How to use the MSG to PDF converter
- Load the Outlook messages to convert. The box above takes a single .msg or a whole selection, dropped or chosen from a folder.
- Look over the preview shown for each email.
- Use “Save as PDF” beside the message you want. The print dialog appears; set its destination to “Save as PDF” and choose a folder.
The .msg files are read by JavaScript in your browser and are not uploaded.
What is an MSG file?
An MSG file is an email saved out of Microsoft Outlook in Outlook’s own binary format. It keeps the message, its attachments and Outlook’s internal details together in one file.
That makes it a good backup inside an office that runs Outlook and an awkward thing to give anyone else. A client, an auditor or a records system may have no way to read it. A PDF has none of those problems, which is why a saved Outlook email is so often turned into one.
How do I convert an Outlook email to PDF without Outlook?
Open the .msg file in a tool that can read the format and print it to PDF, which is what this page does. You need only a browser.
The PDF contains:
- the subject, from, to and date at the top
- the message, as text you can select and search
- a list of the attachment names
The attachments themselves are not embedded in the PDF. Download them from the preview and keep them beside it.
When you have several emails, add them together and save them one after another. Each email becomes its own PDF.
If you only want to read the message, the MSG viewer shows it without the print step.
How do I save an email as PDF in Outlook itself?
If you have Outlook, print the message to a PDF printer; in most Windows versions the Save As list does not include PDF.
Outlook on Windows
Open the email, choose File, then Print, select “Microsoft Print to PDF” as the printer and print. Windows asks for a file name and a folder.
Outlook on a Mac
Open the email and choose File, then Print. The Mac print dialog has a PDF option that saves the page as a file.
Which way is better?
| Compared | Printing from Outlook | This converter |
|---|---|---|
| What you need | Outlook installed and able to open the message | A browser |
| Starting point | A message in your mailbox, or a .msg opened in Outlook | A .msg file on your device |
| Attachments | Not part of the PDF | Listed by name, downloaded separately |
Use Outlook when the email is still in your mailbox. Use the converter when all you have is the file, when you are on a device without Outlook, or when the file came from someone else’s mailbox and you would prefer not to open it in your own mail program.
Emails saved as .eml go through the EML to PDF converter.