Convert MBOX to PST Using an Easy Manual Solution

In the previous articles, we have already discussed different types of email conversion like NSF to PST, OST to PST, EDB to PST, and NSF to Office 365. In this article, we will discuss how to convert MBOX to PST manually.

Are you looking for a way to convert MBOX to PST format? If you have not found the right solution yet, this article will help you. I will be sharing an easy manual solution that will help you import MBOX to Outlook. The manual solutions are absolutely free to use so you must try them before purchasing any 3rd party paid software.

What is an MBOX File?

MBOX is an email mailbox file saved in a mail storage format that organizes emails in a single text file. It uses a concatenated format to save email messages, i.e. each email message is stored after another one. MBOX is one of the most flexible file formats, and it is widely supported by various email clients such as Apple Mail, Eudora, Mozilla Thunderbird, OperaMail, SeaMonkey, Entourage, Spicebird, Netscape, Evolution, PocoMail, IncrediMail, Mulberry, Claws Mail, Sylpheed, etc.

 

On the other hand, PST is a different type of file used by Microsoft Outlook, a popular email client. It is one of the most organized file formats. It stores Outlook data such as emails, calendars, tasks, notes, journals, etc. Sometimes a situation may arise where you need to convert MBOX to PST file format. There are various email clients available, and Microsoft Outlook is one of the most popular ones.

Convert MBOX to PST. Why?

There are so many reasons why one needs to switch to Outlook from any other email client that supports the MBOX file format. Let us suppose you are using Apple Mail on Mac. You are not liking the working environment of Mac. You are planning to switch to Windows, and you want to keep your old email data stored in the MBOX file of Apple Mail. Since Apple Mail is supported by Mac only, you cannot use it on a Windows computer. Microsoft Outlook is undeniably the most popular email client among Windows users. But it does not support the MBOX file format, even you cannot directly import MBOX to Outlook. In such a situation, you need to convert MBOX to PST in order to use your old email data in Outlook.

 

Microsoft Outlook is always the best option for Windows users when it comes to choosing an email client. Although there are so many email applications available for Windows users, Outlook is their first choice. The reasons are very simple:

 

  • Microsoft Outlook is not just an email client. It works as a personal information manager that stores your personal information like emails, contacts, calendars, notes, tasks, journals, etc. and organizes them systematically. Many other email applications do not do that.
  • If we talk about Apple Mail, Mozilla Thunderbird or any other email client that supports MBOX file format, most of them do not support password protection. On the other hand, Outlook allows you to protect your PST file with a password.
  • Unlike many other email clients, Microsoft Outlook is easy to use as it contains an interactive user interface.
  • Outlook supports 96 languages while other email applications hardly support a few.

There could be any reason to convert MBOX to PST.

How to Convert MBOX to PST?

If you are planning to switch from Apple Mail to Outlook or from any email client that supports MBOX file format to Outlook, you need to convert MBOX to PST file format. Generally, email conversion is only possible through a 3rd party professional solution. But there are always a few manual solutions that can help you import or export mailbox data from one email client to another. So if you are looking for a free way to import MBOX to Outlook, I will share an easy manual solution here. They do not require any 3rd party MBOX to PST Converter or any other tool.

Manual Solution to Convert MBOX to PST

If you are looking for a way to migrate emails from Apple Mail to Outlook, this manual solution will help you. Since it is a bit lengthy, I have divided it into three parts:

Saving MBOX as EML

First, you need to save MBOX as EML. To do that, follow the steps given below:

 

  • Open Apple Mail and create a new folder where you want to save the email messages.
  • Once you have created the new folder, select the messages that you want to move. You can select multiple messages at a time.
  • Then right-click them and select Move To > Account name > Folder. Now select the folder you have created earlier.
  • All the email messages have been successfully moved to that new folder. Select all the emails, right-click them, and select Save As. In the Save as type option, select the EML format.
  • This will save all the emails into EML format.

Once you have saved MBOX emails to EML format, you need to copy the EML files from Mac to Windows. After that, you can move to the second part of this manual solution.

Moving EML files to Outlook

Now you need to move EML files to Microsoft Outlook. To do that, follow the steps given below:

 

  • Open Microsoft Outlook and browse to the folder where the EML files are stored.
  • You can simply drag and drop the EML files from that folder to any Outlook folder.

You have successfully imported EML files to Outlook. Now you can move to the final step of this manual solution.

Exporting EML to PST

In the final step, you need to export EML files to PST. To do that, follow the steps given below:

 

  • First, open Microsoft Outlook. Then click the File tab on the taskbar. In the options, point to Open and select Import.
  • On the Import and Export Wizard, choose Export to a file in the options and click Next to continue the process.
  • On the Export to a File dialog box, select the file type as Outlook Data File (.pst) and click Next to continue the process.
  • On the Export Outlook Data File dialog box, select the mailbox folder in which the EML files are stored. If it has any subfolders, you can check the option “Include subfolders”. Click the Next to continue the process.
  • Now click Browse to define a location where you want to create a new PST file containing the EML files.
  • Finally, click Finish to start the process.

By using the above manual solution, you can successfully import MBOX to Outlook using any 3rd party MBOX to PST Converter software. There is one more manual solution I will share in the next article. Remember, you should only consider using a professional MBOX to PST Converter tool if the manual solutions do not work.

Conclusion

In this article, we have discussed the MBOX file format and the email clients that support it. Also, we have learned why one should switch to Outlook from any other email client that supports the MBOX file format. The article explained an easy manual solution that can help you import MBOX to Outlook without requiring any 3rd party software.