In Version 16 Outlook for Mac, how do I create a .pst file?

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In Version 16 Outlook for Mac, how do I create a .pst file?

Mark Grossman 20 Microsoft Employee

I don't see how to use .pst files in Outlook for Mac Version 16. The help pages I can find show older Settings menu options.

Moved from: Microsoft 365 and Office | Other

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Jack-Bu 6,865 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi Mark Grossman

Thank you for reaching to Microsoft Q&A regarding your inquiry.

Outlook for Mac does not natively support creating or exporting to .pst files, which are primarily used by Outlook on Windows. Instead, it uses .olm files for archiving and exporting data like emails, contacts, calendar items, tasks, and notes. This is a longstanding limitation, as .pst is a Windows-specific format.

This is the closest equivalent to creating a .pst file and will back up your information for storage or transfer. Ensure you're using the legacy (classic) version of Outlook for Mac, as the "New Outlook" interface (a toggle in newer builds) may not have the export option. For the specific steps, you can refer to: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/export-items-to-an-archive-file-in-outlook-for-mac-281a62bf-cc42-46b1-9ad5-6bda80ca3106

This .olm file can be imported back into Outlook for Mac if needed. For reference, Outlook for Mac can import .pst files (e.g., from Windows), but not the reverse. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/import-email-messages-contacts-and-other-items-into-outlook-for-mac-6cc48404-a65c-4b8c-a12a-95a905249414

Hope this help

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Answer 1

Outlook for Mac does not support the creation of .pst files directly. Instead, you can import .pst files that have been created in Outlook for Windows. If you need to create a .pst file, you will have to do so using Outlook for Windows, and then you can import that file into Outlook for Mac.

To create a .pst file in Outlook for Windows, follow these steps:

Open Outlook 2010 or later.
Go to File, then Open, and select Open Outlook Data File.
Select the folder you want to export.
Click on File, then Options, and choose Advanced.
Select Export, then Export to a file.
Choose Outlook Data File (.pst) and follow the prompts to save your .pst file.

Once you have created the .pst file, you can then import it into Outlook for Mac using the import feature available in the application.