the archive settings are on Mac
The Archive folder sits in the folder pane under the account, at the same level as Inbox and Sent, named Archive. If it is hidden, scroll the account's folder list or widen the sidebar; for IMAP accounts the folder appears only after the first archive.
The archive settings people search for are mostly the folder assignment: which server folder Outlook treats as Archive for an IMAP account. Open Outlook → Settings → Accounts, select the account, click Advanced, and look for the folder assignments (the Folders tab in older builds), where Archive is one of the special folders you can point at a server folder. For Microsoft 365 accounts the archive and retention behavior is set by your administrator through policies, and Outlook for Mac shows no settings for it.
To create an archive folder yourself, right-click the account name → New Folder, name it Archive, then assign it as above, or simply press Archive once and let Outlook create it.
Export old emails to an .olm archive file
An .olm file is Outlook for Mac's equivalent of a .pst: a single archive of mail, contacts, calendar and tasks.
- Choose File → Export. (Some builds put the same wizard under Tools → Export.)
- Check the item types to include, Mail at least, and whether to restrict by category or date.
- Click Continue, choose a name and location, and Save.
- Wait for the export to finish; large mailboxes take minutes.
The .olm is a copy. To free space, delete the exported messages from Outlook afterward and empty Deleted Items. Restoring is File → Import → Outlook for Mac archive file (.olm). Only Outlook for Mac can open it: Windows Outlook, Apple Mail and browsers cannot, and SaveMail cannot either, which is why the next section exists.
Online Archive on a Mac
If your organization enabled it, a second mailbox called Online Archive appears in the folder pane below your main account. Drag messages or whole folders into it to move them off the primary mailbox, or leave it to the retention policy your administrator set. It is not synced for offline use, so searching it needs a connection. If it is missing, the account's license or policy does not include it; there is no switch in Outlook for Mac to turn it on.
Keep a readable archive outside Outlook
Archive folders and .olm files both depend on Outlook for Mac. For correspondence that must survive a change of computer, a closed account or a handover to someone on Windows, keep ordinary files.
- Select the messages and drag them to a Finder folder. Outlook for Mac writes one .eml per message with the attachments inside.
- Drop an .eml on savemail.app. The file is parsed in the browser tab, no upload, no account. The page shows From, To, Cc, Date, Subject and Message-ID, the body and the attachment list.
- Press Save as PDF; in the macOS print dialog choose Save as PDF. Download the attachments as a ZIP to keep with it.
Converting is one message at a time; a merged PDF of a whole folder is not something SaveMail does. The save email as PDF on Mac guide covers the Apple Mail route, and the email archiving guide covers how to organize the result.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the archive folder in Outlook for Mac?
In the folder pane under the account, next to Inbox and Sent, named Archive. For IMAP accounts it appears after the first time you archive a message.
How do I create an archive folder in Outlook on Mac?
Right-click the account name, choose New Folder and name it Archive, or select a message and press Archive; Outlook offers to create the folder for you.
How do I get to the Outlook archive settings on Mac?
Outlook → Settings → Accounts → select the account → Advanced, where the special folder assignments include Archive. There is no AutoArchive on Mac; Microsoft 365 retention is set by the administrator.
Where is the Outlook archive file located on a Mac?
Archived messages live inside Outlook's profile database under ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/Outlook/, not as a separate file. An .olm file you exported is wherever you saved it.
Can I open an .olm archive on Windows or in a browser?
No. Only Outlook for Mac imports .olm. To share archived mail with others, drag the messages out of Outlook as .eml files and convert them to PDF in SaveMail.
Does archiving free up space in Outlook for Mac?
The Archive command does not; it moves mail within the account. Exporting an .olm and then deleting the messages, or moving them to Online Archive, does.